‘COULD I have tea with you?’

Visitors to a Dorchester museum will be able to have tea with the tiger thanks to a new exhibit.

Judith Kerr’s iconic story, The Tiger Who Came to Tea, will be brought to life at the Shire Hall Museum in Dorchester from March 16.

A display in the exhibition room will commemorate the centenary of Kerr’s birth, celebrating her contribution to children’s literature with the Tiger tale and Mog, the Forgetful Cat.

The Tiger Who Came to Tea exhibition, originated by Seven Stories, the National Centre for Children’s Books, features high-quality facsimiles of Kerr’s original illustrations from the Seven Stories collection and promises to re-introduce the beloved picture book to a new generation of family audiences.

And children can even step into Sophie’s kitchen to have tea with a life-size tiger.

Nina Corey, director at Shire Hall Museum, said: “We’re so excited to have The Tiger Who Came to Tea exhibition at Shire Hall Museum.

The Tiger Who Came to Tea exhibition. Photo: Shire Hall Museum

“It’s such a well-loved book and we’re looking forward to giving our visitors the chance to step into Sophie’s kitchen.

“It is particularly special to us as 2023 is the centenary of Judith Kerr’s birth, and the exhibition will also explore her extraordinary life.”

The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Kerr’s first book, began as a bedtime story for her own children before it was published in 1968.

It soon became a classic and by the time it celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008, it had been translated into 11 languages and sold over five million copies.

Kerr passed away in 2019 at the age of 95.

The Tiger Who Came to Tea exhibition runs at Shire Hall Museum from March 16 to May 20, and entry is included with a museum ticket.

For more information about the exhibition and upcoming events, visit shirehalldorset.org.