Biggles Fails to Return by W. E. Johns was first published in 1943 by Hodder and Stoughton. There have been at least 7 subsequent editions in the English language. The title page of the 1st ed. gives a simple subtitle: "A Biggles Adventure". The events in the book take place around late 1942 in Southern France and Monaco.
In October 1967, as part of its Biggles series, French publisher Aredit published a comic strip adaptation entitled Biggles porté manquant (Biggles posted missing).
Synopsis[]
Biggles is sent on a secret mission to Monaco to fetch an Italian princess but fails to return. Algy, Ginger and Bertie get permission from Air Commodore Raymond to go in search of him.
Plot[]
See the plot subpage (click here) for an extended summary of the narrative in the book (note: contains spoilers)
Characters[]
- Air Commodore Raymond - His initials R. B. are given for the first time. His appointment here is D.S.O. Air Intelligence
- Biggles
- Algy
- Ginger
- Bertie Lissie
- Henri Ducoste
- Principessa Marietta Loretto de Palma
- Madame Ducoste
- Mario Rossi
- Francois Budette
- Madame Budette
- Jeannette Ducoste
- Gaspard Zabani
- Gregori Gordino
- Monsieur Bonafacio
- Monsieur André
Aircraft[]
- Berline Breguet
- Savoia flying boat
- Hawker Hurricane
Places[]
Visited and Mentioned[]
Monaco and the South of France was a favourite location of Johns and a place he knew well. The geographical locations in the story are described in great detail, and many of them actually exist. To do this justice really takes a photoblog/travelogue in the footsteps of Biggles and friends.
This list intends to be exhaustive and is necessarily long. For easy reference, the places are listed in the order they appear to Algy, Ginger and Bertie after their arrival on the scene.
- La Turbie
- The hotel - probably the Hotel Righi d'Hiver
- The La Turbie - Monte Carlo rack railway (Chemin de fer à crémaillère de La Turbie à Monte-Carlo)
- Monaco
- Cafe de Lyons
- The Condamine
- Escalier du Port
- Quai de Plaisance
- Quai de Commerce
- Chez Rossi
- Villa Valdora
- Place d'Armes
- Rampe Major
- Place du Palais
- Rue Mariniere
- Escalier Sainte Devote
- Eglise Sainte Devote
- Market in Monte Carlo -- likely near the Eglise Saint Charles
- Bristol Hotel
- Beau Rivage Hotel
- Nice
- Ruhl Plage
- Jock's Bar
- Californie
- Moyen Corniche
- Villefranche
- Eze
- Peille
- Mentone
- Sainte Agnes
- Cap Martin
Research notes[]
Aerial Victories[]
Incongruities[]
- In chapter 10, Bertie joins Ginger, who has earlier earlier found refuge at the house of Madame and Jeannette Ducoste. Madame Ducoste brings news that Henri Ducoste has been captured. There is the sentence: "Algy glanced at Bertie." But he couldn't have, because Algy wasn't there![1]
Mentions of the Past[]
Other research notes[]
Chronology[]
(see also table at Timeline of the Biggles Stories)
Editions[]
International titles[]
- Swedish: Biggles i knipa (Wahlströms 1944)
- Norwegian: Biggles i knipe (Forlaghuset 1946)
- Danish: Biggles er ikke vendt tilbage (Branner & Korch 1949)
- French: Biggles porté manquant (Presses de la Cité 1951)
- Czech: Biggles padl do pasti (Toužimsky & Moravec 1994)
- French (Belgium): Biggles porté manquant (Lefrancq in Biggles, La seconde guerre mondiale 1 omnibus 1994)
References[]
- ↑ Alison Thompson. "Thompson's Test of Trivialities No. 11," Biggles Flies Again Vol. 1 No. 12 (2003): 42. See also the answers in the next issue.