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{{short description|British author and illustrator (1949–2021)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox writer
|name = Jill Murphy
|image=Jill_Murphy_uk_author.png
|alma_mater = [[Chelsea Art School]]; [[Croydon School of Art]]
|occupation = Author, illustrator
|notableworks = ''[[The Worst Witch]]'' series<br/>''The Large Family'' series
|awards = [[Kate Greenaway Medal]]<br/>[[Smarties Prize]]
|birth_name = Jill Frances Murphy
|birth_date = {{birth date|1949|07|05|df=y}} 
|birth_place = [[Merton Park]], Surrey, England
|death_date = {{death date and age|2021|08|18|1949|07|05|df=y}}
|death_place = [[Treliske]], Cornwall, England
|years_active = 1970–2021
|spouse = {{marriage|Peter Wilks|1971|1979|end = div}}<br/>{{marriage|[[Roger Michell (studio potter)|Roger Michell]]|1988|1994|end = div}}
|children = 1
}}
'''Jill Frances Murphy''' (5 July 1949 – 18 August 2021) was a British author and illustrator of children's books.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Eccleshare |first=Julia |date=2021-08-22 |title=Jill Murphy obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/aug/22/jill-murphy-obituary |access-date=2024-11-24 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> First published by [[Allison & Busby]] in 1974, she was best known for the [[The Worst Witch|''Worst Witch'' novels]] and ''Large Family'' picture books, with sales amounting to several millions. Her books were adapted for stage and television. She was called "one of the most engaging writers and illustrators for children in the land".<ref>[[Kate Kellaway|Kellaway, Kate]] (30 October 2005). [http://books.guardian.co.uk/reviews/childrenandteens/0,,1604348,00.html "The witch is back in town"] (review of ''The Worst Witch Saves the Day''). ''[[The Observer]]''. Retrieved 17 April 2008.</ref>

==Biography==
===Early life===
Born in [[Merton Park]], Surrey, the daughter of Reeney (Irene) and Eric Murphy, Jill Frances Murphy was brought up in [[Chessington]], Surrey.<ref name = ODNB>{{cite ODNB|title = Murphy, Jill Frances (1949–2021), author and illustrator of children's book|date = 2025|last = Eccleshare|first = Julia|doi = 10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.90000382793}}</ref><ref name="Guardian">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/aug/22/jill-murphy-obituary|title=Jill Murphy obituary|first=Julia|last=Eccleshare|author-link=Julia Eccleshare|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=22 August 2021}}</ref> Reminiscing about growing up in post-war Britain, she said: "I had a classic 1950s childhood. My mum was at home, because in those days that's what mums did. My dad worked in an aircraft factory. He was up really early in the morning, came home exhausted at night and I didn't really see him".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/aug/22/i-feel-so-lucky-in-conversation-with-the-late-beloved-jill-murphy|title='I feel so lucky': in conversation with the late, beloved Jill Murphy|newspaper=The Observer|first=Donna|last=Ferguson|date=22 August 2022}}</ref> She won a scholarship to the Roman Catholic grammar school in Wimbledon.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|date=August 24, 2021|title=Jill Murphy Obituary|newspaper=[[The Times]]|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/jill-murphy-obituary-hj0r07th8|access-date=September 2, 2021}}</ref> She showed an interest in writing and drawing at the age of 6; although not excelling in other school subjects, she had made her own enormous library of hand-written and illustrated books while still at primary school.<ref>Carlyle, Rachel (4 October 2015), [http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/life/609509/Bestselling-children-author-Jill-Murphy-Virgin-Christmas-Train-design-competition "Bestselling children's author Jill Murphy: I have never thought about retiring"], ''Daily Express''.</ref> She enjoyed reading [[boarding-school]] stories, which provided material and inspiration for Miss Cackle's Academy in the ''Worst Witch'' series, as did the [[Ursuline High School, Wimbledon]], which she attended.<ref name=images/> She grew up as a [[Roman Catholic]], but she did not practise the faith in later years.<ref name=Brown>Brown, Helen (27 July 2019), [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/theatre/what-to-see/worst-witch-author-jill-murphymy-aunt-told-difficult-child-like/ "The Worst Witch author Jill Murphy: 'I have never liked being told what to do'"], ''The Telegraph''.</ref> Her stay-at-home mother was a "book maniac" and her father was an Irish engineer.<ref name=craig>{{cite news |last=Craig|first=A. |title=Parenting: The Longest Goodbye |newspaper=[[The Times]] |date=16 October 2005 |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/article578865.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524041325/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/article578865.ece|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 May 2011| access-date=17 April 2008 |location=London}}</ref>

===''The Worst Witch''===
Murphy started to write ''[[The Worst Witch]]'' – "the magical tale of an accident-prone girl attempting to navigate the magical codes and murky corridors of Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches"<ref name=Brown /> – while still at school (Murphy admitted to having herself been the model for her protagonist Mildred Hubble),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2021/08/20/1029831912/jill-murphy-worst-witch-dies-at-72|title=Jill Murphy, Author Of 'The Worst Witch' And 'Five Minutes Peace', Has Died At 72|first=Elizabeth|last=Blair|publisher=[[NPR]]|date=20 August 2021|access-date=28 February 2022}}</ref> but put the book on hold while she attended [[Chelsea Art School|Chelsea]] and [[Croydon School of Art|Croydon Art School]]s.<ref>[http://www.walker.co.uk/contributors/Jill-Murphy-1566.aspx "Jill Murphy"], Walker Books.</ref> She continued to write it during a year living in a village in [[Togo]], West Africa, and later while working as a nanny back in the UK. After receiving rejection letters from publishers to whom she offered the book (as she recalls, "They said children would be frightened about a school for witches..."),<ref>Whiting, Kate (5 December 2015), [http://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsfilmtv/books/book-reviewfive-minutes-peace-369526.html "Book review: Five Minutes Peace"], ''Irish Examiner''.</ref> in 1970 when she was 21 she decided to try the new young company [[Allison & Busby]] (founded by Clive Allison and [[Margaret Busby]]),<ref>Kingshill, Katie (7 September 2011), [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/clive-allison-publisher-whose-eclectic-imprint-was-in-the-vanguard-of-independent-houses-2350183.html?playVideo=true "Clive Allison: Publisher whose eclectic imprint was in the vanguard of independent houses"] (obituary), ''[[The Independent]]''.</ref><ref>Vincent, Alice (31 October 2014), [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/booknews/11198259/An-oral-history-of-The-Worst-Witch.html "An oral history of The Worst Witch"], ''The Telegraph''.</ref> as the result of a series of coincidences involving Murphy having spent time in Ghana, and a friend meeting Ghanaian Margaret Busby at a party in London.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.teachwire.net/news/getting-published-takes-perseverence-and-luck-says-worst-witch-author-illustrator-jill-murphy|title='Getting Published takes Perseverence and Luck' says Worst Witch Author Illustrator Jill Murphy|website=TeachWire|date=17 June 2019|access-date=28 February 2022}}</ref> Murphy said she was "thrilled to find the publishers were quirky like me",<ref name=Brown /> as she further revealed in an interview with ''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]'': "They accepted it immediately, and printed 5,000 copies, and I remember wondering how many aunts and uncles I had, and what we would do with the rest."<ref>Bridgewater, Daisy (6 March 2014), [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/mother-tongue/10681538/Childrens-notebook-the-enduring-charms-of-Mildred-Hubble.html "Children's notebook: the enduring charms of Mildred Hubble"], ''The Telegraph''.</ref> The book proved an instant success with both critics and readers (Murphy recalled that she "immediately got a lot of fan letters and the whole thing took off like a rocket"),<ref name="Guardian" /><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.edp24.co.uk/things-to-do/20782720.worst-witch-author-jill-murphy-just-like-mildred-hubble/|title=The Worst Witch author Jill Murphy on why she is just like Mildred Hubble|first=Louisa|last=Baldwin|newspaper=[[Eastern Daily Press]]|date=17 April 2019}}</ref> selling out within two months of publication in 1974.<ref name="Carey interview">{{cite magazine|last=Carey|first=Joanna|url=https://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/BfK-136-September-2002001.pdf|title=Authorgraph No.136: Jill Murphy {{!}} Jill Murphy interviewed by Joanna Carey|website=Books For Keeps|number=136|date=September 2002|pages=8–9|access-date=20 August 2021}}</ref> Murphy continued working as a nanny until Allison & Busby's publication in 1980 of ''[[The Worst Witch Strikes Again]]'' prompted her to devote herself to writing full-time.<ref name=images/>

The ''Worst Witch'' stories have become some of the most successful titles on the [[Puffin Books|Young Puffin]] paperback list and had sold more than three million copies by 2008,<ref>Interviews by Rebecca Armstrong: [https://www.independent.co.uk/extras/sunday-review/regulars/how-we-met-jill-murphy-katharine-holabird-5482887.html "How We Met: Jill Murphy & Katharine Holabird"], ''The Independent'', 3 May 2008.</ref> and more than five million worldwide as of 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.juniormagazine.co.uk/shopping/junior-meets-author-jill-murphy-as-the-seventh-worst-witch-book-is-published/|title=5 Minute Chats: Author Jill Murphy and her new Worst Witch book|website=Junior|first=Catherine|last=Hudson|date=8 October 2016|access-date=28 February 2022}}</ref> Several adaptations of ''The Worst Witch'' were made, starting in 1986 with a television film of the [[The Worst Witch (TV movie)|same title]], premiering on [[ITV (TV channel)|ITV]]. It later aired on [[Disney Channel]] during the 1990s around the time of [[Halloween]]. Other adaptations include an [[ITV (TV channel)|ITV]] series, broadcast on [[CITV]] between 1998 and 2001 (followed by its two spin-offs in 2001 and 2005), and another in 2017 on [[CBBC]].

A musical stage production called ''The Worst Witch Live'', adapted by Emma Reeves from Murphy's original work,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/westend/article/THE-WORST-WITCH-Flies-Into-The-West-End-For-A-Strictly-Limited-Season-20190403|title=THE WORST WITCH Flies Into The West End For A Strictly Limited Season|first=Stephi|last=Wild|work=[[Broadway World]]|date=3 April 2019|access-date=22 August 2021}}</ref> was shown at the [[Royal & Derngate]] Theatre in [[Northampton]] as a Christmas show in 2018, and toured the UK in 2019 across some 16 different venues, including at the [[Vaudeville Theatre]] in London's West End from 24 July to 8 September 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.davidhigham.co.uk/film-news-dh/the-worst-witch-live-transfers-to-the-west-end/|title=The Worst Witch Live Transfers to the Wet End|publisher=David Higham|date=2019|access-date=22 August 2021}}</ref> The show received an [[Olivier Award]] for best family show in 2020.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britishtheatreguide.info/news/worst-witch-wins-olivier-for-n-12525|title=Worst Witch wins Olivier for Northampton theatre|first=Steve|last=Orme|date=26 October 2020|access-date=28 February 2022}}</ref>

===Picture books===
Murphy was also known for picture books, especially the ''Large Family'' series, which detail the domestic chaos of an elephant family. First published in 1986, ''Five Minutes Peace'' has sold more than five million copies worldwide and has been translated into 19 languages.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0717gdv Jill Murphy interview] ("2016 marks the 30th anniversary of the classic children's picture book, Five Minutes Peace by Jill Murphy"), ''[[Woman's Hour]]'', [[BBC Radio 4]], 25 February 2016.</ref> For the second book, ''All in One Piece'' (1987), she was a commended runner-up for the [[Greenaway Medal]] from the [[CILIP|British Library Association]], recognising the year's best children's book by a [[British subject]] (the second of her two commendations).<ref name=ccsu/>{{efn|name=HC}} ''[[The Large Family]]'' is now a television series on [[CBeebies]] and [[ABC Kids (US)|ABC Kids]]. In 1996, ''The Last Noo-Noo'' was adapted as a play and performed at the [[Polka Theatre]], London.<ref name=images/>

Murphy also wrote ''Dear Hound'' (2009), about a deerhound who goes missing after a storm and the quest for his owners to find him.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/cornwall/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_8594000/8594631.stm "Worst Witch author writes Hound Dog story"], BBC Cornwall, 30 March 2010.</ref>

==Personal life==
Murphy was married and divorced twice, first to Peter Wilks from 1971 to 1979, then to potter [[Roger Michell (studio potter)|Roger Michell]] from 1988 to 1994.<ref name = ODNB/> Her son Charlie was born in 1990, from her second marriage.<ref name="Guardian" /><ref name="Michell">{{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2018/may/21/roger-michell-obituary |title=Roger Michell obituary |last=Michell |first=Julia |date=21 May 2018 |website=The Guardian |language=en |access-date=5 June 2018}}</ref> She lived in [[St Mabyn]], Cornwall,<ref name=Brown /><ref>Rees, Gareth (26 April 2016), [https://www.cornwalllife.co.uk/home/the-worst-witch-s-jill-murphy-1-5173007 "The Worst Witch's Jill Murphy"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204072803/https://www.cornwalllife.co.uk/home/the-worst-witch-s-jill-murphy-1-5173007 |date=4 December 2020}}, ''Cornwall Life''.</ref><ref>Steafel, Eleanor (6 October 2016), [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/family/parenting/worst-witch-author-jill-murphy-reading-a-book-with-a-child-is-st/ "Worst Witch author Jill Murphy: reading a book with a child is still nicer than sticking them in front of an iPad"], ''The Times''.</ref> and died at the [[Royal Cornwall Hospital]] from breast cancer on 18 August 2021, aged 72.<ref name = ODNB/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.panmacmillan.com/blogs/books-for-children/beloved-author-jill-murphy-dies-peacefully|title=Beloved children's author and illustrator Jill Murphy dies peacefully following a long struggle with cancer|publisher=[[Pan MacMillan]]|date=20 August 2021|access-date=20 August 2021}}</ref><ref name="BBC">{{cite news |title=Jill Murphy: The Worst Witch and Large family author dies at 72 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-58283965 |access-date=20 August 2021 |work=BBC News |date=20 August 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.thebookseller.com/news/jill-murphy-author-worst-witch-dies-aged-72-1277821|title=Jill Murphy, author of The Worst Witch, dies aged 72|first=Sian|last=Bayley|magazine=[[The Bookseller]]|date=20 August 2021|access-date=22 August 2021}}</ref>

==Honours and recognition==
In 2007, Murphy received an honorary fellowship from [[University College Falmouth]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Postgraduate Awards Day |work=2007 news archive |publisher=Combined Universities in Cornwall |year=2007 |url=http://www.cuc.ac.uk/news/2007-news-archive/postgraduate-awards-day.htm |access-date=17 September 2008}}{{dead link|date=April 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/back-on-top-after-a-bad-spell-qwhjsc6qx2q|title=Back on top after a bad spell|first=Laura|last=Deeley|newspaper=[[The Times]]|date=27 October 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/aug/20/jill-murphy-childrens-author-and-illustrator-dies-aged-72|title=Jill Murphy, children's author and illustrator, dies aged 72|first=Weronika|last=Strzyżyńska|newspaper=The Guardian|date=20 August 2020}}</ref>

==Book awards==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Book
! Award
! Achievement
|-
| 1980
| ''Peace at Last''
| [[Kate Greenaway Medal]] — the British [[CILIP|Library Association]] annual award for children's book illustration
| Commended<ref name=ccsu/>{{efn|name=HC}}
|-
| 1986
| ''Five Minutes' Peace''
| Children's Book Award
| Shortlisted
|-
| 1987
| ''Five Minutes' Peace''
| ''Parents Magazine'' Best Books for Babies Award
| Winner
|-
| 1987
|'' All in One Piece''
| Kate Greenaway Medal
| Commended<ref name=ccsu/>{{efn|name=HC}}
|-
| 1987
|'' All in One Piece''
| Children's Book Award
| Shortlisted
|-
| 1994
| ''A Quiet Night In''
| Kate Greenaway Medal
| Shortlisted
|-
| 1995
| ''The Last Noo-Noo''
| [[Smarties Prize]] (ages 0–5)
| Winner
|-
| 1995
| ''The Last Noo-Noo''
| English 4–11 Outstanding Children's Book of the Year
| Shortlisted
|-
| 1996
| ''The Last Noo-Noo''
| Sheffield Children's Book Award
| Winner<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sheffieldchildrensbookaward.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html|title=Winners' Archive Picture Books {{!}} 1996 Category Winner|website=Sheffield Children's Book Award|access-date=26 April 2022}}</ref>
|-
| 1996
| ''The Last Noo-Noo''
| Gateshead Gold Award
| Winner
|}

== Works ==
{{Col-begin}}
{{Col-break}}
;The Worst Witch
{{main |The Worst Witch}}
*1. ''[[The Worst Witch (book)|The Worst Witch]]'' (1974)
*2. ''[[The Worst Witch Strikes Again]]'' (1980)
*3. ''[[A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch]]'' (1982)
*4. ''[[The Worst Witch All at Sea]]'' (1993)
*5. ''[[The Worst Witch Saves the Day]]'' (2005)
*6. ''[[The Worst Witch to the Rescue]]'' (2007)
*7. ''[[The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star]]'' (2013)
*8. ''First Prize for the Worst Witch'' (2018)

;Large Family picture books
*''Five Minutes' Peace'' (1986)
*''All in One Piece'' (1987)
*''A Piece of Cake'' (1989)
*''A Quiet Night In'' (1993)
*''Mr. Large in Charge'' (2005)
*''Laura Bakes a Cake'' (2008)
*''Luke Tidies Up'' (2008)
*''Lester Learns a Lesson'' (2008)
*''Lucy Meets Mr Chilly'' (2008)
*''Grandpa In Trouble'' (2009)
*''Sebastian's Sleepover'' (2009)
{{further|topic=the television series based on the books|The Large Family}}
{{Col-break}}

;Non-series novels
*''Worlds Apart'' (1988)
*''Jeffrey Strangeways'' (1992)
*''Dear Hound'' (2009)

;Non-series picture books
*''Peace at Last'' (1980)
*''On the Way Home'' (1982)
*''Whatever Next!'' (1983)
*''The Last Noo-Noo'' (1995)
*''All for One'' (2002)
*''Mother Knows Best!'' (2011)
*''Meltdown!'' (2016)
*''Just One of Those Days'' (2020)
{{col-end}}

==See also==
{{Portal bar | Children's literature | Speculative fiction | Visual arts}}

==Notes==
{{notelist |notes=
{{efn|name=HC |1=
Today there are usually eight books on the Greenaway Medal shortlist.
According to CCSU, some runners-up were Commended (from 1959) or Highly Commended (from 1974). There were 99 distinctions of both kinds in 44 years including three for 1980 and three for 1987 (one highly commended).
}}
}}

==References==
{{Reflist |30em |refs=
<ref name=images>
{{cite web |title=Jill Murphy: Biography |work=Images of Delight: Original artwork from children's book illustrators |url=http://www.imagesofdelight.com/gallery14.htm |access-date=17 April 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929190352/http://www.imagesofdelight.com/client.asp?id=56 |archivedate=29 September 2007}} <!--update 2013-10-24--></ref>

<ref name=ccsu>
[http://web.ccsu.edu/library/nadeau/award%20books/KateGreenaway.htm "Kate Greenaway Medal"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140916192441/http://web.ccsu.edu/library/nadeau/award%20books/KateGreenaway.htm |date=16 September 2014}}. 2007(?). Curriculum Lab. Elihu Burritt Library. [[Central Connecticut State University]] (CCSU). Retrieved 26 June 2012.</ref>
}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|id=1121448|name=Jill Murphy}}
* [http://www.jillmurphy.moonfruit.com/home/4563772720 Jill Murphy website - unofficial fan site] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210822062736/http://www.jillmurphy.moonfruit.com/home/4563772720 |date=22 August 2021}}
* [http://www.walker.co.uk/contributors/Jill-Murphy-1566.aspx Jill Murphy] at [[Walker Books]]
* {{isfdb name|107792}}
* {{LCAuth|n77019381|Jill Murphy, 1949–|28|ue}} (under "Murphy, Jill" without "1949–")
* Anna McKerrow, [https://www.booktrust.org.uk/news-and-features/features/2018/september/i-didnt-know-that-women-were-allowed-to-be-writers-jill-murphy-on-the-magic-of-making-your-own-worlds-and-why-mildred-hubble-is-just-like-her/ {{"'}}I didn't know that women were allowed to be writers': Jill Murphy on the magic of making your own worlds and why Mildred Hubble is just like her"], ''[[BookTrust]]'', 6 September 2018.
* Sam Moore, [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/jill-murphy-death-books-worst-witch-b1906032.html "Jill Murphy death: The Worst Witch author dies aged 72"] (with video "Jill Murphy introduces her latest children's story"), ''The Independent'', 20 August 2021.

{{The Worst Witch}}
{{Authority control}}
: WARNING: For most [[WorldCat]] records see instead [http://worldcat.org/identities/lccn-no2011-167792 "Murphy, Jill"] (without "1949–").

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Jill}}
[[Category:1949 births]]
[[Category:2021 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century English novelists]]
[[Category:20th-century English women artists]]
[[Category:20th-century English women writers]]
[[Category:21st-century English novelists]]
[[Category:21st-century English women artists]]
[[Category:21st-century English women writers]]
[[Category:Alumni of Chelsea College of Arts]]
[[Category:Alumni of Croydon College]]
[[Category:British women children's writers]]
[[Category:British women children's book illustrators]]
[[Category:British women science fiction and fantasy writers]]
[[Category:Deaths from breast cancer in England]]
[[Category:English children's book illustrators]]
[[Category:English children's writers]]
[[Category:English domestic workers]]
[[Category:English fantasy writers]]
[[Category:English people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:English women novelists]]
[[Category:Nannies]]
[[Category:People from Chessington]]
[[Category:Writers from Surrey]]
[[Category:Writers from the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames]]