Anthony Buckeridge
Encyclopedia
Anthony Malcolm Buckeridge OBE
(20 June 1912 – 28 June 2004) was an English author, best known for his Jennings
and Rex Milligan series of children's books. He also wrote the 1953 children's book A Funny Thing Happened which was serialised more than once on Children's Hour
.
He was awarded the OBE
in 2003.
he moved with his mother to Ross-on-Wye
to live with his grandparents. Following the end of the war they returned to London where the young Buckeridge developed a taste for theatre and writing. A scholarship from the Bank Clerks' Orphanage fund permitted his mother to send him to Seaford College
boarding school in Sussex. His experiences as a schoolboy there were instrumental in his later work.
Following the death of Buckeridge's grandfather, the family moved to Welwyn Garden City
where his mother worked in promoting the new suburban utopia to Londoners. In 1930 Buckeridge began work at his late father's bank but soon tired of it. Instead he took to acting including an uncredited part in Anthony Asquith
's 1931 film Tell England
.
After marrying his first wife, Sylvia Brown, he enrolled at University College London
where he involved himself in Socialist
and anti-war groups (he later became an active member of CND) but did not take a degree after failing Latin
. With a young family to support, Buckeridge found himself teaching in Suffolk
and Northamptonshire
which provided further experiences to inform his later work. During World War II
Buckeridge was called up as a fireman and wrote several plays for the stage before returning to teaching in Ramsgate
.
He used to tell his pupils stories about the fictional Jennings (based however on an old schoolfellow Diarmid Jennings), a prep schoolboy
boarding at Linbury Court Preparatory School, under headmaster Mr Pemberton-Oakes.
In 1962 he met his second wife, Eileen Selby. They settled near Lewes
where Buckeridge continued to write and also appeared in small (non-singing) roles at Glyndebourne
.
Buckeridge died on 28 June 2004 after a spell of ill health. He is survived by his second wife Eileen and three children, two from his first marriage.
Buckeridge wrote a series of radio plays for the BBC
's Children's Hour
chronicling the exploits of Jennings and his rather more staid friend, Darbishire; the first, Jennings Learns the Ropes, was first broadcast on 16 October 1948. In 1950, the first of more than twenty novels, Jennings Goes to School, appeared. The tales make liberal use of Buckeridge's inventive schoolboy slang ("fossilised fish hooks!", "crystallised cheesecakes!", and others). These books, as well known as Frank Richards
' Billy Bunter
books in their day, were translated into a number of other languages. The stories of middle class English schoolboys were especially popular in Norway
where several were filmed.
The Norwegian books and films were rewritten completely for a Norwegian setting with Norwegian names; Jennings is called "Stompa" in the Norwegian books.
. The deftly worded farce and delightful understatement of his narratives has been compared to the work of P. G. Wodehouse
, Ben Hecht
and Ben Travers
.
. There are 25 in total. The first, Jennings Goes to School (ISBN 0-333-65523-0), appeared in 1950 and new titles were published regularly until the mid-1970s (the last for fourteen years was Jennings at Large in 1977, the only book to feature Jennings during the school holidays), with two more in the 1990s (Jennings Again in 1991 and That's Jennings in 1994). When published in France the name of "Jennings" was changed to Bennett while in Norway he is known as Stompa.
The novels usually followed a format of three major subplots per 16-chapter novel, the early books being derived from the popular BBC radio
series on Children's Hour
. All 62 of the original radio play scripts have been published in 10 volumes by David Schutte: Jennings Sounds the Alarm 1999; Jennings Breaks the Record 2000; Jennings Joins the Search Party 2001; Jennings to the Rescue 2002; Jennings and the Tricky Predicament 2003; Jennings and the Organised Outing 2004; Jennings and the Christmas Spirit 2004; Jennings and the Key to the Mystery 2004; and Jennings and the Unconsidered Trifles 2004.
in the stockbroker belt. He is good-natured and well-meaning, but his tendency to act on impulse results in him getting in to trouble frequently. His best friend is C E J (Charles Edwin Jeremy) Darbishire, a mild-mannered and short-sighted son of a clergyman, the Reverend Percival Darbishire, from whom he has inherited a habit of sententiously citing proverb
s and giving the appearance of speaking in capital letters. Inherently more cautious than Jennings, he usually finds himself drawn into situations in which he would rather not be involved.
(Graham) Venables, (Robin) Atkinson, Temple and Bromwich (Major) are classmates of Jennings in form 3 and fellow boarders in dormitory 4. Temple's nickname was Bod, from a tortuous schoolboy logic involving his initials, CAT (Charles A Temple), becoming Dog, then Dogsbody, and finally Bod. Pettigrew and Marshall are day pupils whose privileges Jennings "borrows" in order to assist him in bending school rules. Binns Minor and Blotwell are the youngest boys in the school, shrill-voiced first-formers who are treated with condescension appropriate to their years by Jennings and his contemporaries. The older boys are rarely mentioned. R G Stoddington is captain of Drake House.
The teaching staff include Mr L P (Lancelot Phineas) Wilkins, Jennings's form master. "Old Wilkie" is a man of little patience and a volcanic temperament, though very occasionally redeemed by a heart of gold. Mr Michael Carter is Jennings' housemaster
, a man of great imperturbability and patience, with a phenomenal ability to detect dissembling and violations of school rules. This character was said by Buckeridge to be based on himself. Mr M W B (Martin Winthrop Barlow) Pemberton-Oakes M.A.(Oxon.) is the firm but fair headmaster; "The Archbeako" is a classical scholar, usually reserved and softly-spoken, yet also with a capacity to command immediate discipline. Mr Hind is the Music master; mild of manner, (though occasionally acerbic), trailing clouds of smoke from his cherrywood pipe – he also teaches art to Form 3 and general subjects to Form 1. Mr Topliss teaches shooting once a week in a shooting range behind the gymnasium. Matron is the school matron
; she is sympathetic and understanding, but with a keen ability to spot malingerers. Another two teachers who make occasional appearances (albeit not Linbury teachers) are Mr Parkinson (aka 'Pinky Parkinson'), the mild-mannered headmaster of the nearby Bracebridge School, and Mr Fox (aka 'Foxy Type'), a notoriously strict and hatchet-faced teacher, who is also at Bracebridge. Linbury quite often play Bracebridge in sports fixtures.
Miss Angela Birkenshaw is Jennings's absent-minded Aunt Angela. His Uncle Arthur also makes an appearance.
Minor recurring characters:
series of books.
Rex is the eponymous schoolboy hero of a series of five books set in the mid twentieth century. The school that he attends is a grammar school in north London. The stories are presented in first person narrative, in contrast to the Jennings series. The final book is a compilation of 16 stories first published in the Eagle
comic.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(20 June 1912 – 28 June 2004) was an English author, best known for his Jennings
Jennings (novels)
The Jennings series is a collection of humorous novels of children's literature concerning the escapades of J C T Jennings, a schoolboy at Linbury Court preparatory school in England. There are 25 in total, all written by Anthony Buckeridge...
and Rex Milligan series of children's books. He also wrote the 1953 children's book A Funny Thing Happened which was serialised more than once on Children's Hour
Children's Hour
Children's Hour—at first: "The Children's Hour", from a verse by Longfellow—was the name of the BBC's principal recreational service for children during the period when radio dominated broadcasting....
.
He was awarded the OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in 2003.
Personal life
Buckeridge was born in London but following the death of his banker father in World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he moved with his mother to Ross-on-Wye
Ross-on-Wye
Ross-on-Wye is a small market town with a population of 10,089 in southeastern Herefordshire, England, located on the River Wye, and on the northern edge of the Forest of Dean.-History:...
to live with his grandparents. Following the end of the war they returned to London where the young Buckeridge developed a taste for theatre and writing. A scholarship from the Bank Clerks' Orphanage fund permitted his mother to send him to Seaford College
Seaford College
Seaford College is an independent co-educational boarding and day-school located at East Lavington, south of Petworth, West Sussex, England. The College was founded in 1884, and is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. The college sits in the Lavington Park, in nearly in an...
boarding school in Sussex. His experiences as a schoolboy there were instrumental in his later work.
Following the death of Buckeridge's grandfather, the family moved to Welwyn Garden City
Welwyn Garden City
-Economy:Ever since its inception as garden city, Welwyn Garden City has attracted a strong commercial base with several designated employment areas. Among the companies trading in the town are:*Air Link Systems*Baxter*British Lead Mills*Carl Zeiss...
where his mother worked in promoting the new suburban utopia to Londoners. In 1930 Buckeridge began work at his late father's bank but soon tired of it. Instead he took to acting including an uncredited part in Anthony Asquith
Anthony Asquith
Anthony Asquith was a leading English film director. He collaborated successfully with playwright Terence Rattigan on The Winslow Boy and The Browning Version , among other adaptations...
's 1931 film Tell England
Tell England
Tell England: A Study in a Generation is a novel written by Ernest Raymond and published in February 1922 in the UK about the First World War and the young men sent to fight in it. A film adaptation was released in 1931 under the title "Tell England"...
.
After marrying his first wife, Sylvia Brown, he enrolled at University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
where he involved himself in Socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
and anti-war groups (he later became an active member of CND) but did not take a degree after failing Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
. With a young family to support, Buckeridge found himself teaching in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
and Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
which provided further experiences to inform his later work. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Buckeridge was called up as a fireman and wrote several plays for the stage before returning to teaching in Ramsgate
Ramsgate
Ramsgate is a seaside town in the district of Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century and is a member of the ancient confederation of Cinque Ports. It has a population of around 40,000. Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline and its main...
.
He used to tell his pupils stories about the fictional Jennings (based however on an old schoolfellow Diarmid Jennings), a prep schoolboy
Preparatory school (UK)
In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...
boarding at Linbury Court Preparatory School, under headmaster Mr Pemberton-Oakes.
In 1962 he met his second wife, Eileen Selby. They settled near Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
where Buckeridge continued to write and also appeared in small (non-singing) roles at Glyndebourne
Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an English opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England.-History:...
.
Buckeridge died on 28 June 2004 after a spell of ill health. He is survived by his second wife Eileen and three children, two from his first marriage.
Works
After World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Buckeridge wrote a series of radio plays for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Children's Hour
Children's Hour
Children's Hour—at first: "The Children's Hour", from a verse by Longfellow—was the name of the BBC's principal recreational service for children during the period when radio dominated broadcasting....
chronicling the exploits of Jennings and his rather more staid friend, Darbishire; the first, Jennings Learns the Ropes, was first broadcast on 16 October 1948. In 1950, the first of more than twenty novels, Jennings Goes to School, appeared. The tales make liberal use of Buckeridge's inventive schoolboy slang ("fossilised fish hooks!", "crystallised cheesecakes!", and others). These books, as well known as Frank Richards
Charles Hamilton (writer)
Charles Harold St. John Hamilton , was an English writer, specializing in writing long-running series of stories for weekly magazines about recurrent casts of characters, his most frequent and famous genre being boys' public school stories, though he also dealt with other genres...
' Billy Bunter
Billy Bunter
William George Bunter , is a fictional character created by Charles Hamilton using the pen name Frank Richards...
books in their day, were translated into a number of other languages. The stories of middle class English schoolboys were especially popular in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
where several were filmed.
The Norwegian books and films were rewritten completely for a Norwegian setting with Norwegian names; Jennings is called "Stompa" in the Norwegian books.
Reception
Buckeridge made no small contribution to postwar British humour, a fact acknowledged by such comedians as Stephen FryStephen Fry
Stephen John Fry is an English actor, screenwriter, author, playwright, journalist, poet, comedian, television presenter and film director, and a director of Norwich City Football Club. He first came to attention in the 1981 Cambridge Footlights Revue presentation "The Cellar Tapes", which also...
. The deftly worded farce and delightful understatement of his narratives has been compared to the work of P. G. Wodehouse
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE was an English humorist, whose body of work includes novels, short stories, plays, poems, song lyrics, and numerous pieces of journalism. He enjoyed enormous popular success during a career that lasted more than seventy years and his many writings continue to be...
, Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, and novelist. Called "the Shakespeare of Hollywood", he received screen credits, alone or in collaboration, for the stories or screenplays of some 70 films and as a prolific storyteller, authored 35 books and created some of...
and Ben Travers
Ben Travers
Ben Travers AFC CBE in London) was a British playwright best remembered for his farces.Born in the London borough of Hendon, Travers was educated at Charterhouse, where today there is a theatre named for him...
.
Jennings novels
The "Jennings" series is a collection of humorous novels of children's literatureChildren's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
. There are 25 in total. The first, Jennings Goes to School (ISBN 0-333-65523-0), appeared in 1950 and new titles were published regularly until the mid-1970s (the last for fourteen years was Jennings at Large in 1977, the only book to feature Jennings during the school holidays), with two more in the 1990s (Jennings Again in 1991 and That's Jennings in 1994). When published in France the name of "Jennings" was changed to Bennett while in Norway he is known as Stompa.
The novels usually followed a format of three major subplots per 16-chapter novel, the early books being derived from the popular BBC radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
series on Children's Hour
Children's Hour
Children's Hour—at first: "The Children's Hour", from a verse by Longfellow—was the name of the BBC's principal recreational service for children during the period when radio dominated broadcasting....
. All 62 of the original radio play scripts have been published in 10 volumes by David Schutte: Jennings Sounds the Alarm 1999; Jennings Breaks the Record 2000; Jennings Joins the Search Party 2001; Jennings to the Rescue 2002; Jennings and the Tricky Predicament 2003; Jennings and the Organised Outing 2004; Jennings and the Christmas Spirit 2004; Jennings and the Key to the Mystery 2004; and Jennings and the Unconsidered Trifles 2004.
Characters
The stories are all set in a boarding school, Linbury Court Preparatory School. The main characters are the pupils of the school, principally those in Form 3. J C T (John Christopher Timothy) Jennings is the son of a businessman whose home is at Haywards HeathHaywards Heath
-Climate:Haywards Heath experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Rail:Haywards Heath railway station is a major station on the Brighton Main Line...
in the stockbroker belt. He is good-natured and well-meaning, but his tendency to act on impulse results in him getting in to trouble frequently. His best friend is C E J (Charles Edwin Jeremy) Darbishire, a mild-mannered and short-sighted son of a clergyman, the Reverend Percival Darbishire, from whom he has inherited a habit of sententiously citing proverb
Proverb
A proverb is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim...
s and giving the appearance of speaking in capital letters. Inherently more cautious than Jennings, he usually finds himself drawn into situations in which he would rather not be involved.
(Graham) Venables, (Robin) Atkinson, Temple and Bromwich (Major) are classmates of Jennings in form 3 and fellow boarders in dormitory 4. Temple's nickname was Bod, from a tortuous schoolboy logic involving his initials, CAT (Charles A Temple), becoming Dog, then Dogsbody, and finally Bod. Pettigrew and Marshall are day pupils whose privileges Jennings "borrows" in order to assist him in bending school rules. Binns Minor and Blotwell are the youngest boys in the school, shrill-voiced first-formers who are treated with condescension appropriate to their years by Jennings and his contemporaries. The older boys are rarely mentioned. R G Stoddington is captain of Drake House.
The teaching staff include Mr L P (Lancelot Phineas) Wilkins, Jennings's form master. "Old Wilkie" is a man of little patience and a volcanic temperament, though very occasionally redeemed by a heart of gold. Mr Michael Carter is Jennings' housemaster
Housemaster
In British education, a housemaster is a member of staff in charge of a boarding house, normally at a boarding school . The housemaster is responsible for the supervision and care of boarders in the house and typically lives on the premises...
, a man of great imperturbability and patience, with a phenomenal ability to detect dissembling and violations of school rules. This character was said by Buckeridge to be based on himself. Mr M W B (Martin Winthrop Barlow) Pemberton-Oakes M.A.(Oxon.) is the firm but fair headmaster; "The Archbeako" is a classical scholar, usually reserved and softly-spoken, yet also with a capacity to command immediate discipline. Mr Hind is the Music master; mild of manner, (though occasionally acerbic), trailing clouds of smoke from his cherrywood pipe – he also teaches art to Form 3 and general subjects to Form 1. Mr Topliss teaches shooting once a week in a shooting range behind the gymnasium. Matron is the school matron
Matron
Matron is the job title of a very senior nurse in several countries, including the United Kingdom, its former colonies, including the Republic of Ireland, although the title Clinical Nurse Manager has become acceptable as an alternative.-History:...
; she is sympathetic and understanding, but with a keen ability to spot malingerers. Another two teachers who make occasional appearances (albeit not Linbury teachers) are Mr Parkinson (aka 'Pinky Parkinson'), the mild-mannered headmaster of the nearby Bracebridge School, and Mr Fox (aka 'Foxy Type'), a notoriously strict and hatchet-faced teacher, who is also at Bracebridge. Linbury quite often play Bracebridge in sports fixtures.
Miss Angela Birkenshaw is Jennings's absent-minded Aunt Angela. His Uncle Arthur also makes an appearance.
Minor recurring characters:
- Hawkins (Old Nightie) — the night watchmanSecurity guardA security guard is a person who is paid to protect property, assets, or people. Security guards are usually privately and formally employed personnel...
. - Robinson (Old Pyjams or Old Robo) — the oddjob man. His nickname is obviously a pun on the nightwatchman's nickname of Old Nightie.
- Lieutenant General Sir Melville Merridew DSODistinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
MCMilitary CrossThe Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
Bart — retired general, the school's most distinguished alumnusAlumnusAn alumnus , according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a graduate of a school, college, or university." An alumnus can also be a former member, employee, contributor or inmate as well as a former student. In addition, an alumna is "a female graduate or former student of a school, college,...
, and frequent bestower of half-holidays. - Miss Thorpe — tireless voluntary charitable worker within the Linbury community.
- PC Honeyball — Linbury's gruff but kind-hearted village policeman.
- Farmer Jim and Mrs Arrowsmith — owners of a farm adjoining the school grounds.
- Mrs Lumley — owner of a small tearoom in Linbury village. She is renowned as a baker of excellent cakes and doughnuts. Her husband is a less renowned repairer of bicycles.
- Mr Herbert Higgins, the local jeweller and watch-mender.
- Dr Basil Featherstonehaugh Hipkin — an absent-minded zoologist who meets Jennings and Darbishire when they accidentally push him into the river while they are on an illicit boating expedition.
- Mrs Amanda Hipkin - Dr Hipkin's formidable but kindly wife
- Miss Margaret Wilkins, Old Wilkie's pleasant and attractive younger sister, a London-based nurse, who normally has her brother wrapped around her little finger, especially when she needs him to look after her Siamese kitten, Pyewacket.
- Dr Furnival — the local doctor.
- Mrs Hackett — kitchen help.
- Mrs Cherry (later replaced by Miss Matthews) — the school cook.
- George the Third — matron's cat, a large ginger tom.
List of novels
- Jennings Goes to School 1950 The first novel. Jennings's first term at Linbury Court. He befriends Darbishire, foxes into town in disguise, displays too much (or not enough) initiative during fire practice and has a hair-raising incident with a poisonous spider. This has been recorded by Stephen FryStephen FryStephen John Fry is an English actor, screenwriter, author, playwright, journalist, poet, comedian, television presenter and film director, and a director of Norwich City Football Club. He first came to attention in the 1981 Cambridge Footlights Revue presentation "The Cellar Tapes", which also...
, for BBC7 as five 15 minute readings. It is available as an MP3 download. - Jennings Follows a Clue 1951. Jennings founds the Linbury Court Detective Agency, tracks a suspected burglar to his thieves' kitchen, sees mysterious lights in the San., and solves the burglary of the trophies from the library on Sports Day.
- Jennings' Little Hut 1951. Jennings and Darbishire build a hut by the pond in the grounds (as do all their friends), take a goldfish for a walk in the swimming pool and have a trying afternoon with a pane of glass. Jennings falls into the pond while he, Darbishire, Temple and Venables are sailing their home-made yacht 'The Revenge' on an illicit Sunday visit to said pond - and this, together with the small matter of Jennings and Darbishire's hut collapsing on the visiting Archbeako, leads to a temporary ban on hut-building. Darbishire makes his one and only appearance in an inter-house match and makes a memorable last wicket stand. This has been recorded by Mark WilliamsMark Williams (actor)Mark Williams is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter and presenter. He is best known as one of the stars of the popular BBC sketch show The Fast Show, as well as for his role as Arthur Weasley in the Harry Potter films....
for Radio 4BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
. - Jennings and Darbishire 1952. Jennings and Darbishire set up the Form Three Times, have a confusing chat with some French natives, and get lost in the environs of Pottlewhistle Halt. Old Wilkie's sister comes to their rescue when Venables makes a ghastly bish, and gives them a scoop about Old Wilkie's sporting past.
- Jennings' Diary 1953. Jennings records his attempts to start a museum, finds the missing link and uncovers a genuine Roman fake which doesn't go down too well with the curator of the Dunhambury Museum or Old Wilkie.
- According to Jennings 1954. The space craze hits Linbury Court leading to an unfortunate incident with a glass dome, an even more unfortunate incident with General Sir Melville Merridew, and a memorable visit to Dunhambury Cricket Ground. Rumours that Old Wilkie is leaving lead to the ringing out of a wild bell.
- Our Friend Jennings 1955. Jennings and Darbishire go for a cross country run on a bus and spend an afternoon trying the patience of the patrons of the local cinema. Attempts to stage their masterpiece The Miser's Secret (starring Venables as Mr 'Hem Hem' Brown) are doomed to failure but instead they perform part of Henry V with an unexpected guest.
- Thanks to Jennings 1957. Darbishire patents his method of removing heads from railings with the aid of Jack Carr's car jack. Jennings finds and loses FJ Saunders the guinea pig, uncovers a case of suspected furtive feasting amongst the masters, and saves the day when a Ministry Inspector visits Old Wilkie's history class.
- Take Jennings, for Instance 1958. Aunt Angela gives Jennings a bicycle, which leads to a chain of events involving a runaway boat, PC Honeyball and the Spanish Armada. The Form 3 Natural History Club (Jennings, JCT, Chief Spotter, Frog and Tadpole Dept) threatens to disrupt the smooth running of Linbury Court but its activities are saved by the intervention of a scientific frogman on prizegiving day.
- Jennings, as Usual 1959. In the Christmas term, Jennings has a short-lived and disastrous promotion to dorm monitor and improves his piano playing with the aid of a gramophone record before exchanging gifts and the comps of the season with Old Wilkie at the end of term party.
- The Trouble With Jennings 1960. Jennings's resolution to be decent to old people like the masters goes awry when he floods the bathroom with a syphon, impersonates Lady Macbeth sleepwalking and inadvertently causes a fire drill after lights out. But all is resolved at a triumphant Old Peoples At Home (RIP) in the tuck box room, with some help from Mr Carter and old Wilkie.
- Just Like Jennings 1961. Jennings finds a suspected spy in Miller's Wood and an abominable snowcat on the slopes of Mount Everest. Aunt Angela's cake-baking prowess comes in handy when Jennings breaks a vase belonging to Old Wilkie.
- Leave it to Jennings 1963. Madame Olivera from the Inscrutable East (AKA Miss Tubbs of the Linbury Post Office bacon counter) tells Jennings's fortune and predicts a journey over land and sea, an unexpected legacy and that he will succeed in an ambition close to his heart. But no one foresees the chaos during the term as the three predictions come true.
- Jennings, Of Course! 1964. Jennings proves more of a hindrance than a help to Old Wilkie's campaign to empty the lost property cupboard but all is forgiven when it leads to the appointment of a new cook. And Old Wilkie saves the day when Jennings conjures up a potential disaster at the end of term concert.
- Especially Jennings! 1965. The Jennings Membership Club is launched with mysterious objectives. Jennings gets mistaken for a burglar (again), accidentally gets Old Wilkie accused of stealing his own car and goes to great efforts to win la plume de sa tante before Mr Carter suggests a worthy cause for the JMC's outstanding funds.
- A Bookful of Jennings 1966 (also titled 'The Best of Jennings')
- Jennings Abounding 1967 (also titled 'Jennings Unlimited')
- Jennings in Particular 1968. A daring rescue mission is needed when Jennings and Darbishire get trapped in the attic fielding at the first ever inter-planetary cricket match, and it becomes clear that even the best regulated of boarding schools cannot cope when a certain member of Form 3 accidentally wins a pig. Later, the pig is exchanged for a jar of bath salts, which Jennings gives to Matron - only to discover, to his horror, that the jar may also contain a drawing pin. Meanwhile Darbishire discovers a link between Pythagoras and travelling arrangements for fat and thin native American women - much to Old Wilkie's despair!
- Trust Jennings! 1969. At Linbury Court, it's certainly a case of remember, remember the fifth of November when Jennings copyrights his famous plan for members of Form 3 to act as Public Relations Officer to G Fawkes esq (deceased) to raise funds for Famine Relief, undergoing an emergency haircut, an accidental mis-use of Old Wilkie's sports coat and a day out in Dunhambury with a honky tonk piano in tow on the way.
- The Jennings Report 1970. Jennings plans to report on a mathematical comparison of TV aerials in rural (Linbury) and urban (Dunhambury) locations - but gets distracted with the care of Old Sleepy, the top secret hedgehog.
- Typically Jennings! 1971. Two broken tennis rackets lead to Jennings becoming a potholer and Darbishire a prehistoric cave painter, not to mention an explosive attempt to make a cup of tea for Old Wilkie on the school picnic. Meanwhile, Jennings's plan to listen to the test match in class lead to trouble for Bromwich, who resorts to giving an Old Master to a not quite so old master to get his portable transistor back.
- Speaking of Jennings! 1973
- Jennings at Large 1977. In which Jennings, Darbishire and their friends go on a camping trip with Mr Carter and Mr Wilkins - needless to say that chaos soon ensues! Jennings then goes to stay with his Aunt Angela in her London flat, where he soon befriends Emma, a girl who lives in the same block - cue yet more chaos, especially for Aunt Angela and for the block's caretaker, Herbert Fagg!
- Jennings Again! 1991 This has been recorded by Stephen Fry, for BBC7 as five 15 minute readings.
- That's Jennings 1994
Rex Milligan
Rex Milligan is a fictional character created by children's author Anthony Buckeridge, famed for his JenningsJennings (novels)
The Jennings series is a collection of humorous novels of children's literature concerning the escapades of J C T Jennings, a schoolboy at Linbury Court preparatory school in England. There are 25 in total, all written by Anthony Buckeridge...
series of books.
Rex is the eponymous schoolboy hero of a series of five books set in the mid twentieth century. The school that he attends is a grammar school in north London. The stories are presented in first person narrative, in contrast to the Jennings series. The final book is a compilation of 16 stories first published in the Eagle
Eagle (comic)
Eagle was a seminal British children's comic, first published from 1950 to 1969, and then in a relaunched format from 1982 to 1994. It was founded by Marcus Morris, an Anglican vicar from Lancashire. Morris edited a parish magazine called The Anvil, but felt that the church was not communicating...
comic.
Characters
- J.I.G. (Jigger) Johnson. Red-haired, level-headed, animal loving best friend of Rex.
- 'Alfie' Cutforth (Alfie, short for alphabet, because his initials are A.B.C). Loud-mouthed know-all.
- J.O. Stag (Staggers). Inventor of ambitious, but ultimately unworkable gadgets.
- Boko Phipps. A little slow on the rugby field, but good at Maths - and even better at doing impersonations of the Maths teacher (see below).
- Mr. Birkinshaw, aka 'Old Birkie', or 'The Birk'. Teacher short of temper, much in the mould of Mr. Wilkins from JenningsJennings (novels)The Jennings series is a collection of humorous novels of children's literature concerning the escapades of J C T Jennings, a schoolboy at Linbury Court preparatory school in England. There are 25 in total, all written by Anthony Buckeridge...
, who teaches Maths. - Mr. Frisby, aka 'The Frizzer', a teacher mild in manner who teaches French and English. Well liked and respected by the pupils, even if his banter is, in Milligan's words, "a bit Form One-ish, if you know what I mean". The Frizzer possesses an interesting, if rather unreliable, old-fashioned car, which features prominently in 'Rex Milligan's Busy Term'.
- Mr. R.G. Hunter, The Headmaster, aka 'The Head-Hunter'. Firm but fair Head, whose speeches are often rather long-winded, but nevertheless very well respected by staff and pupils alike.
- Mr. Stanton. Easy-going and well-respected games teacher, who always treats pupils just as they deserve.
- Spikey Andrews, football captain for Sheldrake's deadly rival school, "the Secondary Tech".
- Bubblegum Tucker, another pupil at the Secondary Tech.
- Mr Howard, aka 'Old Snorker', teacher at the Secondary Tech.
List of books
- Rex Milligan's Busy Term
- Rex Milligan Raises the Roof
- Rex Milligan Holds Forth
- Rex Milligan Reporting
- Introducing Rex Milligan
External links
- ANTHONY BUCKERIDGE and Jennings
- Linbury Court – Fan Site
- Diarmaid Jennings – Daily Telegraph obituary