While sorting out some artwork I came across the original covers for “The Young Mary” and “The Young Elizabeth” both by Jean Plaidy and published by Piccolo in 1972. There was a third title “Meg Roper” but this was not published by Piccolo and I wondered why? On investigation I found that the first two titles had been used by Macdonald Roy for their series “The Young  ……” and as well as including Mary and Elizabeth they also featured John Milton, the Brontes, Charles Dickens,  Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Alexander the Great , James Barrie, Marie Curie, Sir Francis Drake, Thomas Edison, Louis Braille, Helen Keller and others.

I have not discovered who painted the covers for the two Piccolo Plaidy titles but the inside illustrations are the ones that Macdonald Roy used in their 1968/69 editions and are by William Randel.