Chip Colquhoun

Storyteller, author, performer, publisher and musician, Chip Colquhoun is the founder and lead storyteller at Epic Tales. Chip and our Epic storytellers have been working with children all around the world since 2007, helping them grow, achieve, and learn to love reading, writing and stories.

Our storytellers use traditional techniques that have enthralled audiences since the dawn of language, stimulating children to invest in their learning – be it for literacy, PSHE, science, or any other subject. Whether our Epic storyteller is with your children for 30 minutes, a day, a week, or anywhere in-between, every child contributes – and, moreover, every child feels their contribution is valued.

There’s a good chance you have already encountered some of our work, or been influenced by us and our partners in some way:

• Our Epic storytellers provided many of the storytelling videos for Oxford University Press’ Oxford Owl.
• We have worked with organisations such as the EU Lifelong Learning Programme, the UK Education Select Committee, and the University of Cambridge. Some of this research has helped to scientifically prove that storytelling is the best teaching method.
• Not only do we publish our own stories, but those of aspiring authors as well in our Fables and Fairy Tales series, which is illustrated by Korky Paul (the illustrator of the Winnie the Witch books) and the artists he curates.
• Over 200 educational podcast episodes of Happily Ever Teaching where we talk with teachers about lesson plan ideas that come from stories, and how to use stories to teach any subject.
• We have performed for children at festivals all around the country, including Glastonbury every year.

Get in touch! Simply let us know:

• Your themes and/or intentions for your Epic storyteller visit,
• The number and ages of the children you'd like to involve,
• Your preferred date(s).

We'll then use our vast repertoire of stories from around the world to craft an experience that will help your children bloom and thrive.

Rates can vary, as there are so many types of services, workshops, and visits that we offer.

Typically costs range from £100 to a very maximum of £500 for a full day, with no hidden VAT charges on top.

Example prices for work we have carried out include:

• £450 for a full day of storytelling at a school (including an assembly, visits with every year group, and free teacher training after school) for World Book Day.
• £160 for an hour's storytelling at a museum, and £80 per hour after this
• £100 per session for online workshops with a class to help them become engaged, excited storytellers
• £160 for a storytelling session or seminar at a bookstore
• £1,600 for a fully developed proposition that will draw in children and their families from disadvantaged backgrounds to museum and charity event, over the course of several months.

We also understand that money is tight, so there are ways we offer to reduce the cost to you. Schools can offer our catalogue of Fables & Fairy Tales books to their parents, with all profits going towards the cost of the storyteller visit.

A school can apply for us to record our storytelling session at their school for a reduced fee in return for us using the video in marketing material. We can even help you review what local funding might be available to help fund a visit from us.