21st January 2008:
Pictured with Paddington Bear is Translink’s Andrew Morrissey, Central Station Rail Manager, celebrating 50 years since he was first found in Paddington Station in London.
To celebrate this very special 50th birthday, BBC Radio 4 are placing 50 Paddington bears in prominent places in train stations around the UK with 3 bears being placed in NIR rail stations across the province.
In exchange for taking the Paddington bears home, the finders will be asked to call BBC Radio 4 and leave a special birthday message about the well loved bear.
It was a whole half century ago that Paddington Bear, in his trademark duffle coat arrived from Darkest Peru and was found at Paddington Station in London. Fifty years of marmalade sandwiches later, he still remains one of Britain’s favourite bears!
To celebrate this very special 50th birthday, BBC Radio 4 are placing 50 Paddington bears in prominent places in train stations around the UK.
N I Railways are delighted to be supporting this campaign with 3 bears being placed in rail stations across the province wearing the label ‘Please Look After this Bear’. The bears will be in place and ready to be found by a prospective owner from 9.30am on Tuesday 22nd January.
In exchange for taking the Paddington bears home, the finders will be asked to call BBC Radio 4 and leave a special birthday message about the well loved bear.
On Saturday 1st March in a special one off programme on BBC Radio 4, children’s author Michael Morpurgo will talk to the finders, hearing how and where they found the bears, their favourite Paddington memories and what Paddington means to them. Interwoven with these stories, we’ll hear from Paddington’s creator Michael Bond about how he came to write A Bear Called Paddington in 1958 and why he thinks the character has stood the test of time.
We’ll also hear archive from the unlikely recipient of the first Paddington Bear soft toy – Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson - whose mother, Shirley, made one for him at Christmas and then went on to run the only factory in the world licensed to produce them.
Note to Editors:
Please Look After This Bear is on BBC Radio 4 on Saturday 1st March at 10.30am and is produced by Susie Matthews for Unique Productions.
Listeners are invited to contact BBC Radio 4 with their memories of Paddington Bear via the freephone number 0800 043 9993, via email at paddington.bear@unique.com, through the website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/paddingtonbear.shtml or through the postal address c/o Unique 50 Lisson Street, London, NW1 5DF
For more information, please contact:
BBC Radio 4 Publicity, 020 7765 5337/3210
Email: radio4publicity@bbc.co.uk
www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice / www.bbc.co.uk/radio4
For Network Rail:
Rebecca Warren, 020 7557 8292/3
Email: mediarelations@networkrail.co.uk
For Translink (Northern Ireland):
Samantha Livingstone, 028 90899455
Email: samantha.livingstone@translink.co.uk
Or Lynda Shannon 028 90 899433
Email: lynda.shannon@translink.co.uk
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