EVENTS celebrating children's author Roald Dahl took place today across south Cumbria.

Pupils from St Mary's Catholic Primary School in Ulverston were seen going to school this morning dressed as an array of characters from his books.

Mrs Bernadette Charnley, a teacher at the school, said: "Last year was Roald Dahl's 100th birthday and we celebrated that.

"We decided to do it again this year. We like to keep up the profile of reading and like to promote it in a fun and engaging way.

"It has been brilliant fun, the children have really enjoyed it. They always tend to get excitable when they can come in dressed up."

The school has had a very Dahl themed day with activities and lessons inspired by the writer.

As well as the costume competition, the children completed Dahl maths related tasks, made their own chocolate creations, and came up with new ideas for Willy Wonka's chocolate factory.

Dahl has a truly amazing history, and it all started in 1916 in Cardiff, Wales, where he was born to Norwegian parents Sofie Magdalene Dahl and Harald Dahl.

He lost both his sister and his father at the age of three, but his mother chose to remain in Wales to honour his father's wishes that he be educated in British schools.

From there he continued to Repton School in Derbyshire, where one of his most important works would be conceived.

Cadbury regularly sent chocolate bars to the school to be tested by the students, which led to Dahl having dreams of creating a chocolate bar so delicious Cadbury would praise it.

This was the origin of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

He went on to be a fighter ace during the Second World War, and had a long and distinguished career, fighting in some of the most significant air battles.

Ultimately, he started experiencing severe headaches that prevented him from flying, and spent the rest of his career working as a diplomat, writer and intelligence officer.

It was during this time that he wrote The Gremlins, his first children’s book, and it was written for Walt Disney Productions to promote a full-length film that remained unmade.

From there on he continued writing prolifically, creating some of the most popular stories in history.

If you're not a lover of reading, you may still be a big Dahl fan as some of his books have been made into films.

Here is a list:

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Fantastic Mr Fox

The BFG

Matilda

The Witches

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

James and the Giant Peach

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Danny, the Champion of the World

Esio Trot.