M.A. Bilbrough

M. A. Bilbrough (Michael Alan) was born to actor parents in Stratford-upon-Avon, UK, (of Shakespeare fame). His family soon moved to Southend-on-Sea, from where Michael still holds lasting childhood memories of walking barefoot with his father and sister on hot summer afternoons through the streets and down to the beach at Southend and nearby Westcliff. Then there were the frequent excursions to Leigh-on-Sea with his adoring grandmother to have what is called a "cockle tea" at the Leigh cockle sheds.

Many years later, after thirty years of being an English language teacher working and now living in Spain, he was to remember those halcyon days of his early youth and featured the house where he then lived (Aunt Mary's house) and the spectacular Southend Pier in his first children's book for English learners, Carlos and his English. This work reflects his PhD research in second language acquisition (Seville University) on how to engage young learners of English in enjoying reading and speaking activities, and which help them focus on language morphology and make it more memorable. He is currently working on a similar theme for his next book. M.A. Bilbrough lives in Seville, Spain with his Spanish wife and bilingual daughter.