NORTH Yorkshire author Andy Seed has told of his excitement after triumphing in the 2015 Blue Peter book awards.

Andy, a former teacher from Amotherby, near Malton, yesterday won the TV programme's Best Book with Facts award with his children's book, The Silly Book of Side-Splitting Stuff, after hundreds of schoolchildren voted for it in a poll.

He was presented with the award on World Book Day yesterday by Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2013-2015 Malorie Blackman as the world's longest running children’s magazine programme celebrated the 15th anniversary of the prize. His success had been announced on BBC Newsround yesterday morning.

Andy, who grew up watching Blue Peter, said: ‘To win a Blue Peter Book Award is a proper thrill not just because it revives all those happy childhood memories but because the show today does a truly significant job in raising the profile of books and reading at a time when this is needed more than ever.

"To win any award is a delight but to win the Blue Peter Book Award sets my spine tingling like nothing else.’ He said the book was dedicated to the children and staff of his local primary school in Amotherby, which his own three children attended when younger and which he often visits, running events and workshops aimed at inspiring children to read and write.

A panel of judges including Tom Gates author Liz Pichon, Rastamouse creator Michael de Souza, The Bookseller journalist Anna James, and non-voting chair of judges, Blue Peter editor Ewan Vinnicombe, selected a shortlist of three books in the Best Book with Facts category from publishers’ submissions.

These were then read and voted on by more than 200 children from ten schools across the UK to decide the winners in each category.

The awards, which are managed by the charity Booktrust, are intended to celebrate the best authors, most creative illustrators and the greatest reads for children.

Andy, who attended university in York, had been best known until now for his All Teachers Great And Small series, based on his life at the chalkface when he taught in the Yorkshire Dales in the 1980s.

Blue Peter editor Ewan Vinnicombe said Andy should be 'really proud' of his success and Blue Peter would continue to promote children’s books and its viewers’ love of reading.