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The Air Adventures of
Biggles |
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Major
James Bigglesworth, better known in
flying circles as Biggles, was a
fictional pilot and adventurer created by W. E. Johns. He
first appeared in the story The White Fokker, published in the first issue of Popular Flying magazine, whilst the first collection of Biggles
stories, The Camels are Coming,
was published in 1932. The
original Biggles stories were
based on Johns' experience and stories he had heard from other pilots during
his time in France. Biggles was supposedly based on a real adventurer of the
times: Cyril Lowe. While the
purpose of the Biggles stories was to entertain young men, they paid
attention to historical detail and helped recreate the primitive days of
early air combat. Later stories told of Biggles' adventures in peace time
usually flying an amphibian with a small team of friends including Algy (Algernon Lacey), Ginger (Hebblethwaite) and Bertie (Lord Bertie Lissie), who share many of his
adventures as pilots in the Special Air Police which they form after WWII, under the command of
Air Commodore Raymond, who is at this time an Assistant Commissioner at
Scotland Yard. Biggles' greatest
opponent is the German spy officer Erich von Stalhein. After World War II, adventures involving von
Stalhein (who had opted for the Communist bloc) had a distinctly West vs East
flavour. The Air Adventures of Biggles Radio Serial Even
though the Biggles books by Captain W. E. Johns were popular worldwide,
Australia was the only
country in the world to make them into a radio serial. It
was called The Air Adventures of Biggles and it consisted of 1178 episodes of continuing 15 minute serials. The
first Biggles radio serials actually occurred in South Australia in 1945/46.
They were a local production which consisted of 208 episodes in total - none
of which have survived. The
first ever nationally produced story was Pearls of Vanakai. Commencing July 1949, it hailed from the Sydney
studios of AWA and was broadcast around the country in the true Aussie
tradition of: Monday to Thursday. (In
keeping with its South Australian origins the first episode of the Pearls
of Vanakai story is given the No.
209) In
all, 33 adventures across 970 episodes were produced at AWA, with Biggles'
final adventure: Enchanted Island
concluding in March 1954. Each
of the adventures was based on and closely follows the plotlines of a W.E.
Johns story. But
one change that was made from the books to the radio serials was the
introduction of a female lead character, Patsy. There was no female lead in the books, and it is
believed that several Biggles purists (including W. E. Johns himself) were
most upset at this change - which was done at the request of a sponsor to
make the program more appealing to a wider audience. The
Air Adventures of Biggles radio
serials themselves are very exciting, being well produced with a strong
narrative, great music and effective sound effects. Biggles was played by Rex Waldron (Ep Nos. 209 - 286), Moray Powell (Ep Nos. 287 - 970) & James Mills (Ep Nos. 971 - 1178). Max Orbiston & Walter
Sullivan played Algy &
Bertie for the entire national run
(Ep Nos. 209 - 1178). Patsy was
played by Diana Perryman (Ep
Nos. 209 - 631) & Ngaire Thompson (Ep Nos 667 - 1178) In
Trev's opinion The Air Adventures of Biggles represent the finest example of serial radio -
ever - in the world É Want
to check out some episodes of one of this radio serial? - why not "taste
& try"? Below
are the first three episodes of the Iron Curtain adventure - fabulous! These
episode can be freely downloaded to your computer - just right button click
on any link below and chose "Download Linked File" (or words to
that effect). The file is on an average about 10Mb - download time will
depend on your (broadband) speed AABIC_1953-03-11
Episode No. 1.mp3 AABIC_1953-03-12
Episode No. 2.mp3 AABIC_1953-03-16
Episode No. 3.mp3 TREV
HAS ASSEMBLED AND RESTORED 9 COMPLETE ADVENTURES ACROSS 290 EPISODES AND THEY
ARE PRESENTED HERE ON 4 MP3 CDs: A. Pearls
of Vanakai - based on the Biggles
novel: Biggles in the South Seas (30 episodes: No. 209 to No. 238 inclusive) B. Atomic
Papers - based on the Biggles
novel: Biggles Sees it Through (18 episodes: No. 607 to No. 624 inclusive) C. Deal
With a Pirate - based on the
Biggles novel: Biggles Delivers the Goods (34 episodes: No. 750 to No. 783 inclusive) D. The
Iron Curtain - based on the Biggles
novel: Biggles Follows On (53 episodes: No. 971 to No. 1023 inclusive) E. The
Black Raider - based on the Biggles
novel: Biggles and the Black Raider (24 episodes: No. 1024 to No. 1047 inclusive) F. The
Black Peril - based on the Biggles
novel: The Black Peril (39 episodes: No. 1048 to No. 1086 inclusive) F. In
The Blue - based on the Biggles
novel: Biggles in the Blue (37 episodes: No. 1087 to No. 1123 inclusive) F. In
the Gobi - based on the Biggles
novel: Biggles in the Gobi (41 episodes: No. 1024 to No. 1164 inclusive) F. Enchanted
Island - based on the Biggles
novel: Biggles - Charter Pilot (14 episodes: No. 1065 to No. 1178 inclusive) |