Once upon a time in a dark and dreary land, vast swathes of the population lived in terrible fear of the words "Please can you read me a bedtime story before I go to sleep?'
For in that land, one in every ten grown-ups struggled with some of the words in such stories and almost a quarter made words up or skipped over parts in a bid to hasten the story-telling process.
But in spite of this, parents read to their children four times a week for 20 minutes at a time and there was a renaissance in storytelling, which nearly three quarters of the realm said was their favourite family pastime.
Then one day, Sir Learndirect rode in on a handsome white steed, armed with a celebrity-endorsed book to help the fearful 12% of parents who found it hard to understand the stories they read to their children.
The new book "Where Did The River Go?" and a new fangled website would serve to boost parents' maths and English skills, he declared.
The book, by popular children's author Peter Corey with help from presenters Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford, would test parents skills and help improve them while entertaining their children.
And it could even help with the maths and English homework that parents also find challenging, so they could all live happily ever after.
But what do you think? Is bedtime reading important? Will the book's quizzes be helpful? Or is this just another example of the wicked witch of the nanny state meddling in private lives?
You can listen to a recording about the book here (zip file).
