Brian Paterson is a British illustrator and author, born in Ayrshire, Scotland, in 1949. At the age of twelve, his family moved to Somerset, where he later met Cynthia, whom he married in 1973. The couple initially lived in London, where Paterson worked as a designer during the day while developing his illustrative style in his own time.

Paterson is best known as the illustrator of the Foxwood Tales series of children’s picture books, a collaboration with his wife, author Cynthia Paterson. The series, inspired by the English countryside around their home in Oxfordshire and the adventures of their three sons, began with Robbery at Foxwood in 1985. Over the next thirteen years, they produced eight books in the series, including The Foxwood Treasure (1985), The Foxwood Kidnap (1986), The Foxwood Regatta (1986), The Foxwood Surprise (1988), The Foxwood Smugglers (1988), The Secret Valley (1998), and The Magic Sleigh (1998). The books, which feature anthropomorphic animal characters living in a village community, have sold over 1.3 million copies across 18 countries.

The Foxwood Tales books served as the source material for a Japanese animated miniseries. Titled Fox Wood Tales (Foxwood Monogatari), this OVA series was released in Japan from 1991 to 1992 and consisted of three episodes. The adaptation is directly based on the original children’s books by Cynthia and Brian Paterson.

Following the success of Foxwood Tales, Paterson created Zigby, a separate children’s book series about a zebra. The first Zigby book was published in 2002, and the series includes titles such as Zigby Camps Out (2002), Zigby Hunts for Treasure (2002), Zigby and the Ant Invaders (2003), Zigby Dives In (2003), and Zigby and the Monster (2005), among others. The Zigby character was later developed into a television cartoon series. Paterson’s artistic identity is characterized by detailed watercolor illustrations and stories centered on animal characters in pastoral settings, often involving gentle adventures and community life.