How to Train Your Dragon 鈥� why the phenomenally popular children鈥檚 fantasy series is rooted to a remote Hebridean island
14 September 2018
As a child, author Cressida Cowell spent every summer with her family on an otherwise-uninhabited island in the Inner Hebrides.
With no rules to follow other than “Come back when you’re hungry” and “Don’t fall off a cliff!”, Cressida, her brother and sister were free to spend their days exploring.
Holidays in the Highlands
Author Cressida Cowell talks about her holidays in Scotland.
Viking legends
Cressida was inspired by tales of Vikings invading the Hebrides.
She would play in the ruins of long-abandoned crofts, imagining what it would be like to be a Viking, or to be an islander spotting the sail of a dreaded Viking longboat on the horizon.
As an adult, Cressida drew on these experiences when she wrote the How to Train Your Dragon series of children始s books.
The popular novels about the adventures of young Viking Hiccup and his dragon Toothless, have been the basis for Hollywood films and numerous TV series.
All are set on the remote Isle of Berk — which may or may not be found in the Inner Hebrides.
How To Train Your Dragon
Availability on 大象传媒 iPlayer will vary over time.
- How to Train Your Dragon (not currently available)
- How to Train Your Dragon 2 (not currently available)
- Dragons (episodes available now)
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All Cressida鈥檚 highlights from Authors Live
Her childhood, creative thinking, dragons, new books and more!
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