Jennings and Darbishire

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There is also, to a greater extent than in the Blyton school stories, some sense of what is going on in the wider world (such as space travel) and also a sense of the place, the Sussex Downs, where Linbury Court School is located. At least Williams Brown and Bunter had some semblance of a natural naughtiness, Jennings and co were twee beyond compare, the sort of shite to give a poor unsuspecting before sending them away with a tuckbox and a trunk, making them think all was fine and dandy in the dormitories and headmasters studies of our fine establishments. 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.

Ozard’ that the boys use derives from ‘Wizard of Oz’ and was used to describe anything the boys disliked or dreaded. I enjoyed them at the time, though from what I remember and as you indicate, they are very, very gentle. In all the series there are various members of domestic staff of both sexes, who sometimes play a minor role in the plots.They are ideal for readers aged 9 + but don't let their classification as "children's literature" turn your nose up at them; like the William books they are ageless and classless. By the seventies his days were numbered, and the last books are, alas, lamentable in their attempts at modernity (notably Jennings at Large, in which eccentric Aunt Angela has been transformed into a social worker, living in a tower block in south London, and Jennings spends much of the book not only away from school but in the company of a girl).

In Blyton’s stories, the school mistresses are also referred to by title, with some, such as ‘Potty’ Miss Potts, also having nicknames amongst the girls. The adventures of madcap Jennings and his long-suffering friend Darbishire were written almost 80 years ago but still are as fresh and exhilarating a read today. Darbishire patents his method of removing heads from park railings with the aid of Jack Carr's car jack. There were 25 books, and I don;’t know how many radio broadcasts; they have been reissued and rebroadcast since I heard them as a child, and I hope they enliven and amuse children who read or listen to them now. As editor he was responsible for the exposure of the Tweed Ring and subsequently received a letter from Chester A.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. She doesn’t seem to have a sense of humour, but Jennings author Anthony Buckeridge intentionally wrote his school tales as comedy.

The humour (and there is plenty of it) rests on misunderstandings resulting from Jennings’s literal-mindedness and impetuosity. The character of John Christopher Timothy Jennings himself is precisely what is needed for a story of this sort. He befriends clever, but socially inept vicar’s son Darbishire, foxes into town in disguise, accidentally kicks the Archbeako (headmaster) on the kneecap while practising his football-skills, displays too much (or not enough) initiative during fire practice, and has a hair-raising incident with a poisonous spider. Actually, although all the series are told in the third person, there’s an intangible feeling that Jennings is being narrated by an adult – Buckeridge originally told them as stories to his pupils – which isn’t present in the Blyton stories. Although good-natured and well-meaning, his tendency to act on impulse resulted in Jennings frequently getting into trouble.It was a (surprising) pleasure to re-read Jennings and thank you, Debbie, for nudging me to rediscover that world. Another series of six episodes – simply named Jennings with David Schulten in the title role – aired on the BBC in 1966. I have to confess that we still use ‘bish’ in our family to describe a mistake and will often ‘square’ or ‘cube’ something that’s very unfortunate. First, they nearly miss the train, then, after Jennings loses his ticket, the pair move further down the train to escape Old Wilkie's wrath, only to find that their carriage has split off from the others. Jennings Goes to School is rather episodic in nature, lacking the overall theme and plot of the other three books, but contains some very funny set-pieces.