Index of Eagle Writers (Fiction)

The following writers' works appeared in Eagle magazine, 1950 - 1969. The list includes strip scriptwriters (where known), as well as the authors of text serial and short stories.

• Margery Allingham
• Adrian Alington
• George Beardmore
• C. Bell
• Ambrose Bierce
• H. E. Blyth
• Ben Bolt
• A. C. Bolton
• Geoffrey Bond
• Sydney J. Bounds
• Anthony Buckeridge
• Michael Carreck
• Arthur Catherall
• A. B. Channel
• Charles Chilton
• Arthur C. Clarke (Charles Willis)
• Guy Daniel
• Basil Dawson (Don Riley)
• Michael Dawson
• Charles Dickens
• Max Dunstone
• Edward J. Dutton
• Eric Eden
• E. G. Evans
• J. Jefferson Fargeon
• Bernard F. Farmer
• Leonard Fincham (Steve Alen)
• C. S. Forrester
• J.H.G. Freeman (Gordon Grinstead)
• Kelman Frost
• R. A. Garland
• E. Garnett
• Michael Gibson
• John Graves
• Duncan Hall
• Frank Hampson
• E. Harper
• Alan Hastings
• O. Henry
• William Hepburn
• E. W. Hildick
• Gary Hogg
• Peter J. Hollard
• Stephan Hopkinson
• John Hornby
• Laurence Houseman
• Lewis Jackson
• Alan Jason (see Geoffrey Bond)
• Richard Jennings
• Capt. W. E. Johns
• Harold Johns
• Doris Lessing
• Tony Lethbridge
• Eric Leyland
• Peter Ling
• Chesney MacGuire
• John Marsh
• James Massey
• Lee Mayne
• Ken Mennal
• Clarence Mitchell
• Guy Morgan (Edward Trice)
• Marcus Morris
• David Motton
• Martin O'Connor
• William Patterson
• Lt-Col. Oreste Pinto
• John Pritchard
• Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch
• Moore Raymond
• George Remi (Herge)
• Rex Rientis
• D. E. Roberts
• John Ryan
• Rafael Sabatini
• Adrian Seligman
• John Stenhouse
• Alan Stranks
• Ronald Syme
• Ted Ted Cowan
• Norman Thelwell
• Greta Tomlinson
• Richard Tracy
• Tom Tully
• Chad Varah
• Ellen Vincent
• Bill Wellings
• Valentine Williams

Please let eagle times know if you can add to, or think there may be errors in, this index.

I/we intend (gradually) to provide information on individual writers via separate posts, with hotlinks from this list, which will eventually form a comprehensive Index of Eagle Writers. The intention, as with the Index of Eagle Artists is to provide 'potted biographies' covering the artists' careers, but focussing on their Eagle work, with pointers (ie links and references) to where further information may be found. There will be a separate list of non-fiction writers.

Elton John's 'Dan Dare'

In 1975 Elton John recorded 'Dan Dare (Pilot of the Future)', written by Bernie Taupin, for the Rock of the Westies album*. Then, 27 years after the song's release, it featured as the theme song for the Dan Dare Corporation's Dan Dare Pilot of the Future CGI cartoon series, which was shown in the UK on Channel 5, and is now (in part) available on DVD.

Here, via YouTube, is a rare live (audio) recording of the song performed by Elton at the Rainbow Theatre, London on 13 May, 1977.

*An article by Adrian Perkins appeared in Eagle Times Vol 19 No 1 (Spring 2006)

Regarding Giorgio Bellavitis

While putting together some notes on Eagle and Swift artist Giorgio Bellavitis, I came across this post referring to Issue 33 of an Italian magazine called Fumetti d'Italia (Italian Comic Strips). The issue's contents list includes an article on, or interview with, Bellavitis - or maybe it contains some of his strips - it's not clear to me.

If anyone has this magazine and can clarify what the Bellavitis content is, and/or supply an English translation, I would be grateful.

Also, before I make a fool of myself, can anyone confirm that Giorgio Bellavitis, the comic strip artist of the 1950s, who was born in Venice, is the same Giorgio Bellavitis as the now renowned Venetian architect?

Eagle Society Weekend and Annual Dinner, 2008

Edinburgh

9^th – 11^th May, 2008

Nigel McMurray, our Social Secretary, has asked me to post, for the benefit of Members, the highlights for this year’s Eagle Society Weekend, which will be held at the Carberry Conference Centre, Musselburgh, just outside Edinburgh. A full two days of activities including talks and tours are planned, starting on the afternoon of Friday, 9^th May and concluding after lunch on Sunday, 11^th May.

• The Eagle Society’s Annual Dinner - with haggis, neeps and tatties
• “A case for PC49” - Douglas Newbigging
  
• “Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and The Lost World” - Alan Riach [provisional]
  
• “Wizard Tales” - Jeremy Briggs on the adventure comics of D.C. Thomson of Dundee
• A Tour of the Royal Yacht Britannia
• Lunch at the Hawes Inn - under the Forth Rail Bridge
  
• A trip to Roslyn Chapel
• A bus tour of Edinburgh – seeing the Castle, Sherlock Holmes statue, Scott monument, the Harry Potter café, Greyfriars Bobby, the Royal Mile, Holyrood Palace, the Scottish Parliament and the City from Arthur’s Seat
• Walk around South Queensferry - and view the Bridges.
• “Greyfriars Bobby; what really happened …”
• “Great Eagle soaring o’er the silvery Forth” – an especially commissioned poem “by William McGonagall”.
• “An Evening with Robert Louis Stevenson” - Ian Nimmo of the RLS Club
  
• “David Britton – polar explorer” - A new Eagle back page adventure!
  

For Members of the Eagle Society, the cost for the weekend is £160 sterling, which includes two nights accommodation. Non-members wishing to take part should enclose in addition the appropriate (UK or Overseas) Membership Fee (separate cheque, please) with their application.

If you would like more details, or to confirm details and/or availability of places, please contact Nigel by e-mail.

To make a definite booking would Members please write, enclosing payment (in £ sterling, please, cheques made payable to the Eagle Society) to:

Adrian Perkins
19, Wolsey Way,
Cherry Hinton,
Cambridge,
CB1 3JQ
United Kingdom

The illustration is from the adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World that was written by Richard Jennings, drawn by Martin Aitchison, and appeared in Eagle, Vol 13 No 10 – Vol 13 No 29 (1962).

Index of Eagle Artists

The following artists' work appeared in Eagle magazine, 1950 - 1969.

• Tom Adams
• Martin Aitchison
• D. Alford
• Colin Andrew
• P. J. Ashmore
• Leslie Ashwell-Wood
• Robert Ayton
• William Backhouse
• John Batchelor
• Frank Bellamy
• Giorgio Bellavitis
• Luis Bermejo
• Harry Bishop
• Blake
• Wilfred Booth
• Bowyer
• Geoff Campion
• Michael Charlton
• Bruce Cornwell
• John Spencer Croft
• Roy Cross
• Danet, Dubrisay & Genestre
• Eric Dadswell
• Jack Daniel
• Gordon Davies
• C. L. Doughty
• Laurence Dunn
• John Dyke
• Eric L. Eden
• Ellis
• Gerry Embleton
• Ron Embleton
• Dennis Fairlie
• Roland Fiddy
• Gordon
• Strom Gould
• Frank Hampson
• Donald Harley
• Gerald Haylock
• Georges Rémi (Hergé)
• Hickey
• Geoffrey Hill
• Frank Humphris
• Charles Hurford
• Peter Jackson
• Richard E. Jennings
• Harold Johns
• Peter Kay
• Eric Kincaid
• David Langdon
• Don Lawrence
• Brian Lewis
• Harry Lindfield
• Dennis Mallett
• Terry Maloney
• Paul B. Mann
• Martin
• W.P. Matthew
• Alfred Mazure
• Frank McDiarmid
• John McLusky
• Nevin
• Will Nickless
• R. Nicoll
• Patrick Nicolle
• Jack Nicolle
• Jose Ortiz
• Gerald Palmer
• Reg Parlett
• Joan Porter
• Dudley Pout
• Probyn
• Redmill
• T. C. Renwick-Adams
• John Ryan
• Martin Salvador
• Angus Scott
• David Slinn
• John S. Smith
• William Stobbs
• Ferdinando Tacconi
• Norman Thelwell
• Jocelyn Thomas
• Malcolm Thomkins
• Greta Tomlinson
• Valentine
• Desmond Walduck
• J. Walkden-Fisher
• Brian Watson
• Keith Watson
• Ken Webb
• Geoffrey Wheeler
• Norman Williams
• Pat Williams
• H. Winslade
• John Worsley

Please let eagle times know if you can add to, or think there may be errors in, this index.

I/we intend (gradually) to provide information on individual artists via separate posts, with hotlinks from this list, which will eventually form a comprehensive Index of Eagle Artists (much as Steve Holland has been doing for Swift Annual, Robin Annual, and Look and Learn, on Bear-Alley ). As you can see, I've made a start with Martin Aitchison - only 89 to go! The intention is to provide 'potted biographies' covering the artists' careers, but focussing on their Eagle work, with pointers (ie links and references) to where further information may be found.

Eagle Artists - Martin Aitchison

Martin Aitchison (1919 - ) was born in Birmingham. After early education at Ellesmere College in Shropshire, he attended Birmingham School of Art and the Slade School of Art. During World War II he enrolled with Vickers Aircraft at Weybridge, Surrey, as a technical illustrator and afterwards he became a free-lance commercial artist. His first published work was for Hulton Press' Lilliput. This was followed by work for Girl, when he was called upon to fill in for artist Ray Bailey on two pages of 'Kitty Hawk', and to draw 'Flick - and the Vanishing New Girl' for Girl Annual No 1. He became one of Eagle's major non-'Dan Dare' artists. For nine years (1952 - 1961) he produced weekly strip artwork for 'Luck of the Legion', which was scripted by Geoffrey Bond. He also drew for Swift and Swift Annual. When 'Luck' was dropped, Martin drew a further three strips for Eagle, plus one for Eagle Annual, before leaving in 1963 to work for Ladybird Books, becoming one of their principal artists and producing artwork for around 70 titles, until 1990. He is now retired although, from 1998, teamed again with writer Geoffrey Bond, he drew 'Justin Tyme - Ye Hapless Highwayman', which ran for over 5 years in Eagle Times.

The picture shows Martin as an honoured guest of the Eagle Society at Sparsholt, in 1996.

Eagle strips:

• Luck of the Legion (Vol 3 No 5 – Vol 12 No 37)
• Danger Unlimited (Vol 12 No 33 – Vol 13 No 9)
• The Lost World (Vol 13 No 10 – Vol 13 No 29)
  
• Hornblower R. N. (Vol 13 No 28 – Vol 14 No 9)
  

Eagle Annual strips:

• Luck of the Legion Eagle Annual No 3 – No 10 [1961]
  
• Warrrior with Tin Legs Eagle Annual No 11 [1962]

Eagle Times strip:

• Justin Tyme - Ye Hapless Highwayman Eagle Times Vol 11 No 4 (Winter 1998) - Vol 17 No 1 (Spring 2004)

Links:

• Martin Aitchison’s own site
• Wikipedia's biography of Martin Aitchison
• Martin Aitchison Artwork on Nicholas Hill's site
• Martin Aitchison information on Nicholas Hill's other site
  
• Lambiek's artist information on Martin Aitchison

ET Refs:

• Aitchison, Martin. My Story – part 1. Eagle Times Vol 16 No 2 p p 4 – 9.
• Aitchison, Martin. My Story – part 2. Eagle Times Vol 16 No 3 pp 14 – 18.
• Rudling, Bill. Martin Aitchison in conversation. Eagle Times Vol 4 No 3 pp 9 - 12
• Rudling, Bill. Martin Aitchison in conversation. Eagle Times Vol 6 No 4 pp 4 - 5.