Winnie-the-Pooh at 100: new books, exhibitions and an official sequel

British children’s publisher Farshore has announced an extensive programme to mark the centenary of Winnie-the-Pooh, to be celebrated in 2026. Plans include new editions of A. A. Milne’s classic books, an official sequel, exhibitions across the UK and a large-scale marketing campaign. Farshore remains the exclusive publisher of the original Winnie-the-Pooh stories in the UK and Commonwealth countries, with the exception of Canada. Afisha.London looks at how the anniversary will be celebrated today and recalls how the bear has been honoured in London over the years.

This article is also available in Russian here  

Winnie-the-Pooh is a fundamental part of Britain’s cultural DNA, yet Milne did not originally conceive the stories as children’s books. Rather, they were reflections on childhood as it exists within every adult. Written in the aftermath of the First World War, the tales struck a rare chord with their time: stories of a bear of very little brain offered reassurance in friendship, kindness and simple human meaning — things society was acutely in need of.

On the price Winnie-the-Pooh paid for becoming a national icon, and on how the book’s success disrupted the private life of the Milne family, read our feature here: Alan Milne: the writer who turned Winnie the Pooh into an icon of England

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London has already marked Pooh’s legacy on a major scale. In 2017, the Victoria and Albert Museum hosted Winnie-the-Pooh: Exploring a Classic, an exhibition that traced the bear’s journey from nursery story to global cultural phenomenon. Through Ernest Shepard’s original illustrations, A. A. Milne’s letters, family photographs and Christopher Robin’s beloved toys, the exhibition mapped the making of a modern myth. Our coverage of the exhibition can be read here: An exhibition for the grown up kids: Winnie-the-Pooh in London

Set off from London to the real Hundred Acre Wood! Wander through the forests where the stories of Winnie-the-Pooh come to life, visit the famous Pooh Bridge, the village of Hartfield, and the Pooh Corner shop, and enjoy fascinating stories from a guide about A. A. Milne and his beloved characters. Details and tickets

That 2017 exhibition also acknowledged the Soviet Winnie-the-Pooh — the cult animated trilogy produced by Soyuzmultfilm and directed by Fyodor Khitruk between 1969 and 1972. In the Soviet version, Winnie-the-Pooh was voiced by the legendary actor Yevgeny Leonov, with Piglet voiced by Iya Savvina. Visually and tonally, these films differ markedly from their British counterpart, favouring a highly stylised animation and a more philosophical, gently ironic sensibility.

https://afishalondontickets.com/events/art-zavtrak-li-miller-muza-fotograf-svidetel-istorii

More importantly, Soviet Winnie-the-Pooh long ago escaped the confines of the screen. The films have been endlessly quoted, absorbed into everyday speech and effectively woven into the cultural DNA of several generations who grew up in the USSR. Lines are recognised instantly, intonations need no explanation, and the character itself has become less a fictional bear than a shared cultural reference point.

More on three giants of Russian animation — Alexander Shiryaev, Ladislas Starevich and Fyodor Khitruk — who shaped the development of the medium and gave life to such classics as the Soviet Winnie-the-Pooh, The Snow Queen and Uncle Styopa, can be found in this Afisha.London feature (available in Russian only). 

To mark the centenary, Farshore will publish updated editions of all four Milne books featuring Ernest Shepard’s original illustrations, alongside authorised prequels and sequels. A new visual identity and anniversary covers have been created by Mikaela Alcaino, named Designer of the Year at the British Book Awards 2022. The first anniversary titles are already on sale:

• Winnie-the-Pooh: The House at Pooh Corner
• Winnie-the-Pooh: The Best Bear in all the World
• Winnie-the-Pooh: Tales from the Forest
• Winnie-the-Pooh: Return to the Hundred Acre Wood

https://afishalondontickets.com/events/ballet-icons-gala-2026-20th-anniversary-edition

The centrepiece of the programme will be the publication in October 2026 — exactly one hundred years after the release of the first Pooh book — of the official continuation A Little Boy and His Bear, written by Jane Riordan.

In addition to its publishing programme, Farshore will launch a travelling exhibition in partnership with the National Trust, literary trails through historic estates, educational school tours featuring Jane Riordan, and a series of charitable initiatives. Whether the Soviet Winnie-the-Pooh will once again be referenced remains, for now, unknown to the editors of Afisha.London.

Cover photo: by Nik on Unsplash 

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