Steve Cole continues the Reading and Writing Relay in Salford

Steve Cole paid a visit to St Thomas of Canterbury Primary School on 3^rd of July and performed to an audience of 100 pupils.

Steve introduced the pupils to his new book for children, Aliens Stink, and was amazed at how well the children were able to sing along to the lyrics of the hilarious song he has written to accompany the new book. Aliens Stink, as you would expect from the title, tells the story of Tim and his dad who discover that earth has been invaded by aliens. They are kidnapped and taken to a super-secret base where Tim discovers the full extent of the alien threat ...and the extraordinary kids fighting it. With the aid of a little huggy alien, and a depressed guard, Tim and his weird new friends take the battle to the aliens.

Aliens Stink sing-a-long

Steve went on to talk about the characters in ‘Aliens Stink’ and the concept behind his other new book Secret Agent Mummy. He also illustrated how anyone can be imaginative by creating a ‘chombie’ (a chair zombie to you and I). Nimi Owoyemi said that “Steve has inspired me to write in his style”.  Steve revealed that his greatest influences as a writer were comic books and Roald Dahl. He also encouraged the children to enter the Neville Johnson Comic Strip competition.

The event finished with a Q+A session where the pupils asked some very interesting questions, which ranged from his inspiration for his books to what other occupation he would have liked to have pursued. Steve told the children that he would have liked to become a television presenter, which is no surprise at all, as he is a fantastic entertainer!  

Steve Cole with pupils Marnie, Sarah and Jack

Teacher Amanda McCann said the session had been "such an inspirational event for our young readers. Steve had the children in stitches! They've never been so excited to get home and delve into a new book". All in all the session was a great success, pupil Lola Akintoye said “Steve brings sci-fi to life!”