Adjoa Andoh - Herman's Letter CBeebies Bedtime Stories

Hello. My name's Adjoa.

I had a lovely surprise this morning.

A letter came in the post from my friend who lives far away.

Isn't it lovely to receive letters full of news?

Well, tonight's story is about someone who receives

lots of letters from his friend, too.

Shall we find out what they say?

This story is called Herman's Letter.

And it's by Tom Percival.

Herman and Henry had been best friends

for as long as anyone could remember.

From tiddlywinks to climbing trees, they did everything together.

They had great fun inventing their own games.

And they even had a secret club with a secret code

and a top-secret handshake.

Everything was just perfect...

..until Henry had to move away.

The two friends were devastated.

But they promised to write to each other

and to stay best friends forever.

It wasn't easy for Henry to settle into his new home.

He missed Herman terribly.

As soon as he could, he wrote his first letter.

"Dear Herman, How are you?

"My new home is kind of OK but it's not the same without you around.

"The weather here is nice and sunny and I've made some new friends.

"In fact, they've just called round.

"Must dash. Lots of love, your best friend, Henry."

Herman knew he should've felt happy for his friend,

but inside, he just felt horribly, terribly, awfully jealous.

It just wasn't fair.

Henry was off making new friends while Herman was left on his own.

"Dear Herman, I can't believe

"that summer's already here.

"It's so lovely and warm where I am.

"In fact, I don't think it's rained once. Can you believe it?

"We went for a barbecue yesterday and I paddled in the sea

"and ate ice cream all day. I can't wait to hear what you've been up to.

"Please write soon. Love, Henry."

Herman had meant to write back.

But how could he possibly tell Henry how miserable he was?

"Dear Herman, Guess what I did today?

"I had a ride in a hot-air balloon. It was amazing!

"You could see for miles. I wish you could have been there.

"That would have made it even better. Love, Henry."

So hours, days and months passed by

and it was nearly time for Herman to hibernate.

He settled down in his comfiest armchair, pulled up a blanket

and was just about to close his eyes

when WHOMP...something clattered through the letter box.

Oh, it was a letter!

A letter from his best friend.

"Dear Herman, I hope you are well.

"I haven't received ANY of your letters.

"There must be a problem with the post or something.

"I miss you so much! You're my best friend in the whole wide world.

"Please say you'll come and visit me soon. Love, Henry."

Herman had never felt so happy.

Henry missed him too.

He wrote a reply and rushed out through the snow to post it.

But he was too late! The Post Office was shut for winter.

Herman groaned. What was he going to do?

Then he had a brilliant and rather bold idea.

He would deliver the letter himself!

Herman packed a suitcase and set out into the swirling snow.

He walked and walked and walked

until his cosy home was just a distant memory.

He strolled past penguins.

Tiptoed through caves. Sh!

And leapt over the creaking crevices. Woo hoo!

Then he climbed and climbed and climbed up steep cliffs.

SCRAPE!

And frozen waterfalls.

SCREECH!

Until finally...

..he reached the top of the tallest mountain he had ever seen!

Oh, bother!

Poor Herman. His journey had just gone from bad to worse.

Luckily, Herman was a very resourceful bear.

But sometimes things don't go according to plan.

BUMP!

DOOF!

Whoa! Aah!

Herman bashed his head on a tree trunk. And everything went...

black.

HERMAN SNORES

Herman's snoring attracted a lot of attention.

But nobody knew quite what to do.

Then somebody noticed Herman's letter.

It was obvious.

What they needed was a postman.

Later that afternoon, Henry was very surprised to receive...

HERMAN SNORES

..a strange snoring box. He was even more surprised when he opened it.

A letter! Shall we see what it says?

"Dear Henry, I miss you too!

"I'd LOVE to visit, but I'll be hibernating all winter.

"I'll come and see you as soon as I wake up in the spring.

"Your best friend forever, Herman."

Henry read Herman's letter and chuckled.

He didn't mind Herman dropping in unannounced.

After all, they were best friends.

HERMAN SNORES

But he'd forgotten just how loud Herman's snoring was.

Suddenly, spring seemed like a very, very long way away.

But when it did come...

BRR-RING!

..it was brilliant!

That story was called Herman's Letter and I hope you enjoyed it.

Henry had to wait a very long time to receive his letter.

It was worth the wait, though, because in the end,

he got a letter from his best friend and a visit, too!

And now, it's time for you to have a big sleep.

Maybe not as big as Herman's. And I'll see you again soon.

Sweet dreams!