Winnie The Pooh: A Canadian Icon

Who is Winnie the Pooh? Winnie is a teddy bear, and a bear from a famous book. He likes to do nothing. He loves to eat honey, so he is a little fat. He is slow and a little naive, but he also likes to philosophize in the forest, with his friends Piglet, Tigger and Eeyore the donkey. He might be a “Bear of Little Brain,” but he became a true children’s classic. And the character in the book was based on a real bear. Winnie also has a human best friend. This is Christopher Robin. The little boy is based on a real boy who was the son of the author of the book, A. A. Milne. Here is their story.

Winnie and the War

The real Winnie was a female Canadian black bear cub. Over 100 years ago, she was bought by a young soldier from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Lieutenant Colebourn. He named the cub “Winnie” after his hometown. When Colebourn was called to serve in Europe in the First World War, he took Winnie with him. And his pet bear became the mascot of the regiment. But, when the Lieutenant had to go to France to fight, he couldn’t take his pet with him. 

So, in the winter of 1914, Winnie moved to London Zoo. She was tame and friendly, and used to humans, and quickly became a favourite with visitors. These included the author A. A. Milne and his son Christopher Robin. The child and the bear got along very well and Christopher Robin decided to call his teddy bear back home Winnie. His father had served in World War One, just like the bear’s first owner. Milne was already a successful playwright when he started writing stories around Winnie the Pooh (first published in 1924). Of course he couldn’t know how huge they would become.

Winnie in Winnipeg

Back in Winnipeg Winnie is not forgotten. At the Pavilion Gallery Museum in a city park, two rooms are dedicated to this icon of children’s literature. Even before you go in, out in the garden you can see a large tree cut to look like a bear: Winnie the Pooh holding a pot of honey. Inside there are photographs, first editions and illustrations. The highlight is the famous portrait of Winnie the Pooh painted by the first illustrator of the books. The painting is very popular and has already travelled as far as Japan for an exhibition. 

Winnie the Pooh has also become a film star. The first film came out in the 1960s, and a new Disney film was released a few years ago: Winnie the Pooh for a new generation of kids.