BIGGLES AND THE NOBLE LORD
Book First Published in August 1969 - 152 pages
I believe this Biggles book was never serialised elsewhere. If anybody knows differently then please E-MAIL ME
The first edition dust jacket showing the original price of 12
shillings (and
with the first reference to 60p as decimalisation was coming in 1971)
Biggles is on the trail of a
master-criminal behind a number of cleverly planned crimes. A plan is hatched
to encourage a robbery with Ginger posing as a rich Indian princess and with
Bertie as "her" chauffeur. Publicity is given to the fact that the
princess is staying at the Savoy Hotel and will be travelling with her case of
jewels. After an initial attempt to bribe Bertie, the anticipated robbery
actually takes place and the thieves get away in a helicopter. Meanwhile, Algy
has been investigating who collects antique French porcelain at the auction
houses, as there is reason to believe that the man they are looking for has a
taste for such items. Lord Malboise buys some
porcelain similar to some previously stolen and Algy goes to Brindon Hall where Lord Malboise
lives to make some enquiries and sees a helicopter arrive. Putting these clues
together, Biggles, pays a visit to Brindon Hall and
faking engine trouble lands. Here he meets Lord Malboise
and his brother Clarence and sees a building that he suspects is a hanger for
their aircraft. Checking in Who's Who, Algy finds out that Clarence is
an experienced pilot and ex-SAS. Biggles and Ginger return to Brindon Hall at night to investigate the mysterious hanger
and the helicopter returns while they are there. Taking Algy with him, Biggles
calls on Lord Malboise for a sherry, having
previously been invited to do so. Here, Biggles sees a strange whitewashed wall
with a brick missing. Following another robbery, Ginger and Bertie fly to
investigate and see the helicopter. They follow it all the way to France where
it lands near a Chateau. Landing their Auster aircraft in a field, Bertie and
Ginger find that it has been wired and their plane is disabled. Captured, they
are both imprisoned high up in the Chateau de Malboise.
Marcel Brissac of the French police is informed of
the crash and passes the details to Biggles who realises that Bertie and Ginger
must be prisoners in the Chateau so he goes to France to find them. In the
Chateau, Ginger and Bertie make paper planes with SOS messages on and send them
out of the window. This is the picture on the dust cover of the book. With the
help of a local Gendarme called Antoine Charlot,
Biggles and Algy enter the Chateau by way of an old secret passage and free
Bertie and Ginger. However, they are trapped in the tower when the villains
light a fire in order to smoke them out. They are only saved by the timely
arrival of Marcel. Lord Malboise and his brother
Clarence escape in the helicopter and get clean away, but hordes of stolen gold
are found back in England camouflaged as whitewashed bricks in the suspicious
wall.
There are no story illustrations in this book
Biggles and the Noble Lord
Publication Details - published by Brockhampton
Press
Frontispiece
Click on the above to see it in more detail