Queen Camilla Plays Poohsticks for Winnie-the-Pooh Centenary

Queen Camilla celebrated the centenary of A.A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh books by playing poohsticks at Ashdown Forest in East Sussex, the inspiration for Hundred Acre Wood. The visit marked her first engagement as Royal Literary Fund patron. She unveiled a new walking trail named Queen's Walk at The Enchanted Place, a memorial site dedicated to Milne and illustrator E.H. Shepard. The Queen played poohsticks with children's authors including Dame Julia Donaldson (The Gruffalo), illustrator Axel Scheffler, and Winnie-the-Pooh sequels writer Jane Riordan. Broadcaster Gyles Brandreth attended in a red Pooh jumper. The Queen called Pooh a 'universal hero' and recalled playing poohsticks as a child. She did not win the game. The centenary celebrates the first Winnie-the-Pooh books published in 1926, later adapted by Walt Disney.