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The Prince and the Firebird in this book takes the simple story from this ballet. And I dreamed of the Firebird, and her wish for freedom.

I even loved the photograph on the cover, of Margot Fonteyn in the role. But it was the sound of the complete ballet score which was so breathtaking. There are in fact three shorter suites arranged by Stravinsky himself, which are scored for smaller orchestras. It had been written in 1909–10 for a huge orchestra, including quadruple woodwind and three harps, as well as a piano! It seemed impossible that this would be staged for such a short piece. I was surprised to learn that, although it was only 50 minutes long, this was the entire ballet, whereas mostly I had only heard selections from ballet scores. I simply loved everything about "The Firebird". Then it became the first LP (long playing vinyl record) I bought for myself, and played over and over again. I knew the story from a weekly serial in my comic, and loved the vibrant illustrations. Never had I heard something so unearthly, with discordant harmonies which spoke to me of beauty, fantasy, evil, and a desire for freedom. I was bowled over by the music by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky.

As a child I loved the "plinkety, plonkety, thump" sound of any classical ballet music, but was stunned when I heard the strange strains of this one.

And the ballet of "The Firebird" or "L'Oiseau de feu" in French, "Жар-птица" in Russian remains one of my favourite ballets, with its passion, colour and drama. The Firebird, a glowing mythical bird with magnificent fiery plumage, is an arresting image.