Errol Le Cain
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Errol John Le Cain (5 March 1941 – 3 January 1989) was a
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
animator An animator is an artist who creates multiple images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video gam ...
and
children's book Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...
illustrator. In 1984 he won the prestigious Kate Greenaway Medal for "distinguished illustration in a book for children" for ''Hiawatha's Childhood'' (
Faber and Faber Faber and Faber Limited, usually abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in London. Published authors and poets include T. S. Eliot (an early Faber editor and director), W. H. Auden, Margaret Storey, William Golding, Samuel B ...
).


Biography

Descended from a French-Canadian great-grandfather, Le Cain was born 5 March 1941 to John and Minnie Le Cain in
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
but evacuated to
Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...
, India with his mother and other relations the following year to escape the Japanese invasion. His father was captured and interned in
Changi Prison Changi Prison Complex, often known simply as Changi Prison, is a prison in Changi in the eastern part of Singapore. History First prison Before Changi Prison was constructed, the only penal facility in Singapore was at Pearl's Hill, beside t ...
. Returning to Singapore after the war, he attended St. Patrick's Catholic School. With no formal art education, his talent was nevertheless evident from an early age; Le Cain was fascinated by cinema and made his first animated film, ''The Enchanted Mouse'', with a friend's 8-mm camera at age 11. His next work, ''The Little Goatherd'', was created with a 16-mm camera at age 15. This came to the attention of agents for British film distributor
Pearl & Dean Pearl & Dean is a British cinema advertising company, founded in 1953. Pearl & Dean is now owned by Willowbrook Investments Ltd, and controls advertising at many UK cinema sites including multiplex operators Empire, Showcase and AMC; the company ...
, who offered to pay his passage to London that year (1956) to pursue a career in animation for film and television.'The Dictionary of 20th Century Book Illustrators', Alan Horne (Antique Collectors Club) 1994, p.289 In 1965 he joined the animation studio of Richard Williams, and in 1968 his first children's book was published. The following year he became a freelance illustrator and set designer for television. He married Dean Alison Thomson in 1976, after some time in Herne Bay the couple eventually settled in a suburb of
Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
with their two children. A committed Buddhist dating from his time in India, Errol le Cain died after a long illness on 3 January 1989, aged 47.


Animation and TV work

In 1965, Le Cain joined Richard Williams's animation studio in London and was put to work on his first short film, '' Sailor and The Devil'' (1967). Thereafter he worked on a wide range of animation projects, including film titles for '' A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'', '' Casino Royale'', and ''
The Charge of the Light Brigade The Charge of the Light Brigade was a failed military action involving the British light cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War. Lord Raglan had intended to s ...
''. His most important work with Richard Williams was for the unfinished (1964 to 1992) animated film ''
The Thief and the Cobbler ''The Thief and the Cobbler'' is an unfinished animated fantasy film co-written and directed by Richard Williams. Originally conceived in the 1960s, the film was in and out of production for nearly three decades due to independent funding and ...
''. Le Cain turned freelance in 1969, working on sets for
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
television productions, continuing with animation projects, and beginning his career as a children's book illustrator. His animation work for the BBC began with a production of Hans Christian Andersen's ''
The Snow Queen "The Snow Queen" ( da, Snedronningen) is an original fairy tale by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. It was first published 21 December 1844 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. Second Collection'' (''Nye Eventyr. Første Bind. Anden Samli ...
'', first broadcast on BBC2 on Christmas Day 1976, using live actors over backdrops designed by Le Cain. A picture-book version of the story with his illustrations was published by Viking Kestrel in 1979. This production was followed by ''The Light Princess'' (broadcast 24 December 1978 BBC2), ''The Mystery of the Disappearing Schoolgirls'' (28 December 1980) and
Leon Garfield Leon Garfield FRSL (14 July 1921 – 2 June 1996) was a British writer of fiction. He is best known for children's historical novels, though he also wrote for adults. He wrote more than thirty books and scripted '' Shakespeare: The Animated Ta ...
's ''The Ghost Downstairs'' (broadcast 26 December 1982 on BBC2).


Children's book illustration

According to Phyllis Hunt, Le Cain's long-term editor at Faber, the major part of his time was spent on his animation work and he regarded his children's books "as holidays". Le Cain's first children's illustrations were published by
Faber and Faber Faber and Faber Limited, usually abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in London. Published authors and poets include T. S. Eliot (an early Faber editor and director), W. H. Auden, Margaret Storey, William Golding, Samuel B ...
in a story he'd originally storyboarded for film, ''King Arthur's Sword'' (1968), which began a long association with Faber that continued to his death. His first book "made me aware of the scope and possibilities of children's book illustration, and now I am convinced this is the medium for me". Le Cain wrote 3 and illustrated 48 children's books during his lifetime, recognised for their richly decorative watercolours and masterful command of design and colour. His self-authored works were ''King Arthur's Sword'' (1968), ''The Cabbage Princess'' (1969) and ''The White Cat'' (1973). He was commended for the 1969, 1975, and 1978 Greenaway awards before winning the 1984 Medal and was commended again for 1987. The four commended books were ''The Cabbage Princess''; ''Thorn Rose, or the Sleeping Beauty'' based on the version related by the
Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm (1786–1859), were a brother duo of German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers, and authors who together collected and published folklore. They are among the ...
; ''The Twelve Dancing Princesses'', retold from the Brothers Grimm; and ''The Enchanter's Daughter'' by
Antonia Barber Antonia Barber (real name Barbara Anthony; 10 December 1932 - 4 April 2019), was an English author of books for children and adults. Barber resided in Kent and Mousehole, Cornwall. Her book ''The Mousehole Cat'' was adapted as an animated film a ...
.


Selected children's books


As writer and illustrator

* ''King Arthur's Sword'' (Faber, 1968)"King Arthur's sword"
WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...
. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
* ''The Cabbage Princess'' (Faber, 1969) —commended for the Kate Greenaway Medal * ''The White Cat'' (Faber, 1973)


As illustrator only

* ''
The Pleasantries of the Incredible Mulla Nasrudin ''The Pleasantries of the Incredible Mullah Nasrudin'' is a book by the writer Idries Shah, Article has moved and is now incorrectly dated 18 September 2011. based on lectures he delivered at the University of Geneva as Visiting Professor in 1972 ...
'', written by
Idries Shah Idries Shah (; hi, इदरीस शाह, ps, ادريس شاه, ur, ; 16 June 1924 – 23 November 1996), also known as Idris Shah, né Sayed Idries el- Hashimi (Arabic: سيد إدريس هاشمي) and by the pen name Ark ...
, illustrated by Richard Williams and Le Cain;"The pleasantries of the incredible Mulla Nasrudin,"
WorldCat. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
( Jonathan Cape, 1968) * ''Sir Orfeo'', written by Anthea Davies (Faber, 1970) * ''The Faber Book of Children's Songs'', selected by Donald Mitchell and Roderick Biss (Faber, 1970) * ''The Child in the Bamboo Grove'', written by
Rosemary Harris Rosemary Ann Harris (born 19 September 1927) is an English actress. She is the recipient of such accolades as a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. In ...
(Faber, 1971) * ''Cinderella'', adapted from Charles Perrault (Faber, 1972) * ''The Beachcomers'', written by
Helen Cresswell Helen Cresswell (11 July 1934 – 26 September 2005) was an English television scriptwriter and author of more than 100 children's books, best known for comedy and supernatural fiction. Her most popular book series, '' Lizzie Dripping'' and '' T ...
(Faber, 1972) * ''The King's White Elephant'', written by
Rosemary Harris Rosemary Ann Harris (born 19 September 1927) is an English actress. She is the recipient of such accolades as a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. In ...
(Faber, 1973) * ''King Orville and the Bullfrogs'', written by Kathleen Abell (Faber, 1974) * ''Dragon Kite'', written by Thomas P. Lewis (Holt, 1974) * ''The Lotus and the Grail: Legends from East to West'', written by
Rosemary Harris Rosemary Ann Harris (born 19 September 1927) is an English actress. She is the recipient of such accolades as a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. In ...
(Faber, 1974) * ''Thorn Rose, or the Sleeping Beauty'', adapted from
The Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm (1786–1859), were a brother duo of German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers, and authors who together collected and published folklore. They are among th ...
(Faber, 1975) —commended for the Greenaway * ''The Flying Ship'', by
Rosemary Harris Rosemary Ann Harris (born 19 September 1927) is an English actress. She is the recipient of such accolades as a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. In ...
(Faber, 1975) * ''The Rat, the Ox, and the Zodiac: A Chinese Legend'', written by Dorothy Van Woerkom (Crown, 1976) * ''The Little Dog of Fo'', by
Rosemary Harris Rosemary Ann Harris (born 19 September 1927) is an English actress. She is the recipient of such accolades as a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. In ...
(Faber, 1976) * ''Puffin's Pleasure'', written by
Kaye Webb Kathleen ("Kaye") Webb (26 January 1914 – 16 January 1996), was a British editor and publisher. She was a recipient of the Eleanor Farjeon Award. Early life and education Kathleen Webb was born in Chiswick, London, in 1914, the second of ...
and Treld Bicknell (Le Cain contributor), (Puffin, 1976) * ''The Shy Cormorant and the Fishes'', written by
Brian Patten Brian Patten (born 7 February 1946) is an English poet and author. He came to prominence in the 1960s as one of the Liverpool poets, and writes primarily lyrical poetry about human relationships. His famous works include "Little Johnny's Confessi ...
(Kestrel, 1977) * ''The Twelve Dancing Princesses'', adapted from
The Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm (1786–1859), were a brother duo of German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers, and authors who together collected and published folklore. They are among th ...
(Faber, 1978) —commended for the Greenaway * ''Beauty and The Beast'', adapted from Charles Perrault (Faber, 1979) * ''The Snow Queen'', adapted from Hans Christian Andersen by
Naomi Lewis Naomi Lewis (3 September 1911 – 5 July 2009) was a British poet, essayist, literary critic, anthologist and reteller of stories for children. She is particularly noted for her translations of the Danish children's author, Hans Christian A ...
(Viking Kestrel, 1979) * ''The Three Magic Gifts'', written by
James Riordan James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...
(Kaye & Ward, 1980) * ''Mrs Fox's Wedding'', retold by Sara and Stephen Corrin (Faber, 1980) * ''Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp'', retold by
Andrew Lang Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 – 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University o ...
(Faber, 1981) * ''Molly Whuppie'', written by
Walter De La Mare Walter John de la Mare (; 25 April 1873 – 22 June 1956) was an English poet, short story writer, and novelist. He is probably best remembered for his works for children, for his poem "The Listeners", and for a highly acclaimed selection of ...
(Faber, 1983) * ''Hiawatha's Childhood'', selected from
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl ...
(Faber, 1984) —winner of the
Greenaway Medal The Kate Greenaway Medal is a British literary award that annually recognises "distinguished illustration in a children's literature, book for children". It is conferred upon the illustrator by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information ...
* ''Growltiger's Last Stand and Other Poems'', written by
T.S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National B ...
(Faber, 1986) * ''Crisis at Crabtree'', written by Sally Miles (Lutterworth Press, 1986) * ''A School Bewitched'', written by
Naomi Lewis Naomi Lewis (3 September 1911 – 5 July 2009) was a British poet, essayist, literary critic, anthologist and reteller of stories for children. She is particularly noted for her translations of the Danish children's author, Hans Christian A ...
and
E. Nesbit Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland; 15 August 1858 – 4 May 1924) was an English writer and poet, who published her books for children as E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on more than 60 such books. She was also a political activist a ...
(Macmillan, 1986) * ''The Enchanter's Daughter'', written by
Antonia Barber Antonia Barber (real name Barbara Anthony; 10 December 1932 - 4 April 2019), was an English author of books for children and adults. Barber resided in Kent and Mousehole, Cornwall. Her book ''The Mousehole Cat'' was adapted as an animated film a ...
(Cape, 1986) —commended for the Greenaway * ''The Christmas Stockings'', written by Mathew Price (Mathew Price / Barrons Juveniles, 1987) * ''Christmas 1993 or Santa's Last Ride'', written by
Leslie Bricusse Leslie Bricusse OBE (; 29 January 1931 – 19 October 2021) was a British composer, lyricist, and playwright who worked on theatre musicals and wrote theme music for films. He was best known for writing the music and lyrics for the films '' Do ...
(Faber, 1987) * ''Alfi and the Dark'', written by Sally Miles ( Hodder & Stoughton, 1988) * ''The Pied Piper of Hamelin'', retold by Sara and Stephen Corrin (Faber, 1988) * ''Mr Mistoffelees with Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer'', written by
T.S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National B ...
(Faber, 1990) * ''Have You Seen My Sister?'', written by Mathew Price (Kingfisher / Harcourt, 1990)


Notes


References

;Citations * ''Errol Le Cain, The Enchanter of Images'' (
Holp Shuppan is a publishing company headquartered in Misaki-cho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. It is a subsidiary of GAIA Holdings Corporation. , the company has published children’s books and sold reference works. The name is an acronym for "Home Library Production" ...
, Japan 1992) * Veronica Ortenberg West-Harling, "Errol Le Cain's Fairy Tales as Manuscript Illustration", in
Cahier Calin: Makers of the Middle Ages. Essays in Honor of William Calin
', ed. Richard Utz and Elizabeth Emery (Kalamazoo, MI: Studies in Medievalism, 2011), pp. 33–35


External links


Collecting Errol Le Cain - A Complete Illustrated Bibliography

The Illustrated Work of Errol Le Cain
(''errollecain.com''), archived 2012-06-05
Books for Keeps Interview with Penny Sibson
Issue 47. 1987.
Errol Le Cain Legacy
fan site *
Obituary tribute
by Phyllis Hunt in Books for Keeps Issue 55 {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Cain, Errol British illustrators British animators British children's book illustrators 20th-century illustrators of fairy tales Kate Greenaway Medal winners 1941 births 1989 deaths