BACKGROUND
Bagley's first book, The Golden Keel, is reputed to have been based on a well-known war-time rumour combined with a tale told to the author while in his favourite watering hole one day. The teller of the tale being someone actually involved...
When approaching Collins publishers for the first time, Bagley's ploy was to tell them he wrote just stories just like the already successful Alistair MacLean...
While working Bagley would be locked away in his study, a marvellous library of thousands (literally!) of reference books, where food and drink was left outside his door on a tray so as not to disturb the creative flow...
When the author died his widow donated all the text books in his extensive library, to local schools.
I don’t know much about Bagley’s favourite colour, or favourite tailor, but how about...
Favourite
tipple: A single Malt Scotch whisky, such as Glenfiddich or
Glenlivet. Laphroaig was mentioned in Landslide,
for example.
...and...
Favourite smoke: A Rothman's perhaps, from a time when such
an activity wasn’t so frowned upon.
LANDROVERS
These
British-made off-roaders began life back in the late 40's,
as so many new vehicles did during the mini-boom after the
second world war. They are typically British but seen all
over the world, and although there were other popular 4x4's
before them - the American Jeep for example - not many have
stood the test of time. This is probably mainly due to the
construction technique. Although the Landrover chassis was
made from rust-prone conventional steel, the bodywork was
aluminium. It has to be said that the choice of this
lightweight, but durable material was forced on the Rover
company because of the post-war shortage of suitable steel.
However it's lasting advantage is that there are many
ancient Landrovers still on the roads - and in the fields -
today.
The
vehicle figured large in many storylines by Desmond Bagley,
offering the hero transport over rough terrain, and even a
place to live in at times.
Stories
that make conspicuous use are:
Landslide
The
Spoilers
Running
Blind
Flyaway
Windfall
---------
Natural
Phenomena
There
are lots of these to choose from!
Hurricanes
Glaciers
Thixtropic
Clay
Cenotes
Geysirs
Avalanches
Manganese
Nodules
----------
Improbable
Inventions?
Electronic
Gadgets That Do Nothing - At All!
Train
Sets Used As Computers
-----------
Published
in Other Countries
The series was published in a total of 22 'foreign'
languages (out of respect for any viewers other than those
with English as a first language, I just mean 'not English'
editions). These were:
Afrikaans;
Czech; Danish; Dutch; Italian; Finnish; French; German;
Greek; Hebrew; Hindi; Hungarian; Icelandic; Serbo-Croatian;
Japanese; Norwegian; Polish; Portuguese; Rumanian; Spanish;
Swedish; Turkish
Sales
Figures
The only
figures I have come across state that by the time of
Flyaway, in the late 70's, sales had exceeded 10 million
copies