Paddington Helps Out

Paddington Helps Out
Michael Bond

Peggy Fortnum

“Oh dear,” said Paddington, as everyone turned to look at him accusingly. “I’m in trouble again.” Somehow trouble comes naturally to Paddington.What other bear could upset the whole cinema by standing on his seat to boo the ‘bad guy’ in the cowboy film? Or drip ice-cream on the people down below? Or flood the launderette and saw Mr Curry’s kitchen into little pieces? Only Paddington! But when Paddington’s head is so full of ideas, some things are bound to go wrong!

Copyright (#ulink_94852850-3d7a-552d-a71c-72e56e387ee0)

First published in Great Britain

by William Collins Sons and Co. Ltd. in 1960

This edition first published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 1997 This edition published in 2018

HarperCollins Children’s Books is a division of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd, 1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF

Visit our website at:

www.harpercollinschildrensbooks.co.uk

Text copyright © Michael Bond 1960

Illustrations copyright © Peggy Fortnum

and William Collins Sons and Co. Ltd. 1960

The author and illustrator assert the moral right to be identified as the author and illustrator of this work.

Cover illustration adapted and coloured by Mark Burgess from the original by Peggy Fortnum

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

Source ISBN: 9780006753445

eBook Edition © JANUARY 2012 ISBN: 9780007402564

Version: 2018-05-23

Contents

Cover (#u07bfa31b-f1cd-5a10-8df8-ca075a1941ca)

Title Page (#u6deaa069-3d18-52ca-a76a-934836c8df87)

Copyright (#uba1eb4c0-6f12-5a7f-b590-38dc29099111)

1. A Picnic on the River (#ub16c929c-49ec-58d5-ab83-78b09823258c)

2. Paddington Makes a Bid (#u9e8af4bb-931a-5be2-ab07-682fbfd45571)

3. Paddington and ‘Do It Yourself’ (#litres_trial_promo)

4. A Visit to the Cinema (#litres_trial_promo)

5. Something Nasty in the Kitchen (#litres_trial_promo)

6. Trouble at the Laundrette (#litres_trial_promo)

7. Paddington Dines Out (#litres_trial_promo)

Keep Reading … (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Author (#litres_trial_promo)

Other Books by Michael Bond (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter One A PICNIC ON THE RIVER (#ulink_8cb0f986-d143-5f63-95d0-ccbd96252176)

Paddington sat up in bed with a puzzled expression on his face. Happenings at number thirty-two Windsor Gardens, particularly breakfast, always followed a strict timetable and it was most unusual for anything to waken him quite so early.

He took a careful look around his room, but everything seemed to be in its place.

The photograph of his Aunt Lucy, taken shortly before she entered the home for retired bears in Lima, was on the table beside the bed, along with his jar of special marmalade and several other items.

His old hat and duffle coat were both hanging on the door peg, and his Peruvian centavos were under the pillow.

Most important of all, when he lifted the bedclothes and peered underneath, his small leather suitcase with its secret compartment containing his scrapbook and a number of important papers was still at the bottom of the bed.

Paddington heaved a sigh of relief. Although he had lived with the Browns for over a year he had never quite got used to having a room of his own and he wasn’t the sort of bear who believed in taking chances.

It was at that point, just as he was absentmindedly dipping his paw into the marmalade jar before going back to sleep, that Paddington pricked up his ears and listened.

There were voices – quite a number of voices – coming from the garden. Several times he heard a door bang, and then, in the distance, he heard a noise remarkably like that of clinking plates followed by the sound of Mr Brown shouting orders.

Paddington scrambled out of bed and hurried across the room to the window. It sounded most interesting and he didn’t like to think he might be missing anything. As he peered through the glass he nearly fell over backwards with astonishment at the sight which met his eyes. He breathed heavily on the window-pane and rubbed it with his paw to make sure he wasn’t dreaming the whole thing.

For there, on the lawn outside, all the Brown family – Mr and Mrs Brown and Jonathan and Judy – were gathered round a large wicker basket. Not only that, but as he watched, Mrs Bird, their housekeeper, came out of the kitchen carrying a huge plate piled high with sandwiches.

Paddington climbed off the window-sill and hurried downstairs. It was all very mysterious and it definitely needed investigating.

“Trust Paddington!” said everyone as he came through the kitchen door just as they were shutting the lid of the hamper.

“That bear can smell out a marmalade sandwich a mile away,” grumbled Mrs Bird.

“Honestly,” said Judy, waving her finger at him. “It was meant to be a surprise. We got up specially early.”

Paddington looked from one to the other with growing surprise.