Hilary Roper-Newman (nee Roper) 1968 to 1971
Art and Drama.
Hilary Roper is an artist, teacher, writer, and author and illustrator of children’s books. She lives in West Yorkshire. Her famous book Macfaddion’s Finest Hour was published in 1990. It was chosen by the Lancashire Children’s Librarian Association as their entry for the Children’s Book of the Year Award, 1991. The illustrations were valued by Sotherby’s at over ten thousand for the set, a few years ago. The illustrations display over sixty species of natural wildlife. They are of a composite contemporary nature displaying magnificent detail of subjects such as children’s toys, antiquities, and the cultural inheritance and folklore of the English countryside. They are painted in jewel-like colours and textural detail. Hilary said that, she wanted every child to be able to turn each page and feel that each creature came alive, the detail would be so microscopic and animated. Hilary is now writing novels and painting large contemporary oil paintings of sweeping landscapes and she travels and uses photography to do her research.