2025 End of Year Round-Up
last updated 16 December 2025
We’re taking a moment to reflect on the incredible year that was 2025. This year brought landmark partnerships, award-winning titles, bold campaigns, and a surge of fresh talent joining our global roster.
In this post, we celebrated both the big and small moments that made 2025 a standout year for our artists, clients, and creative community.
From all of us here at Bright, we wished you and your loved ones a joyous winter holiday.
Agency News
The Bright Agency ushered in the festive season with its much-anticipated 2025 Winter Party, hosted at The Lost Society, Battersea. As always, the evening brought together an inspiring mix of clients, artists, agents and friends of Bright, creating a vibrant space to celebrate another extraordinary year of creativity.
We gathered once again for the Bright Summer Picnic! On Saturday, 12th July 2025, at All Farthing School, Wandsworth, artists, authors, clients, staff, friends and families came together to celebrate another brilliant year of creativity and collaboration. The picnic was a celebration of everything Bright stood for: community, creativity, inspiration, empowerment and family.
Bright’s Artist Retreat in Bogotá
We hosted our first-ever artist retreat in Bogotá, Colombia. Twelve artists came together for several days of workshops, exploring the city, portfolio reviews, and connection.
Immediately following Frankfurt, the US office held a Fall Meetings Week, where our managing agents met with the editors and art directors at several publishing houses including Scholastic, Penguin, & Random House.
Vicki Willden-Lebrecht’s Trends in Children’s Literature 2025
Vicki shared her trend predictions for 2025, highlighting a push for authenticity in children’s literature, bold new reading formats and a renewed focus on mental health. She explored how creators inspired young readers by balancing digital and analog experiences, championing diverse stories, and embracing themes from humour to STEM and environmental awareness.
Bright Welcomes Paul Black as Brand Partnership Director
In September, we welcomed Paul Black to The Bright Agency as our new Brand Partnership Director — a newly created role that signalled a bold and strategic step forward for Bright. Read here.
An Agent Adventure: Márcia in Germany
Earlier this month, Bright Children’s Agent Márcia Sousa set off on a whirlwind tour of Germany, meeting with some of the country’s leading children’s publishers.
Paul Black on the ‘Labubufication’ of children’s books
Our Brand Partnerships Director Paul Black traded Brand Licensing Europe for China Licensing Expo, and in his travels arrived at an inspired idea to access untapped possibilities for kids’ retail, especially as we move into 2026’s National Year of Reading.
Vicki Willden-Lebrecht featured in The Bookseller
Our CEO, Vicki Willden-Lebrecht, spoke with The Bookseller about the future of The Bright Agency. Her vision? Bringing creativity back to the heart of everything we did.
Georgia Tournay-Godfrey Shared Her Thoughts on the Power of Graphic Novels
Georgia Tournay-Godfrey explored how graphic novels transformed children’s reading experiences, particularly for neurodivergent readers, and why the format deserved greater recognition and support across the industry.
Bright Letter from Media Land 2025
Richard gave us an overview of everything going on in the film & TV industry, touching on a turbulent year for children’s media while showing how Bright has continued to secure exciting productions, global deals and new opportunities across animation, theatre and beyond.
Talent News
Six Nominations for The 2026 Carnegie Medal for Illustration
The Carnegies are the UK’s longest running and best-loved children’s book awards, recognising outstanding reading experiences created through writing and illustration in books for children and young people.
Society of Illustrators Original Art Exhibition
Bright was thrilled to celebrate our artists featured in this year’s Society of Illustrators Original Art exhibition, including a Silver Medal for Yas’s Can You Imagine? The Art and Life of Yoko Ono, alongside selections from Colleen, Fiona, Sibu, Galia, Artichoke, and Lupencita—their incredible work in children’s book illustration was proudly showcased!
Ten Minutes To Bed Series sold over 3 Million Copies Worldwide
The Chris Chatterton illustrated series, Ten Minutes to Bed, sold over 3 million copies worldwide. Authored by Rhiannon Fielding and published by Ladybird, the series became a firm favourite with adults and children alike, and showed no signs of slowing down.
10 Years of The Bear and the Piano
Ten years ago, a scruffy sketch of a bear playing the piano sparked an idea that changed David Litchfield’s life forever. That doodle became The Bear and The Piano, a heartwarming tale that resonated with readers worldwide, sold over a million copies and launched a successful series and an amazing career.
The 35th British Book Awards Nominations
We were delighted to champion our three nominees for this year’s The Bookseller 35th British Book Awards — including our CEO and Founder Vicki Willden-Lebrecht, who was shortlisted for Literary Agent of the Year.
Science is Lit, illustrated by Subi Bosa, was nominated for Children’s Nonfiction Book of the Year. Written by Big Manny and published by Puffin Books UK.
Letters from the North Pole, illustrated by Fia Tobing, was nominated for Children’s Illustrated Book of the Year. Written by Annie Atkins and published by Magic Cat Publishing.
Two Bright artist titles were selected for this year’s World Book Day: Amanda Quartey’s Woke Babies: The Magic Balloon and Paddy Donnelly’s author-illustrated Fox & Son Tailers.
Benji Davies’ Beloved Stories Return to the Stage This Winter
We were thrilled to share the news that two of Benji Davies’ much-loved children’s books returned to the stage this winter, brought to life in brilliant productions that captured the warmth of his storytelling.
Alligator’s Mouth Award Party 2025
This summer, we celebrated another brilliant year of the Alligator’s Mouth Award at our annual award party, brought together a fantastic shortlist, and crowned Gordon the Meanest Goose on Earth by Alex Latimer (Oxford Children’s) as the 2025 winner.
Industry News
Bright went to Toy Fair! Armed with our latest (and greatest) portfolio of artwork, we met our clients in the wonderful halls of Kensington Olympia to discuss new and upcoming projects for our amazing artists.
Licensing Agent Laura Hemsley walked the halls of Spring Fair at the NEC Birmingham, met our clients and showcased our brand new artist portfolio.
London Book Fair 2025, a cornerstone of the publishing calendar, was a bustling delight and our agents took to the halls to show off our artists’ latest portfolios and pitch new, innovative concepts.
Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2025
Our agents took to the halls of Bologna Children’s Book Fair, pitched concepts and shared our latest artists’ portfolios. The verve and energy were palpable.
Brand Licensing Europe was the perfect opportunity for us to take to the Excel halls and debut some of our most revered Children’s Publishing properties to the Brand Licensing World.
From the 13th to the 15th of October, we hosted our annual Frankfurt in London event, coinciding with Frankfurt Book Fair. Representing the 3rd version of our event, which had become so popular we extended it from 2 days to 3, we welcomed publishing clients across the Children’s publishing industry. The event gave our clients the opportunity to see our artists’ latest portfolios, hear the latest author pitches, and grab a snack (or two!).
Our CEO and Founder Vicki Willden-Lebrecht took the halls of 2025’s Buchmesse, alongside BCI’s Márcia Sousa and Emily Jones, to continue the client meetings, pitch our artists’ latest portfolios, discuss new author concepts, and spot Bright Artist work in the wild.
Our Brand Partnerships Director Paul Black jetted off to Shanghai, by invitation of Licensing Magazine
“It was a frenetic, fizzing, incredibly busy week making connections with new friends and contacts, as well as catching up with people from Brand Licensing Europe too.”
From all of us at The Bright Agency, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! If you’d like to work with us in 2026, get in touch with us here.