BBC 500 Words: Two sets of siblings reach final
- Published
Sisters Zemira and Akeeva are from Oxfordshire
Two sets of siblings have reached the final of the BBC's 500 Words competition.
Sisters Zemira and Akeeva, from Oxfordshire, and brother and sister Henry and Isabella, from Hampshire, are in the running for the competition.
Of the 50 finalists, they are the only siblings to have reached this stage.
They will join the other finalists, from across the country, at an event hosted by Queen Camilla at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday.
Ten-year-old Zemira, who has received treatment for stomach cancer, said she got the idea for her story "from the doctors and nurses when I was in the hospital having chemo".
She added: "I thought they were like superheroes to me because they would always entertain me and cheered me up."
She has since completed a course of chemotherapy and is under review.
Akeeva, 8, wrote her story about a girl who travels through a magic portal in her hair and meets her own mother in a castle of sweets.
It is based on songs her mum sings to her whilst washing her hair.
She said: "I wanted to enter the competition because I love books, I love reading and I love writing stories."
Hampshire-based brother and sister Henry and Isabella are two of the 50 finalists
The siblings are four of 44,000 children who submitted their stories.
Eleven-year-old Isabella, whose story was inspired by her grandfather, said she was "speechless" after finding out she had reached the final.
She said she "couldn't believe I got this far".
Her brother Henry, 7, said writing his story about space was "quite hard".
He added he was "very excited" to visit Buckingham Palace.
Every finalist's story, including those written by the siblings, can now be read and listened to on the BBC 500 Words website.
The overall competition winners will be announced on 7 March during a special episode of The One Show to coincide with World Book Day 2024.
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- Published2 March 2023
