Born and bred in North London, Richard Merritt has been an illustrator for 15 years after graduating from Central Saint Martin's college of Art and Kingston University.

Richard has worked with many book and editorial publishing houses, design groups, advertising agencies and more, on lots of varied projects, from children's books and packaging to magazines and costume illustration for film. He now illustrates children's picture books, including the hugely successful The Dinosaur Department Store.

Jo Taylor is a self-taught illustrator, and has worked in the industry for well over 10 years.

She lives in Gloucestershire with her computer-obsessed son, her sports coach daughter and their shaggy French sheepdog, Blue.

All her illustrations start off created by hand, using pencils, pens and a splash of paint. Then she mixes them all up in her PC, where she adds lots of colour and texture to create fresh, bright, colourful designs.

Recent happy clients include: Buster Books, Macmillan, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, BBC, Nelson Thornes Scholastic, Pearson, and Harper Collins.