The Dirigible Balloon
Poetry for Children

My Unicorn has Broken Down

Listen to Dale's poem ... read by JH
My unicorn has broken down
a mile away from Fairy Town,
I’m by the side of Sunbeam Road,
deciding if I'll have him towed.

He cannot canter, will not trot,
he's glued like Uhu to the spot
and much as I have “hup!”d and “mush!”d
he won’t be giddy up’d or rushed.

I’ve checked his shoes for bits of rust,
topped him up with pixie dust
and though I’ve cleaned his uni-horn
he’s still a real still unicorn
Picture by Mark Millicent
Picture by Mark Millicent


I tugged his pink and purple mane
to try and make him go again
but all it did was make him neigh
Picture by Mark Millicent
Picture by Mark Millicent

and call the RSPCA.

I let him drink some rainbow juice
which proved to be of little use,
Picture by Mark Millicent
Picture by Mark Millicent

he simply raised his magic knee
and did a multi coloured wee

The vet has yet to make him start,
he said “You just can’t get the parts,
your mythic mare’s so very rare
it’s really hard to find a spare"

But still I’ll need a magic steed
to meet my transportation needs,
I guess I’ll take the Pegasus...
or maybe I’ll just get the bus.
About the illustrator, Mark Millicent: Mark Millicent is a UK writer and illustrator based in the USA. He works mainly in the advertising and film world of Los Angeles living by a lake in the Santa Monica Mountains with his wife and family, a cat and a peacock.

About the Writer


Dale Neal

Dale has been published online and in print. You will find his work in The Best Ever Book of Funny Poems (Pan Macmillan), My Socks have gone Bonkers (Fantastic Books Publishing), Watcher of the Skies (Emma Press), Guest on the Farm and How to Follow Your Dream (Little Stories: Bedtime Books storytelling app.). He has two children's picture books (My Grandad is an Alien and The Dinosaur and Me) being published in 2022 with Ventorros Press.