Heartwarming illustrations by children's author Graham Oakley up for auction (13 photos)

For decades, the adventures of the ginger cat and his rodent friends in the fictional town of Wortlethorpe have delighted millions of children. Graham Oakley's Church Mice series of books, published from 1970 to 2000, was a huge success with young readers and their parents. More than 750 illustrations by the author will be sold at auction.





Oakley's books follow the adventures of mice living in an old Gothic church and their guardian, the ginger cat Sampson. The works became widely known due to their beautiful illustrations and witty, ironic humor.

Graham Oakley died last December aged 93 in Dorchester, Dorset. He bequeathed the archive of his illustrations to the charity Save the Children.

In addition to his drawings, his art supplies are also up for sale. The auction features over 750 lots of original works, with many of the Church Mice illustrations expected to sell for around £200 each.



A collection of works will be exhibited in Sherborne on September 27th.



Auctioneer Richard Bromell said: "Graham sadly passed away in Dorchester last year. He left his archives to Save the Children. The author kept the illustrations in blue boxes labeled with which book they came from in his spare bedroom, which he converted to the studio. All of his drawings are charming. They are bright and colorful, very detailed. His stories had a wonderful moral: Sampson the cat was taught not to kill mice, so he protected them and ended up having a large family. Those who remember these books have illustrations will make them smile and bring them back to childhood memories."



Graham Oakley attended art school, but did not have time to graduate because in 1947 he was called up for military service.

He went on to work as a set designer at a theater in London, then at the Theater Royal Covent Garden and finally at the BBC.



The first book, simply titled The Church Mouse, was published in 1972. It began Sampson's friendship with Arthur, the main mouse of the church.

Oakley was persuaded to continue writing about the adventures of the cat and mice, and subsequently published 11 more books.

The author has received many well-deserved awards, including the Kate Greenaway Medal for Outstanding Illustration.