Known for Madame Doubtfire and Goggle-Eyes, she served as the second British Children's Laureate from 2001 until 2003. Her other award-winning children's books include Flour Babies and The Tulip Touch. She earned a college degree in politics from the University of Warwick after attending Northampton High School. She published her first young adult novel, The Summer-House Loon, in 1978.
