Raymond Sheppard and Brian Marks' found artworks (Part Three)

Brian Marks (Part One) is here
Brian Marks (Part Two) is here

Now we have the other artworks which are lovely but have nothing to help me identify them - those who know me, know that won't stop me commenting! The collection comes from Brian Marks' father and is in such good condition. Same thing as last time, I'd recommend going to his Flickr account if you want to see these in hi-resolution as I've uploaded a smaller size here and downloaded the best version for my records

Magpies on nest, Raymond Sheppard
38.5 cm x 30 cm

Magpies and gold ring

I love the clarity of the offering from one magpie to another of a gold ring to join the others sketched in within the nest. The woodland recedes in the background is a very sketchy manner. But those birds show Sheppard's observation skills and I recently surprised my Grandson, they do have blue on the feathers!

Prone body
36.5 cm x 26.5 cm, Pastel, unsigned Raymond Sheppard

Prone figure

I have good news here. It took me a while but I found it in my collection of published work: Everybody's 5 December 1953 has a story "Ship with a cargo of murder" by Captain R. Barry O'Brien and the image heading up the story shows this prone body in place!

Everybody's 5 December 1953, p.30

It has a caption: "Almost before the Captain could cry out Big George had stabbed him twice and the other Greeks had disposed of the mate". It's very interesting to see that Sheppard has used one medium for the sketch and put so much detail into it. And I think I'm right in saying, it looks like Raymond Sheppard himself modelling for the prone body!

Tiger cub
22.5 cm x 18 cm, unsigned Raymond Sheppard , board

Tiger cub

Again I can comment here. Christine has in her cuttings collection an example of a Christmas card with - you guessed it - this very tiger cub. It also was signed and produced with a single colour

Coloured Christmas card with tiger cub

Lion, Raymond Sheppard
28.5 cm x 53 cm

Lion

Lion and Puff Adder, Raymond Sheppard
34.5 cm x 44.5 cm, "Lion and puff adder, Africa"

Lion and Puff Adder (Africa)

Both of the above lion images are interesting as they look to be drawn around the same time, same media, same paper. The subjects are common to Sheppard's work. Art Directors knew he could produce exciting shots of animals in situ. But I have no other information on these, but wouldn't be surprised to find they were published somewhere, early on in his career. 

Fox in Woodland, Raymond Sheppard
44 cm x 37.5 cm deframed painting

Fox in woodland

Christine Sheppard owns many images of woodland scenes - quite a few created around Mill Hill, London. But I must say this is the most interesting due to the branches drawn on the landscape here.

So finally we come to how Brian has these images to share with us.

It started with a cold call email - which I am happy to receive - saying 

"I have several Raymond Sheppard pictures. They belonged to my father, who kept them under his bed for 50 years. They are not in great condition and I am wondering what to do to preserve them, or perhaps get some of them restored. if the value justified that." 

I don't know anything about preservation except to say keep a lot of artwork out of sunlight! But when it came to seeing the images, of course I was super excited. here's the story:

"In brief, the work was given to my [late] Dad when he left lodgings in the artist's house. He rented a room there in the years after Raymond's death."

"At the age of 26 in 1959 Dad concluded his service in the army and secured a job in London at GEC. We believe a colleague from work suggested that he reside where he was staying, which happened to be with the Sheppards. I discovered a telegram addressed to the Sheppards notifying Dad of his own father's passing, dated 1962, indicating that he lived with them for a few years.  He met Mum around 1964, I believe, at a point when he had already moved out of the house but likely remained in the vicinity"

Christine mentioned the following:

"I certainly remember Ron Marks very well when he lodged with our family (my mother and brother and I) from 1959. He was a very kind man to us all and we spent quite a lot of time together. As I remember it, he had lived in Sidmouth, Devon and his mother came to stay with us from there at least once for a little break. He worked at GEC a short bus ride away in Stanmore and his work colleague whose name I cannot remember also lodged with us"

I'm so grateful to Brian, his Mum and Christine Sheppard for their interest and kindness in adding to the story. Brian also sent along some photos of the time his Dad was staying at the Sheppard's home which pleased Christine no end as she remembered Brian's Dad well.

Raymond Sheppard and Brian Marks' found artworks (Part Two)

Brian Marks (Part One) is here

So let's continue working through the fantastic collection of Brian Marks' father. I'd recommend going to his Flickr account if you want to see these in hi-resolution as I've uploaded a smaller size here and downloaded the best version for my records

The Old Man and the Sea, rejected image? Raymond Sheppard 22 cm x 19.5 cm, Old Man and the Sea, "NO" on protective cover sheet - rejected image?, Page 50 - "He adjusted the sack and carefully worked his way back"

The Old Man and the Sea Text on p.49

This is wonderful to see. I've covered the Hemingway classic "The Old Man and the Sea" before (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3) and included some unpublished drawings and here are more in my opinion. The text on this first image appears actually on page 49 of the older editions of which I have three and I checked. This image has an almost linocut look to it!

Dolphins, Raymond Sheppard
23 cm x 16 cm, "No" written on protective cover sheet, rejected image? Page 70 - Dolphin

 

The Old Man and the Sea Text on p.67-68

Now, this image is interesting as they look nothing like dolphins and Raymond Sheppard the consummate animal artist would know that. Early on in the book, the man encounters a black bird (a cormorant?) fishing and diving and he realises the flying fish are being chased by dolphin. 

But as you can see Brian tells us that the image above has "Page 70" written on it.  On pages 67-68 the man encounters a dolphin on his line and a passage begins of his lonely journey and his gutting the dolphin. I noticed that Tunnicliffe's illustration of this shows, not a dolphin, but similar fish to the above and that set me searching. 

I had never heard of a dolphin fish - or Mahi-Mahi but once I started reading I realised why in the book the man calls the 'dolphin' Dorado (page 69) as they sheen like gold. Mystery solved! It was relatively easy for me to search online, but how did Tunnicliffe and Sheppard know the Hemingway references were to smaller fish called 'dolphin'?

The Old Man and the Sea, rejected image?, Raymond Sheppard
24 cm x 20 cm, "NO" written on protective cover sheet, rejected image? "Page 53 - '...would have pulled him overboard'"

The Old Man and the Sea Text on p.49

The third of these unpublished drawings shows the weary man in the bow of the boat holding fast to the line.

Just then the fish gave a sudden lurch that pulled the old man down onto the bow and would have pulled him overboard if he had not braced himself and given some line (p.53)

Shark Pack, Raymond Sheppard
24 cm x 33 cm "They came in a pack" Rejected image? "NO" written on protective cover sheet

The Old Man and the Sea Text on p.108

There are two obvious 'shark' stories in Lilliput (April-May 1951 "Half a ton of tail" by Charles Osborne and July 1956 "Last dive" by John Sidney) but neither have that text or that page number as a likely candidate. However the shape of the image is so like Lilliput or Everybody's illustrations I've seen. "Page 114" was the clue that set me looking in "The Old Man and the Sea" again - and sure enough, this passage (page 108) begins just like that:

But by midnight he fought and this time he knew the fight was useless. They came in a pack and he could only see the lines in the water that their fins made and their phosphorescence as they threw themselves on the fish.

Illustration, Raymond Sheppard
27 cm x 19.5 cm "Page 124 - He started to cry again" "NO" written on protective cover sheet.

The Old Man and the Sea Text on p.113

Well, this caused me a lot trouble. That 'tankard' is steaming. Is the man the owner of the establishment, or has he made the boy, who's serving the drink, cry? I remembered that in "The Old Man and the Sea" the sad ending has the boy crying so went back to reading. And imagine my surprise! 

He went into the Terrace and asked for a can of coffee.
“Hot and with plenty of milk and sugar in it.”
“Anything more?”
“No. Afterwards I will see what he can eat.”
“What a fish it was,” the proprietor said. “There has never been such a fish. Those were two fine fish you took yesterday too.”
“Damn my fish,” the boy said and he started to cry again.

So I think Brian will be pleased to learn 5 images are from the one book. These five images remind me of what a tremendous read "The Old Man and the Sea" is!

Owl, Raymond Sheppard
24 cm x 27 cm, "- SHADOW OF DOUBT - (Page 2 of paste up) As it spread its wings and glided downwards, I could see that it held a body in its talons"

Original art

I was excited when I saw this image as the whole left-hand side has been 'whited-out' and did not appear in the published version in the magazine Young Elizabethan (March 1955, page 29). It accompanied the story "Shadow of a doubt" by Leighton Houghton. Why the decision was made to eliminate the two boys - just visible - we may never know but the published version still shows off Raymond Sheppard's talent of bringing birds to life.

Young Elizabethan March 1955 p.29

Trylla, Raymond Sheppard
16.5 cm x 25,5 cm "TRYLLA - FRONTIS PIECE -from page 2 'Trylla was obliged to stay outside the group'"

Trylla and other small fry - Frontispiece

I'll write about this book "Trylla and other small fry" by Gunnar Gunnarsson (and translated by Evelyn Ramsden), at a later date as it contains a dozen images by Sheppard. It was published by Hutchinson in their series 'Hutchinson's Books for Young people' circa 1947 and this is the original art for the frontispiece. As it was used in the position opposite the title page, it didn't get published with the caption listed on the original board.    

Pride of Lions, Raymond Sheppard
26.5 cm x 17 cm, "Page 21, illustration for head of page"

The Old Man and the Sea POSSIBLY p.19

After all the detective work and luck with the "The Old Man and the Sea", I went looking there first but couldn't remember any lions in that story! However, the old man does mention in passing having seen lions on the beach - and this does appear early on in the book (page 19), but this might be from somewhere completely different. So I shall leave this one open until I find it elsewhere, - what do you think?

 “When I was your age I was before the mast on a square rigged ship that ran to Africa and I have seen lions on the beaches in the evening.” “I know. You told me.” “Should we talk about Africa or about baseball?” “Baseball I think,” the boy said.

Part Three of Brian's collection, to follow

Raymond Sheppard and Brian Marks' found artworks (Part One)

I have had a lovely surprise when Brian Marks contacted me to share a story:

I have several Raymond Sheppard pictures. They belonged to my father, who kept them under his bed for 50 years. They are not in great condition and I am wondering what to do to preserve them, or perhaps get some of them restored. if the value justified that.

Brian then suggested he could give me access if I was interested!

The collection is on Flickr at hi-resolution and different sizes to download. I've just placed some smaller versions here, so do go to Brian's site for the glorious detail!

"Buffalo and Tiger"

Buffalo and tiger, Raymond Sheppard
40 cm x 31.5 cm, ROUGH for "I shot the devil tiger" "He had avoided those terrible sabre-tipped horns by inches"

I suspect this comes from Everybody's 19 January 1957 story "How I killed the devil tiger" by Ivan Cameron. The illustration appears on page 23 with the caption "I lay completely still under the tiger. Then, charging towards us through the grass, came a buffalo. He had spotted his natural enemy" - note the man on the right pinned down! I could be wrong in my attribution but do wonder if the original was a sketch given to an Art Director who asked for a changed perspective. But I have to confess the words "sabre-tipped horns are not present in the published version!

Everybody's 19 January 1957

And coincidentally I have a photo of the original art which shows the proposed title was going to be "I shot the devil tiger" before publication as "How I killed the devil tiger".

Original art

Flash the Otter, Raymond Sheppard
42 cm x 31.5 cm Young Liz?(Feb), "Flash the Otter"............suddenly he twisted and bit the fish behind the head.

Young Elizabethan February 1957 p.19

This is an easy one as I've shown this in its full glory before. It comes form the magazine "Young Elizabethan" February 1957 on page 19.

Foxes, Raymond Sheppard
37 cm x 27.5 cm, Young Elizabethan, Illustration to "Who'll feed my cubs" "Each time he carried a plump cockerel"

Original art

This story was published in Young Elizabethan September 1957 on page 10, as can be seen below. It was titled "Who will feed my Cubs?" and written by Mary Henderson.The caption on the original art was not used but highlights which part of the story is illustrated.

Young Elizabethan September 1957 p.10

Trap in the Tide, Raymond Sheppard
42.5 cm x 29.5 cm

Original art

Brian has found this already, but for his pleasure it was published in July 1955 in Lilliput in an article labelled "Trap in the tide" written by Malcolm Monteith and looks like this. Notice, as I've observed elsewhere the colours don't quite reflect the original art which is lovely to see.

 

Lilliput July 1955, pp48-49

African Buffalo? Raymond Sheppard
23.5 cm x 17 cm, Lilliput July Page 43 MONO

Original art

This comes from "The big bull" by Neil Ewing (Lilliput July 1955, page 43) where two other images are drawn by Sheppard (that's for another time). Text wraps in two columns around the African buffalo - notice the size prescription on the original art "2⅛ inches".

Lilliput July 1955, p43

Christine Sheppard owns a rough sketch which is obviously practice for the above illustration (or did her Dad do the sketch first using it for the above? Christine tells of her many visits accompanying her father to London Zoo for him to sketch animals and birds)

African Buffalo sketch

Birds in fishing net, Raymond Sheppard
15.5 cm x 23 cm, "Black/Green, illustration no 2, February ???"

Original art

This story "The snare of the fowler" was by Colin Willcock and appeared in Lilliput February 1955 on page 22 as shown below. The title page of the story also shows geese being trapped in nets.  Notice again a change in colour upon publication from orange to "black/green" as stated on the artwork in pencil. The title comes from Psalm 91:3 in the Old Testament.

Lilliput February 1955, p22

Calving Ice, Raymond Sheppard
49.5 cm x 15 cm, LILLIPUT (crossed out)

Original art

This gorgeous shot shows two men in a row boat encountering seals and kittiwakes as, as Brian points out, some ice calves. It was published as the opening shot in Lilliput September-October 1951 for "The birth of a berg" by James Fisher and another illustration shows some seal heads.

Here's the published version - hard to get flat as the little pocket book versions of the earlier Lilliputs are!

Lilliput September-October 1951, pp84-85

NEXT TIME: More of Brian Marks' collection examined

Raymond Sheppard and Eagle comic

Eagle Vol.5:32, 6 August 1954
"Rubio"

Eagle, the comic created by the Reverend Marcus Morris and Frank Hampson (and others) was first published on 14 April 1950. "Dan Dare" was the most famous creation and the story of him and the comic has been well documented in many places and the Eagle Society still publish a magazine 4 times a year and organise meet-ups. My friend David Slinn supplied many of the images in today's article for which I'm grateful. I first became aware of the series, I'm focussing on through Christine Sheppard's very handy cuttings file.

A half page colour strip, "True Dog Stories", was replaced in Eagle Vol.5:32 (dated 6 August 1954) by "Famous Horses" with a self-explanatory title and the series ran (with 3 gaps) until Vol.5:50 (10 December 1954). 

The first horse (image at the top of this article) featured is "Rubio" - an American horse entered into the Grand National - the story having a triumphant ring after Rubio was towing a trolleybus to build up strength with success. He even has a wikipedia entry.

Eagle Vol.5:36, 3 September 1954
"Ghostly Steeplechase"

The second entry Sheppard illustrated was "A Ghostly steeplechase", the story of two cavalry officers and their bet as to whose horse (Cannonball or Blazer) could win a race to the church steeple (thus a 'steeplechase'). Dressed in their nightshirts they presented a ghostly vision to the villagers of Nacton Heath, Suffolk, but left them with a very famous claim to fame.

Eagle Vol.5:40, 1 October 1954
"Black Bess"

There are few more famous horses, in my opinion, than Black Bess, whose master died at the age of 33. Richard Turpin, better known as Dick Turpin, allegedly rode Bess for 15 hours being chased by the authorities from London to York. However,

Turpin became a legend after his death.  His story became linked in print with a legendary ride from London to York to establish an alibi, a tale previously attributed to the highwayman William Nevison.  This fictional version was further established when it was included in an 1834 bestseller called Rockwood, in which the author Harrison Ainsworth added a new twist: that Turpin’s horse, Black Bess, expired at York after the record-breaking ride.  None of this was true. [Source: York Museum]

Eagle Vol.5:44, 29 October 1954
"Winston"

Winston was a police horse before being ridden by HRH Queen Elizabeth II, who preferred this chestnut horse. The horse retired after this article in 1956 and after an accident was sadly put down 7 February 1957.

Eagle Vol.5:45, 5 November 1954
"The Queen's Horses"

The above describes various horses associated with Her Majesty, and also in the last panel Cloudy, Prince Charles' pony.

Eagle Vol.5:47, 19 November 1954
"Bucephalus"

The story here focuses on a young boy who is able to show his father he is able to calm a wild horse and thus forms a lifelong bond with the horse. There are a lot of myths around Alexander, Bucephalus' owner, as well as the horse himself. Jalalpur Sharif, Pakistan is allegedly where the horse ended his days aged 30 years.

Eagle Vol.5:49, 3 December 1954
"The Blind Pony"

"The Blind Pony" here is Dolly who was overworked but fortunately encountered "Mr. W. J. Bryson the Honorary Secretary of the Northern Counties Horse Protection Society" - which still exists thanks to Mr. Bryson its founder, in Gateshead. Unfortunately Dolly lost her sight but thanks to an eye surgeon she regained sight.  I suspect that "Gighton banks" in the strip should read "Eighton Banks" which is near to the Angel of the North - Anthony Gormley's statue.

Before I move onto other images drawn by Sheppard for Eagle, here's a full listing of the "Famous Horse Stories" with their artists. The three breaks in the series had George Cansdale and Geoffrey William Backhouse information strip "Look around with..." focussing on nature.

• RS = Raymond Sheppard (Highlighted)
• GB = Geoffrey William Backhouse
• FH =  Frank Humphris
  

Vol.5:32	06/08/1954	Rubio	RS
Vol.5:33	13/08/1954	The 'Morgan' Horse	GB
Vol.5:34	20/08/1954	The Red Indian Mustang	FH
Vol.5:35	27/08/1954	Warrior	GB
Vol.5:36	03/09/1954	A ghostly steeplechase (Cannonball and Blazer)	RS
Vol.5:37	10/09/1954	The Drum Horse	GB
Vol.5:38	17/09/1954	[NONE] - Cansdale/Backhouse: Look around with
Vol.5:39	24/09/1954	[NONE] - Cansdale/Backhouse: Look around with
Vol.5:40	01/10/1954	Black Bess	RS
Vol.5:41	08/10/1954	The Godolphin Arab	FH
Vol.5:42	15/10/1954	A wild adventure (Warrior - again)	GB
Vol.5:43	22/10/1954	[NONE] - Cansdale/Backhouse: Look around with
Vol.5:44	29/10/1954	Winston	RS
Vol.5:45	05/11/1954	The Queen's Horses	RS
Vol.5:46	12/11/1954	An Indian boy and a mustang	GB
Vol.5:47	19/11/1954	Bucephalus	RS
Vol.5:48	26/11/1954	Cornwall Blue	GB
Vol.5:49	03/12/1954	The Blind Pony	RS
Vol.5:50	10/12/1954	Sheila, the Arab Mare	GB

So now we turn to two other drawings by Raymond Sheppard that appeared in Eagle.

Eagle Vol.2:52, 4 April 1952, p.5
"Advice on your pets: Terriers"

This quarter page from a 1952 Eagle appeared on page 5 and is one of an irregular series called "Advice on your pets". Early on, the column took up half a page. John Dyke's signature appears from the start and G. William Backhouse drew many of the others and initially Professor Cameron is credited as the author. The series ran from 9 March 1951 (Volume 1: 48) to 3 August 1951 (Volume 2:17). It then took a break before the first episode where Sheppard drew some gorgeous studies of Terriers, above, for the issue dated 4 April 1952 (Volume 2:52). 

Eagle Vol.3:1, 10 [sic] April 1952
"Advice on your pets: Weaver Birds"

The next episode was published on 10 [sic] April 1952 (Volume 3:1) - I have no idea why the 10th and not the 11th which was a Friday, but someone spotted the error and corrected next week's issue numeration  back to the Friday date!). The following week G. William Backhouse took over the art duties, signing his first two episodes but then omitting his signature (thanks for the ID, David Slinn). The series continued until 4 July 1952 (Volume 3:13) and took a break until 13 March 1953 (Volume 3:49) where it now shrunk to a small feature among many and became a column that gave answers to questions submitted by readers. The artwork is so small it's hard to see who drew the animals and the series ended in the 31 July 1953 (Volume 4:17) issue.

Finally, unless I find any more Sheppard in Eagle, this is my last comment. 

In Eagle - on the editorial page - of issue 20 August 1954 (Vol.5:34) we see that terrier illustration but looking closely it looks rather crude compared to the one I've shown you above. That fount of knowledge David Slinn let me know he suspected it was Gerald Lipman who drew this copy.

Raymond Sheppard and the Crusader series - Part Four

Part One
Part Two
Part Three
 

I have shown 5 of the Crusader series published by Blackie & Son in previous articles - along with a full listing of all the series (illustrated by Sheppard and others). Today I want to carry on with three more titles by an author called Fay King.

THE DESERTED CITY by Fay King (Blackie, 1951)

Cover

Several huge black birds swept across their path
Frontispiece for p.36

They built a fire before the Witch-Doctor's squatting figure
Page 13 for p.18

A light suddenly shattered the darkness of the cave
Page 32 for p.26

“The rescue party! They're through!”
Page 49 for p.47

THE DESERTED CITY tells the story of Tom, whose parents have been killed in a car accident, and consequently he travels to South Africa to meet his uncle and his cousin Bill, who live on the edge of Kalahari Desert. Tom soon encounters the local life and learns of mysterious disappearances of people within a tribe and then also the chief himself. The local witch doctor starts a fire to be able to read the smoke and discern what has happened and he warns there is great danger in a cave with 3 flat stones. Tom and Bill are out riding around looking at the cattle when a storm forces them to abandon their horses - so they head towards a little hill and despite realising it's the one 'seen' by the witch doctor they go inside the cave, only to be confronted by a mad man with a leopard. On reaching for their guns they find they have disappeared and the mad man lights a torch and aims a revolver at them. He claims to be the ruler of the desert and has discovered the legendary deserted city. He then leads the boys on a long trip underground and soon they reach the deserted city and find they are not the only prisoners! Bill is shot after bravely lunging at the mad man, while Tom is put behind bars along with many other prisoners. They naturally escape and a search party eventually finds them.

Sheppard's art for this tale appears to me to be rough around the edges, yet is still pleasing.

RUSTLERS AT THE BAR-TWO RANCH by Fay King (Blackie, 1952)

 

Cover

The little plane zoomed down over the heads of the terrified animals
Frontispiece for p.36

“Hi! Take a good look,” he said. “There' someone there.”
Page 11 for p.7

With all his strength he flung himself at Scarface
Page 30 for p.26

Quick as a flash the doctor had the revolver in his hand
Page 47 for p.26

RUSTLERS AT THE BAR-TWO RANCH is a story which says it all in the title. A family ranch sees cattle disappearing, despite no-one hearing or seeing anything and also the dog not barking! The two boys ride out one morning and discover some suspicious men living in an old hut on their land. Deciding to return that night, the boys and the action starts. The boys are captured. Needless to say their sister who can mend and fly the family plane saves the day by scaring the rustled cattle so they stampede. One man helps his dying colleague back to the hut and insists a doctor is fetched. This leads to the fight illustrated above. The children find out the traitor is their workman and that explains why the dog did not bark!

 

FAY KING (not to be confused with the American cartoonist) is the maiden name of Fay Goldie (she was married to Andrew Goldie). She also wrote under the pseudonym Richard Burns. The Cambridge guide to children's books in English, (2001) gives the following information: "Goldie [King], Fay; 1905-1993; prolific South African writer of non-fiction and some fiction."The Oxford Encyclopedia of Children's Literature (2006) tells us:

(1905–1993), South African writer whose children's books may be considered representative of the few in English produced in the 1950s and 1960s. Ostrich Country (1968) is a lively exposition of every aspect of ostriches. Fay King Goldie's fiction, such as her historical novel about the late-19th-century gold rush, River of Gold (1969), features flat, stereotypical characterization. In spite of gestures toward the modern themes of nature conservation (Friends of the Bushveld, 1954) and the lives of contemporary black children (Zulu Boy, 1968), her work was old-fashioned, especially in her simplistic, patronizing portrayal of black people.

In March 1936, at the age of 31, she travelled to Southampton from Capetown on the 'Llandaff Castle' and gave her address as 35, Greenhill Road, Harrow and her occupation as 'journalist'. Why she was travelling, we don't know.  The Cape Standard of 21 September 1936 has a short announcement: 

Woman's Soviet Lecture: Mrs.Fay King Goldie, well-known as a contributor to South African periodicals, will lecture on Russia (from which country she has just returned to South Africa), in the Cathedral Hall, Cape Town, to-day.

The same paper (of 15 August 1939) has her as a speaker at a farewell dinner - where she is given as "Mrs. Fay King Goldie, President of the Liberal Study Group". In 1960 the South African Writers’ Circle was founded by Fay King Goldie and 13 other writers, initially meeting at London House in Smith Street (now Anton Lembede Street) and were then called the Durban Writers’ Circle. The name change occurred in 1985 and continues to today.The South African Writers' Circle sponsor a "Fay Goldie Award for General Success in the World of Publishing" The writing circle publish a newsletter and an obituary is listed in 1993, by Honor Rorvik.

Fay (King) Goldie (1903-1993) BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Red Reflections. (A South African's candid impressions of Soviet Russia.). Durban: Knox Printing & Publishing Co, [1938?]
• The Lost City. Bognor Regis : John Crewther, [1942]
• Behind the Enemy's Lines (A Russian Adventure for Boys) Bournemouth:John Crowther, 1944
• Foot-Loose in the Soviet Union,  [London] : Valiant Publications, 1947.
• The Zoo Mystery. (Illustrated by William Stobbs). London: Frederick Muller, 1948.
• Diamonds in Springbok Valley. (Illustrated by Tony Weare) London: Ginn & Co, 1950.
• Bushveld Adventure. (Illustrated by Tony Weare). London: Ginn & Co, 1950.
• Fanyana the Brave. London: Epworth Press, 1950.
• A Practical Guide to Film Careers. London: Findon Publications, [1950]
• The Deserted City. London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1951.
• Diamonds In Springbok Valley London: Ginn and Company, 1952 
  
• Rustlers at the Bar-Two Ranch London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1952.
• Friends of the Bushveld. (Illustrated from drawings by Grace Huxtable). London: Jonathan Cape, 1954.
• An Ear of Wheat, and other tales of the Outeniquas. [Johannesburg]: Central News Agency, [1955]
• Island of Happy Exiles London: Dobson Books Ltd, 1961
• Lost City of Kalahari. The Farini story and reports on other expeditions. Cape Town; Amsterdam: A. A. Balkema, 1963.
• The Golden Bird. Durban: Garnet Publications, [1964]
• Ostrich country. Cape Town: Books of Africa, 1968.
• Zulu boy. (illustrated by Tessa Beaver). London: Macmillan, 1968.
• River of gold (illustrated by William Papas). London: Oxford University Press, 1969.

Her writing appears in 

• Successful freelance journalism: a practical guide for writers. Cape Town ; Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1984.
• How to write stories and novels that sell [Malvern]: [Malvern Publishing], [c1986]
• The dark side of the moon (Short stories in English South African writers 1961-) Premier Publications, c1987.

 Other known articles - many more still to be found:

• "Europeans Walk Through Fire; a firewalking ceremony at the Umbilo Hindu Temple in Durban". Wide World Magazine, [Month unknown] 1928.
• "Mine Boy" [Details unknown] Short Story [c. 1938]
  
• "'Macbeth' infused with Zulu flavoring", The Christian Science Monitor, 30 November 1971

In a reference to a letter (dated 4 April 1964) addressed to Mary Sutherland, (of "Woman's Journal", London), we learn Goldie submitted two short stories "Bird in the hand" and "Reward from the sea":I couldn't find any reference to them online so don't know if they were accepted for publication in the UK.

HIGHVELD MYSTERY by Richard Burns (Blackie, 1952)

 

Cover

“And it's this mystery we've got to try and solve”
Frontispiece for p.5

 

He found a group of natives gathered at the foot of the steps
Page 11 for p.12

 

Suddenly there came the loud, angry barking of the sentry baboon
Page 30 for p.31

Huddled in the farthest corner of the cave was a small brown body
Page 49 for p.31

The story concerns three children on a South African farm and a mystery. Their Dad's friend has been accused of murder after finding out he has been embezzled by a Mr. Long and making threats against him. The body has not been found but the children set out to find the truth. Following a similar theme to "Deserted City" above, a child's disappearance is the starting point and the native fear of a hill as bewitched - similar to the other story. The hill is also where a tribe of baboons live who destroy crops and therefore a hunt is on despite the native fears. One of the boys finds a hidden spot and a cave and the skeleton of a white man and a snake - which must have been the cause of the man's death whilst hiding. Then the whimpers of a child catch Dick's ears and it turns out to be Ncobo's son with an injured leg.

Richard Burns, 1904-1993.

Interestingly despite reassurances by the British Library (and a single reference by a relative saying that Fay wrote under a man's name), I can't find much more on the pseudonym Richard Burns - not to be confused with a science-fiction author.

• The Broadvlei Mystery. An adventure story for boys. Bognor Regis : John Crowther, [1943]
• Highveld Mystery London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1952.

I'm very curious why Blackie would take on Fay Goldie twice in the same series with different names! This is the only story in the series by "Richard Burns" too!