Press

Press and media

BEAR Facts of Engineering is a story-first STEM adventure series for readers aged 8 to 12+, created by a retired Glasgow technology teacher and produced from Mauritius. Journalists, producers and reviewers: everything you need is on this page, and we answer quickly.

press@bfoe.kids

The story in brief

For thirty years, Jimmy Johnston taught technology in Glasgow schools, much of it in inner-city neighbourhoods. His teams raised their own funds and travelled to the United States, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong to compete against the best young engineers in the world. Many of his students went into STEM careers. Some had never been told they could. He was appointed MBE for Services to Education and Young People.

When he retired, the after-school programmes stopped. The idea did not. Jimmy had spent years developing a framework he called TEDDIES, and had coined a phrase for a series of stories he could not yet build: BEAR Facts of Engineering.

His friend of twenty years, Martin Sansone, was a former accountant turned software developer, CTO and technology architect, by then living in Mauritius. For years the ambition was larger than the means. When animation and digital production tools became affordable enough for two people, Martin told Jimmy it was time to stop talking about it.

Book One, The Burning Mountain, was published in August 2026. Book Two, The Satellite Whispers, is complete in manuscript. The plan is a hundred books, two YouTube channels, animation, audio, classroom resources aligned to seven national curricula, and a membership through which parents and teachers help steer what gets made. It will take years. That is understood and accepted.

Fast facts

What it isA story-first STEM adventure series for readers aged 8 to 12+
DoctrineAdventure first, engineering second, educational value third
TaglineEngineering is the superpower.
Created byJimmy Johnston MBE (co-author and creative originator) and Martin Sansone (co-creator and producer)
PublisherBFOE Mauritius
BaseMauritius, with co-author in Glasgow
PublishedBook One, The Burning Mountain, in separate British English and American English editions
UK edition5 August 2026 · 172 pages · ISBN-13 978-9999398503 · 13.97 x 1.09 x 21.59 cm
US edition7 August 2026 · 172 pages · ISBN-13 978-9999398534 · 5.5 x 0.43 x 8.5 in
Reading age8 to 12 years
FormatsPaperback and Kindle
In productionBook Two, The Satellite Whispers (manuscript complete). Book Three in development
AmbitionA hundred books, across two tracks: one grounded on Earth, one in near orbit
Channels@BFOEStories (young readers) and @BFOEWorkshop (parents, teachers and makers). Animation in development
MembershipThe BFOE Den: parents £29 a year or £3.99 monthly, teachers £59 a year, organisation licences on enquiry
Steering groupThe Workshop Programme: parents and teachers, by application and free, who read manuscripts before publication
ClassroomLesson packs aligned to seven curricula (UK, US, Australia, Singapore, India, IB, Canada), built on the TEDDIES framework. Author visits to schools
Websitebfoe.kids

Story angles we can speak to

Teaching STEM to the AI generation.

What do you teach an eight year old when nobody can describe the job market they will enter?

Thirty years in a Glasgow classroom.

What actually made students believe they could compete internationally, and what happened to those programmes.

A hundred books from a two-person team.

Independent publishing from Mauritius, and what modern production tools have made possible for small creative teams.

Built with its readers.

A soft steering group of parents and teachers who read manuscripts before publication and shape what gets made. Parents are already asking for character stickers and merchandise.

Disaster stories for children, done responsibly.

Volcanoes, tsunamis and orbital debris, written so that children finish frightened chapters wanting to build something rather than hide.

The people

Press kit

Everything you need, in one download. Logos, book covers, author portraits and approved character art, at print and web resolution, plus a one-page fact sheet.

Download the press kit (.zip) Fact sheet only (PDF)

Usage permission

These assets are provided for editorial use in coverage of BEAR Facts of Engineering. You may reproduce them in print, online and broadcast without asking us first.

Please credit book covers and character art as "BEAR Facts of Engineering", and author portraits as "Photograph courtesy of BFOE".

Please do not alter, recolour or crop the logo, or alter character artwork. Character art may not be used on merchandise, or to create derivative works, or to imply endorsement of a product, organisation or campaign.

For anything outside editorial coverage, including licensing, merchandise and adaptation enquiries, write to press@bfoe.kids and we will talk.

Interviews

Both authors are available for interview. Jimmy Johnston is in Glasgow (GMT, BST in summer). Martin Sansone is in Mauritius (GMT+4). Remote video, telephone or written questions all work. We aim to respond to press enquiries within one working day.

Endorsements

A powerful STEM adventure that shows young readers what engineering really means when the world is unpredictable… teamwork, responsibility, and the courage to act with incomplete information.”
Alan Chen
Alan Chen
CEO, Topkey Foundation Taiwan · Board Director, DNA‑RAG
An artfully created story reflecting realistic and practical challenges… From start to finish, the reader is immersed in this journey. The importance of the engineering profession is woven subtly through the book. I believe that this book can reach audiences of most if not all ages.”
"Bob" Robert A. Stuart Jr.
"Bob" Robert A. Stuart Jr.
Chair, Disaster Network of Assistance Rotary Action Group

Working on a story?

Write to press@bfoe.kids, or use the form below and we will come back to you within one working day.