Gordon Boshell
| Gordon Boshell | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1908 Blackburn, Lancashire |
| Died | 1991 Worthing, West Sussex |
| Occupation | Journalist, Poet, Information Officer, Scriptwriter, Editor, Novelist |
| Language | English |
| Nationality | British |
| Period | 1941-1980 |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Notable works | Captain Cobwebb |
Gordon Boshell was born in Blackburn, Lancashire and was a journalist and writer. He wrote for the Daily Mail and also worked as a scriptwriter and a feature editor for the BBC.
In 1951 Boshell left Fleet Street to join The World Health Organisation as an information officer. During this time he worked in South East Asia and the Western Pacific, as well as in the organisation's headquarters in Geneva. Boshell returned to Britain in 1967 after which he and his wife lived in Wells, Somerset.
Boshell's first published book was "My Pen My Sword" a collection of poetry originally published in the Daily Mail. The book was subtitled "Bee of the Daily Mail" which may have been Boshell's alias. Boshell then published two adult novels ("John Brown's Body", "Dog's Life"). His early works were influenced by the Second World War. For example, his poem "The Aeroplane" was written after watching the Battle of Britain dogfights from the streets of London.
On returning to the UK Boshell began writing children's books, beginning with the "Captain Cobwebb" series for which he is best known. He also wrote a trilogy of books known as "The Secret Guardians" series.
Boshell co-created the "Garth" comic strip with Steve Dowling.
The "Captain Cobwebb" books are a series of 11 children's novels written by Gordon Boshell between 1967-1980. The main characters in the book are David & Toby Green, two brothers who live in Dingle Down village, and their Uncle Septimus Cobwebb, aka "Captain Cobwebb".
As a young man, Uncle Septimus decided to spend all night sitting in a fairy ring. As a result he went off to live with the fairies, becoming invisible. The books usually begin with the boys getting bored, e.g. during a rainy day, or lying ill in bed, and then calling on their Uncle to send them on an adventure, usually in a far-off magical land.
In the first book both the boys and their parents contact Uncle Septimus. They boys father tell them the story of his brother going off to live with the fairies and how to contact him. By writing a letter to their uncle, burning it to ash and then letting the ashes blow into the wind, they are able to send him a message. The adventure begins immediately. After their first adventure ("Captain Cobwebb") Uncle Septimus rewards the boys with a magical blue spot on their hand which they can touch to request an adventure.
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Wikipedia