BOOKS are the theme next week at The Courtyard, as they present the return of The Courtyard Book Week – and at its heart is the Birmingham Stage Company’s production of Roald Dahl’s hugely popular Danny The Champion of the World, adapted by David Wood.

Taking on the work of an author whose style is so distinctive is not for the fainthearted, and when he was initially approached to adapt The BFG, David turned down the commission, not once, but three times.

“I thought it was a bit of a rip-off,” he explains, “and that aficionados would be disappointed.

“It also seemed too difficult a proposition, but the production company which had approached me kept saying that I was the person who could do it.”

It was only on the eve of a meeting at which he fully intended to say no to the project once and for all that David came up with a solution to staging what had previously seemed unstageable.

“Suddenly, like a blinding light, I realised how to do it,” he recalls. “It meant that I got on the train the next day knowing I’d say yes.”

In common with many writers, David Wood has routines he follows and one of his is not allowing himself any sight of the TV until he’s finished.

“I came to the end of adapting The BFG and switched on the television,” he says. “The first words I heard were that Roald Dahl had died earlier that day. It was very spooky, but at one level it was a relief as I had been worried that my adaptation wouldn’t be approved, as he was known for not liking anything that was done to his books.

“His widow, Felicity, later went to see it and sent me a lovely letter approving the adaptation.”

David Woods knew as a child that he wanted to do something in the theatre after seeing a man on television playing the ukelele in front of a line of dancing girls.

He did neither, opting instead for magic and song and dance when he was about 11. “Some of my tricks have just celebrated their 50th birthday,” he reports.

His career as a children’s playwright began when he was asked to organise Saturday morning children’s theatre at The Swan in Worcester in 1967 and he credits The Swan’s artistic director, John Hole, with setting him off in the direction he has taken.

“He asked if I would like to write the Christmas show. He didn’t want a panto, he wanted a real play for children, so I wrote an adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Tinder Box, which proved good enough for him to ask me to do it again the following year.”

Seeing the reaction of an audience convinced him that writing for children’s theatre was where his future lay.

“Standing at the back of the auditorium, seeing the passion and excitement of the children’s reactions, I had the sudden realisation that children are far more willing to suspend disbelief and enter into the spirit of the entertainment.

“All my most exciting moments of theatre have been witnessed by incredibly few adults,” he admits.

“It’s certainly very, very tingly, but you are on a knife edge all the time.”

Danny The Champion of the World is one of the highlights of The Courtyard Book Week, which culminates in an action-packed Family Fun Day on Saturday, June 21, to celebrate the venue’s 10th birthday.

There will be something for every member of the family – from circus skills workshops to storytelling, puppet-making and a second-hand book fair – even baby bounce and rhyme for the very youngest visitors.

Children can also take part in a fantastic drama workshop all about Danny, or join members of The Courtyard Junior Youth Theatre for their performance of Welcome to your Brain, a fun-filled way for children and young people to find out more about using their local library.

For older members of the family, the weekly Saturday Café with its menu of live music will be in the bar from noon.

For details, or to book tickets for Danny The Champion of the World, call the box office on 0870 1122330.

Competition To celebrate National Book Week, The Courtyard is offering the chance to win a family ticket (two adults and two children) for the 7pm showing of Danny the Champion of the World on Friday, June 20, and meet the cast after the show.

To enter, just finish this sentence in 50 words or less: My Dad (granddad/brother/other important father figure) is the best dad in Herefordshire because...

Send entries to: Rebecca Storey, The Courtyard, Edgar Street, Hereford HR4 9JR. Closing date: Monday, June 16.

Usual Newsquest rules apply.