Grandpa's Great Escape

Grandpa's Great Escape is a children's book written by David Walliams and illustrated by Tony Ross. It was released by HarperCollins on 24 September 2015. The story follows a boy called Jack trying to rescue his confused Grandpa from a retirement home, Twilight Towers run by an evil matron, Miss Swine.[1]

Grandpa's Great Escape
First edition
AuthorDavid Walliams
IllustratorTony Ross
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
GenreChildren's fiction
PublisherHarperCollins
Publication date
24 September 2015
Media typePrint (hardcover)
Pages461
ISBN0007494017

The book was adapted for BBC One, with the script written by Walliams and Kevin Cecil. It starred Tom Courtenay as Grandpa.[2] Its British television premiere was on New Year's Day 2018.

Plot

Grandpa’s Great Escape is set in a town near London in the 1980s and tells the tale of Grandpa, a World War II flying ace, who sadly is now confused, still believing that World War II hasn't ended and longing to re-live his past. When his family can no longer look after him he is moved to an old people’s home called Twilight Towers, run by Miss Swine.

It soon becomes clear Miss Swine is running Twilight Towers for her own good profit and it is up to Grandpa and his grandson Jack, the only one who can understand his beliefs, to make a daring escape. Grandpa took a final chance to re-live his past and once again flew in his beloved Spitfire.

Reception

Linda Lawlor from The Book Bag gave Grandpa's Great Escape a 4 and a half star review saying "Utterly silly from start to finish and yet it leaves the reader with a warm, cosy feeling. Forget about whether anything in the plot makes the slightest sense – just sit back and enjoy the ride" and "Tony Ross's superb illustrations add immeasurably to the carefree, slightly manic tone of the text."[3]

Television adaptation

On 22 September 2017, it was announced that the book would be adapted for BBC One and air at Christmas 2017. The film was written by Walliams and Kevin Cecil and starred Tom Courtenay as Grandpa, Kit Connor as Jack, Jennifer Saunders as Miss Dandy with Samantha Spiro and Walliams as Jack's parents, Patricia and Barry.[4] The film aired on New Year's Day 2018[5] to an overnights audience of around 5 million viewers.

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gollark: I do, I just don't need much more than a web browser and stuff.
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gollark: Pine64, a single board computer company, has a decent phone out with basically everything I want, including GNU/Linux support, but their production is kind of bad right now and I doubt their support if it breaks will be very good at all.
gollark: I only need a web browser and stuff anyway.

References
  1. "The World of David Walliams". HarperCollins Publishers Limited. 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  2. Doran, Sarah (22 September 2017). "David Walliams' Grandpa's Great Escape set to air on BBC1 this Christmas". Radio Times, Immediate Media Company Limited. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  3. Lawlor, Linda (13 February 2017). "Grandpa's Great Escape by David Walliams". The Bookbag. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  4. "David Walliams' Grandpa's Great Escape comes to BBC One". BBC. 22 September 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  5. "Grandpa's Great Escape: All you need to know". BBC News. BBC. 29 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
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