The Talking Parcel

First edition (publ. Collins)
Cover art by Liza James

The Talking Parcel (also published as The Battle for Castle Cockatrice) is a 1974 book by Gerald Durrell in which children are transported to the fantasy land of Mythologia to save it from cockatrices. They are aided by a talking parrot and encounter many other magical creatures, including a mooncalf.

Film adaptation

The Talking Parcel
Directed by	Brian Cosgrove
Produced by	Brian Cosgrove Mark Hall
Written by	Gerald Durrell (novel) Rosemary Anne Sisson (writer)
Music by	Ravid Rohl Woolly Wolstenholme
Edited by	John McManus Dave Street
Production company	Cosgrove Hall Films
Release dates	26 December 1978 (UK)
Running time	(USA) 60 min (UK) 40 min.
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

It was made into an animated feature for television by Cosgrove Hall Films in 1978, debuting on ITV. However, the film differs from the book mainly by introducing only one human protagonist, the girl Penelope.

Voice Cast

Lisa Norris ... Penelope
Freddie Jones ... Parrot
Mollie Sugden ... Hortense, the Flying Train
Roy Kinnear ... Ethelred
Edward Kelsey ... H.H. Junketbury
Windsor Davies ... Chief Cockatrice
Michael Hordern ... Oswald, the Sea Serpent
Peter Woodthorpe ... Werewolf
Harvey Ashby ... Duke Wensleydale
Raymond Mason
Daphne Oxenford

Walt Disney Animation Studios will make a hand-drawn animated musical movie based on the book with some parts from the 1978 TV film and much closer to the original story.

External links

The Talking Parcel (1978) at IMDb.
The Talking Parcel on Youtube Part 1

Gerald Durrell

Institutions associated with	Durrell Wildlife Park Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust EcoHealth Alliance Wildlife Preservation Canada Mauritian Wildlife Foundation Madagascar Fauna Group Programme for Belize World Land Trust World Conference on Breeding Endangered Species in Captivity as an Aid to their Survival

Species associations	Aye-aye Gorilla Mauritius kestrel Pink pigeon Pygmy hog Rockfowl St. Lucia parrot Volcano rabbit

Books authored	The Overloaded Ark Three Singles to Adventure The Bafut Beagles The New Noah The Drunken Forest My Family and Other Animals Encounters with Animals A Zoo in My Luggage The Whispering Land Island Zoo A Look at Zoos Menagerie Manor Two in the Bush The Donkey Rustlers Rosy is My Relative Birds, Beasts, and Relatives Fillets of Plaice Catch Me a Colobus Beasts in My Belfry The Talking Parcel The Stationary Ark Golden Bats and Pink Pigeons The Garden of the Gods The Picnic and Suchlike Pandemonium The Mockery Bird Ark on the Move The Amateur Naturalist How to Shoot an Amateur Naturalist Durrell in Russia The Fantastic Flying Journey The Fantastic Dinosaur Adventure The Ark's Anniversary Keeper Toby the Tortoise Marrying Off Mother and Other Stories The Aye-Aye and I Puppy Tales The Best of Gerald Durrell

Illustrators	Ralph Thompson Edward Mortelmans Peter Barrett Graham Percy Keith West Cliff Wright

Famous TV series	Two in the Bush Catch Me a Colobus The Garden of the Gods The Stationary Ark Ark on the Move The Amateur Naturalist Ourselves and Other Animals Durrell in Russia

Durrell family	Lawrence Samuel Durrell (father) Louisa Dixie Durrell (mother) Lawrence Durrell Margaret Durrell Jacquie Durrell Lee McGeorge Durrell

Notable others	Theodore Stephanides Douglas Botting Achirimbi II

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