We are delighted to welcome back for our July ’25 meeting Michelle Magorian who last visited us in July ’23 when she talked about various versions of her award winning book Goodbye Mister Tom. This time she will be speaking about two of her other books – A Little Love Song, set in the long, hot summer of 1943, and Just Henry set just after the end of the second World War, in the thinly disguised town of Sternsea – a fictional mix of Portsmouth and Southsea.
Just Henry was made into a TV drama adapted from her Costa Book Prizewinning novel of the same name. It is set in post-Second World War Britain and premiered on ITV1 on 18 December, 2011.
Michelle lives in Petersfield, Hampshire and lived in Australia and Singapore as a small child.
Michelle trained for the theatre at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama in the late sixties and at Marcel Marceau’s L’École Internationale de Mime in Paris. She has a postgraduate Certificate in Film Studies (BFI/London University), an Honorary Doctorate (Portsmouth University) and has been made a Fellow of Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance.
As Mikki Magorian she has performed in plays, musicals and one-woman shows, has written the book and lyrics for the musical version of Goodnight Mister Tom (Composer Gary Carpenter), Sea Change(Composer Stephen Keeling), Tinsel (Composer Bob Buckley) and Hello Life! (Composer Alexander L’Estrange). A few years after Goodnight Mister Tom was performed in Manchester and Ipswich, it was screened on television starring the late John Thaw, winning seven television awards including a BAFTA.
For more information and reviews see her website at