The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson is at the Gulbenkian Theatre

“The sea snail slithered all over the rock. And gazed at the sea and the ships in the dock.

"And as she gazed she sniffed and sighed. The sea is deep and the world is wide!

"How I long to sail. Said the tiny snail”

Children's favourite The Snail and the Whale is swimming into Kent this July.

Tall Stories, the company behind The Gruffalo stage productions, are bringing the Julia Donaldson creation to the Gulbenkian in Canterbury from Sunday, July 17 to Tuesday, July 19.

The story follows the adventures of a tiny snail, who after longing to see the world, hitches a lift on the tail of a humpback whale.

The Snail and the Whale story won the 2004 Early Years award for the best pre-school book, the 2005 Blue Peter award for Best Book to Read Aloud, and the 2007 Giverny award for Best Science Picture Book.

The audio version, which includes The Snail and the Whale song, also won the Spoken Book gold award for best audio for six year-olds and under.

For more information and tickets please visit the Gulbenkian website or call 01227 769075.