Raymond Briggs is dead: “The Snowman” creator was 88 years old

Raymond Briggs, the British illustrator, cartoonist, graphic novelist and author best known for The Snowman, has died. He was 88.

“The Snowman”, a book without words and illustrated with colored pencils, was created by Briggs in 1978. It was adapted in 1982 as an animated television film for British broadcaster Channel 4, shown on British television every Christmas. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film and won a BAFTA TV Award for Best Children’s Program.

“The Snowman” has sold more than 5.5 million copies worldwide. Briggs also created evergreen children’s books Father Christmas, Fungus The Bogeyman and When The Wind Blows.

His 1988 graphic novel Ethel & Ernest, which tells the story of the lives of Briggs’ parents from when they first met in 1928 to their deaths in 1971, was adapted into an animated feature film in 2016, which was shown at several animation festivals around the world around the world.

In 2012, Briggs became the first person to be inducted into the British Comic Awards Hall of Fame.

A statement from Briggs’ family through his publisher, Penguin Random House, said: “We know that Raymond’s books have been loved and touched by millions of people around the world who will be saddened to hear this news. Fan drawings inspired by his books – especially children’s drawings – were treasured by Raymond and pinned to the wall of his studio.”

Briggs’ wife Jean died in 1973 and he subsequently had a partner Liz, who died in 2015.

“Living a rich and fulfilling life, he said he feels fortunate to have had both his wife Jean and his 40-something partner Liz in his life.

“He shared his love of the outdoors with Liz on walks in the South Downs and family holidays in Scotland and Wales. He also shared his sense of fun and weirdness with his family and with his family of artist friends — at get-togethers, costume parties and summer picnics in the garden,” the statement added.

“He played pranks and enjoyed it when they were played on him. All of us who were close to him knew his irreverent sense of humor – it could bite in his work when dealing with the powerful. He liked that the Guardian editorial dubbed itself an “iconoclastic national treasure,” the statement concluded.

Francesca Dow, Managing Director of Penguin Random House Children’s, added: “Raymond’s books are pictorial masterpieces that address some of the fundamental questions of what it means to be human, and with a remarkable economy of words and illustrations for adults as well address children.”