[4] Manning is best known for his long-term collaboration as a writer and co-illustrator with his partner the illustrator and painter Brita Granström.

[5] In 1998, The Scotsman newspaper wrote, "Mick Manning and Brita Granström's approach to non-fiction for younger children has revolutionised our bookshelves.

Their first combined effort (The World Is Full of Babies) won the Smarties Silver Prize (years 0-5) in 1996.

His book Tail End Charlie also addressed wartime adventures, this time featuring Manning's father.

[5] The duo's book How Did I Begin was part of a controversy in 2011 when some segments of English society objected to literature aimed at pre-school children which included explicit explanations of how human conception occurs.