Photo of Jill Murphy

Jill Murphy

Jill Murphy was born in London in 1949. From a very early age she was drawing and writing stories. “My earliest memory (my mum tells me I was two), is sitting on the kitchen floor surrounded by sheets of drawings.” By the age of six she was stapling her own little storybooks together.

Jill went to a strict convent, and left at sixteen to attend both Chelsea and Croydon art schools. At only eighteen she finished her first novel, The Worst Witch, which was based heavily on her own experiences at the convent school. Three big London publishers turned it down so Jill put it in a drawer and went off to work in a children’s home and as a nanny.

When Jill was twenty four, The Worst Witch was finally published, and was an instant best-seller. Jill became a freelance author and illustrator and many more wonderful books followed. Mildred Hubble has gone on to several more adventures, most recently The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star, and even her own TV show. The Large Family stories are Jill’s other best known stories, picture books telling of the domestic chaos of a family of elephants.

She now lives in Cornwall with her son Charlie.

Books by Jill Murphy

  • A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch

    A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch

  • A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch

    A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch

  • All in One Piece

    All in One Piece

  • A Piece of Cake

    A Piece of Cake

  • A Quiet Night In

    A Quiet Night In

  • Dear Hound

    Dear Hound

  • First Prize for the Worst Witch

    First Prize for the Worst Witch

  • Five Minutes' Peace

    Five Minutes' Peace

  • Five Minutes' Peace

    Five Minutes' Peace

  • Five Minutes' Peace

    Five Minutes' Peace

  • On the Way Home

    On the Way Home

  • Peace at Last

    Peace at Last

  • Peace at Last (Board Book)

    Peace at Last (Board Book)

  • Peace at Last (Board Book)

    Peace at Last (Board Book)

  • The Large Family: Large-Style Activity Book!

    The Large Family: Large-Style Activity Book!

  • The Worst Witch

    The Worst Witch

  • The Worst Witch

    The Worst Witch

  • The Worst Witch

    The Worst Witch

  • The Worst Witch All at Sea

    The Worst Witch All at Sea

  • The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star

    The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star

  • The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star

    The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star

  • The Worst Witch (Colour Edition)

    The Worst Witch (Colour Edition)

  • The Worst Witch Saves the Day

    The Worst Witch Saves the Day

  • The Worst Witch Strikes Again

    The Worst Witch Strikes Again

  • The Worst Witch Strikes Again

    The Worst Witch Strikes Again

  • The Worst Witch to the Rescue

    The Worst Witch to the Rescue

  • Whatever Next!

    Whatever Next!

Awards

Jill Murphy won the Nestle Smarties Prize and the Sheffield Children’s Book Prize for The Last Noo Noo.