On stage and when we met at the theatre, the Queen was a figure of quiet wisdom and humour
Michael Billington
The monarch was sympathetically depicted by dramatists and at a 1999 production of Oklahoma! her eyes lit up when she recalled her own theatrical outings
February 2022
Top 10s
Top 10 single mothers in fiction
They often get as rough a ride from books as they do from the world, but some writers, from Jane Austen to Sue Townsend, have given lone parents authentic life beyond the cliches
October 2019
Further reading
House rules: Jess Phillips on the best books to decode the language of politics
The MP picks the best books about parliament and the life of working politicians – and Adrian Mole
December 2018
The book-to-TV adaptations to watch this Christmas, from Les Misérables to The Long Song
It’s a bumper year for festive television adaptations, whether it is Sue Townsend’s Queen moving to a Midlands council estate or John Malkovich taking on Poirot
July 2017
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 ¾ review – Townsend's gawky icon rescues the British musical
With a vibrant ensemble, Luke Sheppard tells the earnest diarist’s much-loved story with wit and craft – and points the way forward for the British musical
April 2017
Happy 50th birthday Adrian Mole
Sue Townsend’s teenager hit middle-age before our eyes, but alongside Harry Potter, Bridget Jones and Updike’s Rabbit, he is part of a tradition of characters ageing with the reader
May 2016
The week in books
Literary Leicester laughs it up
Not only is the East Midlands city the proud holder of the Premier League title, it can boast the likes of Graham Chapman, Sue Townsend and Anne Fine as natives
April 2015
Children's books
Which children's books sum up the decade they were published?
Brandon Robshaw (AKA the dad in Back in Time for Dinner) picks out the children’s books from the 1950s to the 2000s that seem to sum up each decade
March 2015
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾: the Musical review – impeccable performances, hamfisted script
Sue Townsend’s sly writing is pummelled to fit narrative arcs of love triumphant and ambition realised in this musical adaptation
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾ review – quaint, charming musical
Sue Townsend’s tormented teenage hero makes a jaunty appearance in this smart, low-key musical adaptation
Children's books
10 things you didn’t know about Adrian Mole
Did you know Adrian Mole’s name was nearly Nigel? Jake Brunger, writer of Adrian Mole aged 13 ¾ - the musical, reveals 10 lesser known facts about Sue Townsend’s most famous creation
December 2014
Obituaries of 2014
Sue Townsend remembered by Nicci Gerrard
Nicci Gerrard, who conducted the Adrian Mole author’s funeral, on ‘a radical and a partygoer, a grandmother, a woman of the people, a writer, a dreamer’
September 2014
Sue Townsend exhibition pays tribute to Adrian Mole creator
Display showcases first drafts and unpublished pages of work by the late and much-loved author
August 2014
Children's books
What are the best books about identity for teenagers?
Authors and teen readers recommend their favourite books dealing with issues around identity, such as racism, gender, sexuality, migration and adolescence, for readers in their formative years
July 2014
Top 10s
Top 10 books of the Midlands
Adrian Mole musical to premiere in Leicester next year
April 2014
Paul Bailey on Sue Townsend: 'She believed in good manners and kindness'
Letter: 'Sue Townsend helped me not just to see the characters but to smell them'
Culture, commitment, libraries and expertise
Sue Townsend was working on new Adrian Mole novel before her death
