06 February 2026
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The Postal Museum is to celebrate 40 years of The Jolly Postman, the much-loved children’s book by Janet and Allan Ahlberg, with a new exhibition; the first ever exhibition dedicated to the book.
Opening on 14th of February, this immersive, family friendly exhibition invites visitors to step into the story and to follow the Jolly Postman’s delivery round through a fairytale neighbourhood.
Visitors will be able to wander through the woods to the Three Bears’ cottage, deliver ‘royal mail’ to Cinderella at the palace or even to enter the Witch’s house.
Along the way, there will be original artwork from the Ahlberg archives, much of it never displayed publicly. Visitors will find Janet’s beautiful hand-drawn sketches on display together with Allan’s notebooks, offering an unprecedented glimpse into the pair’s creative partnership.
Prototypes and early design ideas for letters, cards and characters will be shown for the first time, alongside real stamps, cards and postal uniforms from The Postal Museum’s collection.
The History of The Jolly Postman
‘The Jolly Postman or other people’s letters’ was inspired by their young daughter Jessica’s fascination with different letters arriving through the post box, the Ahlbergs dreamt up the idea for a book with real pull-out letters and cards.
The innovative design took five years to create and has captured the imagination of multiple generations, selling more than six million copies worldwide.
It was followed by two further books, ‘The Jolly Christmas Postman’ (1991) and ‘The Jolly Pocket Postman’ (1995) all published by Puffin Books.
The Postal Museum is inviting primary schools across the UK to make and send their own fairytale mail inspired by the book for a special display within the exhibition.
Schools can also book The Jolly Postman schools programme, delivered in the museum and virtually in classrooms.
Jessica Ahlberg, daughter of the book’s authors, said: ‘I can’t wait to see The Jolly Postman
celebrated and brought to life at The Postal Museum. The book is full of humour, warmth and imagination, just like my mum and dad, and I’m delighted that their artwork and ideas will be displayed for others to enjoy.’
The exhibition is included in general admission to the museum and is scheduled to run until January 2027.
Please see The Postal Museum’s website for full details of the exhibition.
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Front cover design and original artwork from The Jolly Postman (© Janet and Allan Ahlberg)