Meet the real-life Winnie the Pooh and Christopher Robin
You'll know the popular characters made world famous by A. A. Milne in 1924, but did you know the story is based on his son Christopher Robin Milne, born on August 21, 1920? This story gets even more adorable than that.
For his first birthday, Christopher Robin was given a cream-colored teddy bear that he named Edward. This teddy, along with an actual bear at the London Zoo named Winnie and a swan named Pooh, became the basis for Milne’s classic children’s character, Winnie the Pooh.
Winnie the Pooh first appeared in Milne’s 1924 book of children’s verse When We Were Very Young. And was soon joined by Christopher Robin’s other beloved stuffed animals Tigger, Piglet, Eeyore and Kanga.
While Christopher Robin was more than delighted to feature in his father’s stories when he was young, sadly as he grew older and was teased by classmates, he began to resent his fame.
For some interesting facts, you might enjoy hearing that Christopher Robin attended Cambridge and served in the Royal Corps of Engineers in World War II. After her married in 1948 he opened a bookshop with his wife.
Befitting the lovely childhood stories of Winnie the Pooh, this real-life tale also has a happily every after of its very own. Eventually Christopher Robin came to accept his fame evidenced during his efforts to protect Ashdown forest — the inspiration for the Hundred Acre Wood — from oil exploration. He dedicated monuments to his father’s stories as a means to preserve the forest.
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