Biggles

Major James Bigglesworth, known to all as "Biggles", is a fictional character created by W. E. Johns.

He first appeared in the story "The White Fokker", published in the first issue of Popular Flying magazine. The first collection of Biggles stories, The Camels are Coming, was published in 1932.

Biggles History

In his first appearances, Biggles was a fighter pilot in the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) during World War I. He joined the RFC at the young age of 16, having conveniently "lost" his birth certificate. The original Biggles stories were based on Johns' personal experience – and stories he had heard from other pilots – during his time in France. (Johns did not however fly "scout" – or fighter – aircraft such as Biggles did; he flew in a bomber squadron.) He was supposedly based on Cyril Lowe. While the primary purpose of the Biggles stories was to entertain young men at the time, they paid close attention to historical detail and helped recreate the primitive days of early air combat – when most pilots died in their first combat engagement and before devices such as respirators and parachutes had become practical.

During the war Biggles flew the famed Sopwith Camel aircraft as a pilot of the fictional RFC Squadron 266.

Later stories told of Biggles' adventures after the War's end, as a charter pilot of an unidentified amphibian (often illustrated on covers, anachronistically, as either a Supermarine Walrus or Supermarine Otter), his return to service in World War II (initially with a Supermarine S6B type machine in the Baltic), and further adventures in peace time; others filled in his equally adventurous childhood in India and the story of how he came to join the RFC, flying with New Zealand observer Mark Way in an FE2 before he converted to fighters. Biggles' first post-war action saw him in the African desert with new twin engined types (possibly Bristol Brigand and de Havilland Hornet).

Biggles has 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 WW2, flying Auster and Percival types, 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. They first meet when Biggles acts as a spy in the Middle East, where Biggles has some narrow escapes. Von Stalhein returns as an adversary in numerous other adventures. After World War II von Stalhein opts for the Communist bloc, until he gets imprisoned on the isle of Sakhalin, from where Biggles helps him escape. And after that he and Biggles are chums.

Though Biggles and his friends age in the books, like Tintin, they do so more slowly than appears historically credible. The books somewhat obviously chronicle developments in avaition technology, but also social changes. In an early book, the evidence points to an English nobleman as the perpetrator, but Biggles can dismiss this out of hand as the gentry would never commit a crime; in a later novel, one of the gentry is the villain. While various natives are sometimes unreliable, the Biggles books do not really display racist views - although Johns certainly promoted the superiority of British culture, as distinct from race. Johns' contemporary terms for people of different colour have resulted in censorship in some places, which does rather rewrite history.

Biggles in Popular Culture

Johns continued writing Biggles short stories and novels up until his death in 1968; in all, nearly a hundred Biggles books were published.

Most of the Biggles books are currently out of print, but Red Fox is now reprinting many of the titles. The books are a common target for collectors, with some titles fetching high prices, especially the handful that were deleted before being reprinted into paperback. The rarest title, Biggles and the Deep Blue Sea, has been known to fetch $1000 on eBay.

Biggles was parodied in a series of skits on the 1970s British comedy television show, Monty Python's Flying Circus, including one titled "Biggles dictates a letter" and 'Cardinal Biggles', complete with flying helmet and goggles, assists in the interrogations in "The Spanish Inquisition" sketch. Text stories in the "Papperbok" included "Biggles Flies Down". There have been many other references to the character in film and literature.

Biggles appeared in a short 1960 TV series based on the books with Neville Whiting playing the title role.

The character was also featured in a 1986 feature film called Biggles: Adventures in Time, directed by John Hough with Neil Dickson playing Biggles. The film attempted to update the character by adding a science fiction element, but it was a commercial and critical failure.

An "Unauthorised Biography" by John Pearson, published in the 1980s, added new and somewhat incredible elements of unrequited love and suicide by warbird Supermarine Spitfire to Biggles history.

A4 format cartoon adventures in which the the Biggles characters use a mix of vintage and modern aircraft were published in the 1980s.

List of Biggles books

1. The Camels are Coming (1932)
2. The Cruise of the Condor (1933)
3. Biggles of the Camel Squadron (1934)
4. Biggles Flies Again (1934)
5. Biggles Learns To Fly (1935)
6. The Black Peril (1935)
7. Biggles Flies East (1935)
8. Biggles Hits the Trail (1935)
9. Biggles in France (1935)
10. Biggles & Co (1936)
11. Biggles in Africa (1936)
12. Biggles - Air Commodore (1937)
13. Biggles Flies West (1937)
14. Biggles Flies South (1938)
15. Biggles Goes To War (1938)
16. The Rescue Flight (1939)
17. Biggles in Spain (1939)
18. Biggles Flies North (1939)
19. Biggles - Secret Agent (1940)
20. Biggles in the Baltic (1940)
21. Biggles in the South Seas (1940)
22. Biggles Defies the Swastika (1941)
23. Biggles Sees It Through (1941)
24. Spitfire Parade (1941)
25. Biggles in the Jungle (1942)
26. Biggles Sweeps the Desert (1942)
27. Biggles - Charter Pilot (1943)
28. Biggles in Borneo (1943)
29. Biggles Fails To Return (1943)
30. Biggles in the Orient (1945)
31. Biggles Delivers the Goods (1946)
32. Sergeant Bigglesworth CID (1947)
33. Biggles' Second Case (1948)
34. Biggles Hunts Big Game (1948)
35. Biggles Takes a Holiday (1948)
36. Biggles Breaks the Silence (1949)
37. Biggles Gets His Men (1950)
38. Another Job For Biggles (1951)
39. Biggles Goes To School (1951)
40. Biggles Works It Out (1952)
41. Biggles Takes the Case (1952)
42. Biggles Follows On (1952)
43. Biggles - Air Detective (1952)
44. Biggles and the Black Raider (1953)
45. Biggles in the Blue (1953)
46. Biggles in the Gobi (1953)
47. Biggles of the Special Air Police (1953)
48. Biggles Cuts It Fine (1954)
49. Biggles and the Pirate Treasure (1954)
50. Biggles Foreign Legionnaire (1954)
51. Biggles Pioneer Airfighter (1954)
52. Biggles in Australia (1955)
53. Biggles' Chinese Puzzle (1955)
54. Biggles of 266 (1956)
55. No Rest For Biggles (1956)
56. Biggles Takes Charge (1956)
57. Biggles Makes Ends Meet (1957)
58. Biggles of the Interpol (1957)
59. Biggles on the Home Front (1957)
60. Biggles Presses On (1958)
61. Biggles on Mystery Island (1958)
62. Biggles Buries a Hatchet (1958)
63. Biggles in Mexico (1959)
64. Biggles' Combined Operation (1959)
65. Biggles at the World's End (1959)
66. Biggles and the Leopards of Zinn (1960)
67. Biggles Goes Home (1960)
68. Biggles and the Poor Rich Boy (1960)
69. Biggles Forms a Syndicate (1961)
70. Biggles and the Missing Millionaire (1961)
71. Biggles Goes Alone (1962)
72. Orchids for Biggles (1962)
73. Biggles Sets a Trap (1962)
74. Biggles Takes It Rough (1963)
75. Biggles Takes a Hand (1963)
76. Biggles' Special Case (1963)
77. Biggles and the Plane That Disappeared (1963)
78. Biggles Flies To Work (1963)
79. Biggles and the Lost Sovereigns (1964)
80. Biggles and the Black Mask (1964)
81. Biggles Investigates (1964)
82. Biggles Looks Back (1965)
83. Biggles and the Plot That Failed (1965)
84. Biggles and the Blue Moon (1965)
85. Biggles Scores a Bull (1965)
86. Biggles in the Terai (1966)
87. Biggles and the Gun Runners (1966)
88. Biggles Sorts It Out (1967)
89. Biggles and the Dark Intruder (1967)
90. Biggles and the Penitent Thief (1967)
91. Biggles and the Deep Blue Sea (1967)
92. The Boy Biggles (1968)
93. Biggles in the Underworld (1968)
94. Biggles and the Little Green God (1969)
95. Biggles and the Noble Lord (1969)
96. Biggles Sees Too Much (1970)
97. Biggles Does Some Homework (1997) (Note: Johns died while still writing this story but it was completed by a ghost writer and released as a limited edition.)

External links

• International Biggles Association
• Biggles Book Jackets
• Biggles.com: Pilot Jobs