As the UK celebrates the centenary of some women gaining the right to vote, Limelight’s shining stars, Barbara Bielecka and Roxana Hall decided to embrace this joyous time by interviewing Kate Pankhurst, the beloved children’s author and illustrator, who discovered ancestral links to leading suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, while producing her first non-fiction work – Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World!

Limelight: What makes children's books special?
Kate: I think that they’ve got a huge power, actually. If you look back to when you were a child, you may think of times when you read a fantastic book, and wanted to be just like the characters featured there. Books have the power to take people on heroic adventures to different places, all from the comfort of their bedroom!

Limelight: Your newest book, Fantastically Great Women Who Changed History, was published on February 8 2018. What impact do you want your book to have on readers? 

Kate: The women [featured in the books] spoke their minds and used their talents to make a difference, and I hope this book can inspire children to do the same. 

Limelight: It has been a centenary since British women gained suffrage (the right to vote in political elections). If you had lived back then would you have been a suffragette? 
Kate: I think I’d have been a suffragette. I think I would’ve liked to go on a suffragette march.

Limelight: Is there anyone who inspires you?: 

My mum. My mum literally created my world and encouraged me to follow a career in the arts; a sector that is quite uncertain. She gave me the confidence to follow my talents and passion, and I feel very lucky to have her and my other family members supporting me.