"Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it."
— P.J. O'Rourke
Captain W. E. Johns (William Earl Johns) | First Editions
1893 - 1968
William Earl Johns (5 February 1893 – 21 June 1968) was an English pilot and writer of adventure stories, usually written under thepen name Captain W. E. Johns. He is best remembered as the creator of the ace pilot and adventurer Biggles.
Johns' early ambition was to be a soldier, being a crack shot with a rifle. In 1913, while working as a sanitary inspector, Johns enlisted in the Territorial Army as a trooper in the King's Own Royal Regiment (Norfolk Yeomanry). The regiment was mobilised in August 1914, and was sent overseas in September 1915. This was the start of a very successful military career, which was to inspire his Biggles series. Later, Johns became a flying instructor and aircraft bomber. After leaving the RAF, Johns became a newspaper air correspondent, as well as editing and illustrating books about flying. At the request of John Hamilton Ltd, he created the magazine Popular Flying which first appeared in March 1932. It was in the pages of Popular Flying that Biggles, first appeared. In his 46-year writing career (1922–68) he penned over 160 books, including nearly one hundred Biggles books, and scores of magazine articles and short stories. Johns also wrote eight other books of juvenile fiction, twelve books of fiction for adults, and eight factual books, including several books on aviation, books on pirates and treasure hunting, and a book on gardening.
See below our stock of Captain Johns First Editions, fine bindings, sets and other collectible material.
Results 1 - 22 (of 22)
Biggles & The Penitent Thief.
Leicester, Brockhampton Press, 1967. Publisher's cloth, a very fine copy in crisp, fine wrapper with just a little rubbing to the tip of the spine. A very bright copy indeed of a rare Biggles title. FIRST EDITION. More
Biggles Delivers the Goods.
London, Hodder and Stoughton, 1946. FIRST EDITION. Publisher's cloth, very good indeed. In like dustwrapper. with a couple of tears and creases, frayed to head and foot of spine. More
Biggles Takes A Hand.
London, Hodder and Stoughton, 1963. [Children's Adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.160. With illustrations by Stead. Publisher's red cloth with black titles to spine. With the dust-jacket priced at 8/6, also illustrated by Stead. Page edges a little spotted, jacket mildly edgworn; very good indeed. More
Biggles and the Gun Runners.
London: Brockhampton Press, 1966. [Adventure novel]. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.182; [2]; advertisements. Duck egg blue hardcovers titled in gilt, illustrated jacket (priced clipped). Small scuff/sticker pull to flyleaf else a fine copy of the book in a very good wrapper with some rubbing and edgewear plus a.... More
Biggles Scores A Bull.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1965. First Edition. Octavo, pp. 160. Red cloth with gilt titles to spine, in pictorial dustwrapper designed by 'Studio Stead' depicting Biggles swooping throughout the sky in a helicopter with a somewhat indifferent looking Bovine overlaid by concentric circles. Textblock is clean and bright apart from... More
No Rest For Biggles.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1956. [Adventure novel]. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.159; [1]; blank. With six colour plates by Stead. Red hardcovers blocked in black, illustrated jacket. Old tape mark to pastedown where flaps were once attached, wrapper trimmed a few millimetres short, folded along edges, a few... More
Biggles and the Black Peril.
London: Dean and Son Ltd., by arrangement with Thames Publishing Co., London. c. 1960. 8vo. Publisher's cornflower blue cloth, titles in black to spine, in pictorial dust jacket. Small neat gift inscription in ink to upper front free endpaper. Minimal bumping to spine and corners with very slight bowing to... More
Biggles Forms a Syndicate.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1961. First Edition, octavo. Publisher's bright red cloth, titles in black to spine and front board with small illustration to lower front board also. Dark blue pictorial dust jacket. Contains 11 illustrations, including colour frontispiece, all by Stead. A presentable copy with no inscriptions or price-clipping... More
Biggles Delivers the Goods. A 'Biggles Squadron' Story.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1946. [Children's adventure] FIRST EDITION. Crown octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.182. With 10 illustrations including colour frontispiece by Leslie Stead. In publisher's orange cloth with black titles to spine and upper board. Illustrated endpapers to front endpapers. With original colour illustrated dust-jacket. Some dustiness to edges... More
Biggles And The Lost Sovereigns.
Leicester: Brockhampton Press, 1964. [Children's Adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.184. With a chromolithographic frontispiece by Leslie Stead. Publisher's yellow cloth with blue titles to spine. With the dust-jacket priced at 8/6, also illustrated by Stead. Contemporary ink note to flyleaf else fine within. Jacket a little soiled... More
Biggles and the Missing Millionaire.
Leicester: Brockhampton Press. 1961. First Edition. Octavo, pp. 170. Yellow cloth covers with red titles to spine, in pictorial dustjacket. Illustrated by Leslie Stead. textblock is slightly cocked, some spotting to edges. Some marking to the upper board. Dustwrapper shows brightly, some nicking and creasing along the upper and lower... More
Biggles and the Poor Rich Boy. Another case from the records of Biggles and the Special Air Police.
Leicester: Brockhampton Press, 1961. [Children's Adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.182; [2]. With a chromolithographic frontispiece and occasional in-text illustrations by Leslie Stead. Publisher's brown cloth with green titles to spine. With the dust-jacket also illustrated by Stead. Internally fine, wrapper a little rubbed and worn to extremities... More
Biggles Forms a Syndicate.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1961. [Children's Adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.160. With a chromolithographic frontispiece and occasional in-text illustrations by Stead. Publisher's red cloth with black titles to spine. With the dust-jacket also illustrated by Stead, priced at 8s 6d. Tiny blue ink ownership to front free... More
Biggles Scores A Bull. An Adventure of Biggles and the Air Police.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1965. [Children's Adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.160. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the dust-jacket designed by Studio Stead. Blue ink gift inscription to front free endpaper dated 1967. Browned and spotted to top edge. Very light wear to slightly... More
Biggles Works It Out. A Story for Air Detective-Inspector Bigglesworth and his Comrades of the Air Police.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1951. [Children's Adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.192. With eight dichromatic illustrations including a frontispiece. Publisher's red cloth with black titles to spine and upper board. With the dust-jacket illustrated by Studio Stead, priced at 7/6. Spotting to edges and preliminaries, neat ownership to... More
Gimlet Comes Home. Another Adventure of King of the Commandos and his Three Musketeers 'Copper' Colson, 'Trapper' Troublay and 'Cub' Peters.
London: University of London Press, 1946. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.186. Orange cloth decorated and trimmed in black in pictorial wrapper correctly priced at 6s. Some dustiness and acceptable wear; jacket with a few nicks, some soiling to spine. Shows well. More
King of the Commandos. A Story of Combined Operations.
Bickley: University of London Press, Ltd., 1943. [Wartime adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.192. Publisher's red cloth, titled in black to spine and upper, pictorial dust-jacket designed by Stead, with printed price of 5/- net. Colour frontispiece and ten black and white in-text illustrations by Stead. Ownership to... More
Biggles in the South Seas. Illustrated by Norman Howard.
London: Oxford University Press, 1940. Early paperback; Oxford 'Pyramid' printing. Publisher's grey paper wraps, titles printed in green to spine and upper. An uncommon early printing with text and illustrations (including the colour frontispiece) as per the first edition hardback book. Internally fine, boards are fine, spine a little rolled... More
Biggles Flies North.
London: Oxford University Press, 1939. First Edition. Octavo, pp.256. Publisher's blue cloth boards with illustration to spine and upper, titled in black.. A very good copy indeed. Illustrated with colored plates. Binding is somewhat rubbed to joints, a little frayed at spine ends, bumped to corners, slight lean. No inscriptions... More
Biggles In Spain.
London: Oxford University Press, 1939. FIRST EDITION, later binding and issue in blue boards blocked in black with two planes and an outline of Spain (preceded by red cloth, similarly blocked). Octavo, pp.256. Illustrated with black and white plates and a coloured frontispiece. With the generic 'Flying Jacket' dust-wrapper used... More
Biggles And The Blue Moon.
Leicester: Brockhampton Press, 1965. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.181, [2] publisher's titles list. Prize bookplate to front flyleaf. Bound in publisher's black cloth with titles in gilt to spine. Pictorial dustjacket, black, designed by Leslie Stead, showing a plane against the moon and Algy wielding an explosives trigger, with titles in... More
Biggles And The Leopards Of Zinn.
Leicester: Brockhampton Press, 1960. [Children's Adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.184. With six illustrations by Stead. Bound in publisher's sky blue cloth with titles and publisher's imprint to spine in red. Pictorial dust-wrapper shows Biggles being stalked by a lion, titles in yellow, spine shows an African mask... More
Results 1 - 22 (of 22)