![billy-bunter-001[1]](http://leatherhead.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/billy-bunter-0011.jpg)
Last week, William George Bunter, better known as Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School had his 100th birthday. Bunter is a fictional character created by Charles Hamilton, one of the world’s most prolific author. Hamilton created the series for the boys’ weekly magazine The Magnet (published from February 15, 1908 to 1940).
The character was brought to life in a BBC TV series in 1953. The character of Billy Bunter was played by the late Gerald Campion in 40 black and white episodes lasting 30 minutes. The series finished in 1961. The program was a must watch TV program for children returning home from school. The programme always started at 5:40pm and probably contributed to the practice of kids watching TV with a plate of sandwiches, in front of the TV. The TV series also spawned a Christmas stage version in the West End from 1958-63.
The setting in a public school, included lots of corporal punishment (caning), bullying and other politically incorrect dialogue. With his gargantuan appetite for pies, Billy Bunter was one of the first obese TV characters. It was pure knockabout but, the story lines wouldn’t get near the pc BBC today. However, Billy Bunter represented a part of the current, older generation’s childhood so ….Happy Birthday Billy!
1 response so far ↓
Eddie Ó Mórdha // November 29, 2008 at 10:34 pm |
I remember watching the TV show in my Grand parents home in Dublin in the early 60,s I later read several of the books and facimile copies of the Magnet The writing was in fact very good Charles Hamilton was a latin scholer and included this in his stories Many famous writers began their reading with Bunter and Co. Frank O’Conner the well known Irish short story writer wrote a very good tale about trying to emulate Greyfriars in a workng class Cork City school around 1914. Long live Billy.
Eddie Ó Mórdha