George Webster discusses his picture book debut which celebrates friendship and difference

There are many impressive people writing children’s books at the moment, and they are all impressive in different ways, but there are not many who are also TV presenters, Mencap ambassadors, actors and soon-to-be “Strictly Come Dancing” contestants, all at the tender age of 22. George Webster, who also has Down Syndrome, is all of these things, and his début picture book, co-authored by Claire Taylor and illustrated by Tim Budgen, will be published by Scholastic next year.

This is Me is about a little boy called George who has Down Syndrome, and the book follows him as he goes about his everyday life, playing in the park and hanging out with his friends and family. George tells the reader all about himself and his friends, and explains that having Down Syndrome is an important part of him but does not define him.

The cast of characters is diverse and inclusive, which Webster says was really important to him. “I’ve got friends with Down Syndrome and I’ve got some who don’t have Down Syndrome, a mix of all different friends,” says the author, who attended a mainstream school all the way from primary through to secondary. “I wanted to have everyone included, even showing different likes and dislikes, because it’s important to have that as well.”

When I got the call to say that George and Scholastic wanted me to work with George on the book, that was an amazing day. And the rest is history

Scholastic got in touch with Webster after seeing his work on CBeebies, including a poem he read out that contains the lines: “The team have treated me like anyone else / They have allowed me to shine and be myself / Acceptance, encouragement and inclusivity / Are the three special things that allow me to be me.” The poem, which went viral, racking up more than 430,000 views on Facebook alone, was written by Taylor, Webster’s producer and long-term collaborator at CBeebies, and it was Taylor who hired Webster to present in the first place.

She first saw Webster on camera when he did a piece for BBC Bitesize dispelling myths around Down Syndrome and was “blown away”, she says. “I saw [the video] pop up on the CBeebies social media and I thought, ‘Oh goodness, he would make the most amazing presenter for our channel—CBeebies is missing someone like George.’ At that point I got in touch with the Bitesize team, and consequently George’s agent, and that was the beginning of working together.
“When I got the call to say that George and Scholastic wanted me to work with George on the book, that was an amazing day. And the rest is history.”

Webster says making his first book was an “exciting, magical” experience and that collaborating with Taylor and illustrator Budgen was the best thing about the whole process. The story came together organically, with Taylor and Webster fitting in meetings either at the BBC headquarters or on Zoom, where they discussed Down Syndrome and how George lives his life. Taylor also spent time talking to George’s parents and sister to get their perspective, too.

Once they had the text written, the story was sent to Budgen, whose previous books include Twenty Elves at Bedtime and Who Will You Meet on Halloween Street? First Budgen came up with a pictorial representation of George, working out how he would look as a picture book character. Eight or nine different versions went back and forth between Budgen and his collaborators before they settled on the final look, he says. Then he started working on the other characters, many of whom were based on George’s friends and family, and creating various spreads.

Getting it right

This is Me was the most collaborative picture book Budgen has ever worked on. “We talked about what we wanted to show on each spread, and there was a discussion with Claire and George and his family about how the children looked, and what everyone wanted in each scene,” the illustrator says. “Usually, it’s just a case of what the publisher wants but here it was a big thing to get everyone on board.”

For Budgen, this process of back and forth was a learning curve, but one that was both necessary and enjoyable because, as he says, illustrators are not often used to depicting children with different disabilities. “It was the correct thing to do, and there was a lot of research involved because I want to get it right. Not just for [George] and his family, but for all children with disabilities.”

I feel very proud—and grateful—to work with Tim and Claire, it was brilliant. It was magical seeing the [final] book for the first time

Webster and Taylor requested that Budgen include a child who uses eye gaze technology (which is when a person uses the movement of their eyes to operate a laptop, computer or speech-generating device).

“Tim was so patient throughout this process of representing George and his friends with Down Syndrome, because it’s not actually stated in the text,” says Taylor. “It’s important that we visually see that without us having to say, ‘We’re different’, because we are all brilliant in our own way.”

Webster and Taylor signed a two-book deal for Scholastic, but no details have been given about book two so far, and Taylor cannot yet say how or if CBeebies will mark the publication of a picture book by one of its star presenters. There will, however, be a marketing and publicity campaign from Scholastic, which will be pitching the book at all the big festivals with events that involve live drawing, and Budgen has already signed up to do a shop window at Tales on Moon Lane, an independent bookshop in Herne Hill, south London. For Webster, making a book was a “magnificent” and very exciting achievement. “I feel very proud—and grateful—to work with Tim and Claire, it was brilliant. It was magical seeing the [final] book for the first time.”