HISTORY
Landshut, 30 miles east of Munich. From here
he escaped, towards the end of October 1918,
and was at liberty for four or five days before being recaptured whilst stealing apples. He
was then transferred to a 'bad boys' camp at
Ingolstadt, and it was whilst Johns was there
that the war ended on November 11, 1918. He
returned to his family on Christmas Day 1918,
much to their astonishment as he had been
listed as missing and they had presumed that
he had been killed, until the moment he walked
through the door.
Back to civilian life
After the war, Johns didn't want to return to life
as a sanitary inspector, as he preferred to stay
in the Royal Air Force. However, the Armed Forces were being drastically reduced to peacetime levels. Initially Johns was posted as a flying
instructor to Cranwell but by April 11, 1919, he
was transferred to the 'Unemployed List' which
meant no pay. His marriage to his wife Maude,
was breaking down. She had developed acute
arthritis and Jack was a sickly child. Johns took
up painting, a childhood hobby, until on November 23, 1920 he was reinstated on the RAF Active
List for a three-year commission and promoted to the new RAF rank of full Lieutenant. He
was sent to join the Inspectorate of Recruiting
in London's Covent Garden and the family moved to Lancaster Gate. It was here that Johns
recruited 'John Hume Ross' into the RAF. Hume
was in fact ‘Lawrence of Arabia’. Johns actually rejected Lawrence because he didn't like
his attitude, but he was forced to take him by
higher authority. Between 1921 and 1924, Johns
claims that he spent time serving in Iraq and
India, but his RAF records do not show that he
served outside the UK. Friends from that time
have said that Johns did not serve in Iraq and
India, and he was simply 'gilding the lily'. Speaking of which, this may be the appropriate time
to mention that Johns' title 'Captain' was self-imposed. If asked, he would say it was his old
RFC rank, but Johns was a 'Flying Officer' which
was the equivalent of Lieutenant. It appears
that Johns gave himself a promotion purely because children would more easily understand
what a Captain was, rather than a 'Flying Officer'. It is not known whether Johns really did
serve in India and Iraq, or whether he merely
picked up stories from other officers who had
served there. His books, a number of which are
set in those countries, certainly have the ring of
authenticity about them, as if they were written
by someone who was familiar with those countries. Johns also produced artwork from those
places, which may indicate his claims are true,
but the real truth is something of a mystery. In
1922 Johns wrote his first novel "MOSSYFACE".
It was published by the Weekly Telegraph Novel
under the pseudonym William Earle (note Johns
adding the "e"). In 1923 his RAF commission was
extended another four years and Johns was in
Birmingham working on RAF recruitment. By
this time, his wife and son had moved back to
live with her father, the Reverend Hunt, the marriage having completely broken down. Johns
wanted a divorce, but the Reverend would have
none of it and Maude wouldn't go against her father's wishes. Whilst living in a hotel in Hackney
Road, Edgbaston, Johns got friendly with the
10
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Leigh family next door. He fell in love with Doris May Leigh (born September 6, 1900) and explained his situation to her. When Johns was posted to Newcastle, Doris went with him, calling
herself Doris Johns and they were inseparable
until the day he died. Johns continued to pay for
his wife and son's upkeep as well as for nurses
to look after Maude.
Illustrator and Author
In 1927, Johns' commission in the RAF was coming to an end and he had started making a living by selling his artwork to various magazines
such as the Illustrated London News. He specialized in aviation art and moved to Lingfield in
Surrey to a cottage with a studio. Doris's family
moved nearby and her brother Howard Leigh,
then 18, joined Johns to learn to be an artist as
well. Howard Leigh was to become a famous
aviation artist and illustrated many of the early Biggles books. Johns began selling aviation
illustrations to THE MODERN BOY magazine, published by Amalgamated Press from February
11, 1928 and soon after started writing aviation
articles. These were initially credited to 'Our Aviation Expert' but by 1930, were being credited to
Flying Officer Johns. In 1931, Johns edited two
books, THE MODERN BOY'S BOOK OF AIRCRAFT
and WINGS: A BOOK OF FLYING ADVENTURES.
John Hamilton Ltd, a publisher that specialized
in aviation books, published the latter. Johns
then illustrated THE PICTORIAL FLYING COURSE
with text by Harry Schofield. A few months later
Johns wrote FIGHTING PLANES AND ACES.
John Hamilton Ltd decided to launch a new aviation magazine and they asked Johns to edit it.
POPULAR FLYING, aimed at an adult market,
was first published on March 16, 1932 (cover dated April 1932). Wanting to write authentic stories about flying in the Great War, Johns decided
to create a fictional airman for the first issue
and James Bigglesworth, known as 'Biggles',
was born.
Biggles first appeared in Popular Flying Volume
1, No. 1, April 1932 credited as being written by
'William Earle'. In August 1932, John Hamilton
published a collection of Biggles stories as THE
CAMELS ARE COMING. This was the first Biggles book and Biggles was to become a British
Institution.
Period advert for the first Biggles stories in The Modern Boy Magazine.
INFO Eduard - September 2021