Future lives of minor characters in the books

[dsr]

Idea from Pete, via the "five on a Secret Trail: a missed opportunity" thread.

What is anyone's idea of what happened to some of the less renowned characters in the books?

[dsr]

I'll start with what I posted in that thread about Luke, from Disappearing Cat - a book published in 1944, and Luke I believe was 15, so he would have been born in 1929.

He left Lady Candling's after the unpleasantness to take up a similar job in Cornwall, after Lady Candling by way of apology gave him a strong reference and a personal recommendation. He did well and worked his way up to head gardener, but then the combination of the war and the introduction of inheritance tax put him out of a job. By which time he was married with a child on the way. He was employed by Truro council in the parks and gardens department and did pretty well - he could have taken the role of head of department but he didn't fancy an office job. Retiring at 65, he is still (age 92) tending his own garden, with one of his great-grandchildren (who inherited the green fingers) helping out, and is still able to walk down to the Truro public parks and reminisce about how it's not like it was in his day!

[Dinah Cunningham]

I like your idea, but I don't know if I could do something similar. I don't think so....

[Viv of Ginger Pop]

I believe that PC Pippin was selected for a special job in MI6, in a unit headed by Bill Cunningham

Viv

[pete9012S]

"I'm Cecil Dearlove.
Good riddance to the lot of them I say. I never want to see Jock or The In-Famous Five ever again - Grrrr!!"

[IceMaiden]

I never imagine future lives of any of the characters. To me they are timeless, they remain exactly as they are forever and that's why they are so appealing. They don't grow up. In my mind they're still running around Kirrin Island/ winding up Goon/climbing the Faraway Tree etc.

[Lucky Star]

My feelings exactly. This is why I only rarely read fanfic or continuation novels. To me these characters were created by Blyton and their entire existence is encapsulated in what Enid wrote for them. The minor or supporting characters, with a couple of notable exceptions like Ern Goon and Gypsy Jo, are relevant only to the plot of the book they appear in and were created by Enid specifically for that purpose. It can be fun to imagine later lives for them but really they didn't have any.

[Moonraker]

To think of Enid's wonderful characters being anything other than children really saddens me. Having said that, I did enjoy Julie's Find-Outers in Retirement series, but generally, I would wish them to remain timeless.

[Daisy]

This is why our 'fanfic' is set in their time - just more adventures of the characters which Enid didn't have time to white about! I agree with Nigel that Julie's series of the adventures of the Find-outers in retirement is very enjoyable too.

[Nair Snehalatha]

The characters in all Enid Blyton books are indeed timeless-- Still ,I love to think of them living their own lives with people they love. Barney.would have married Diana and would Roger and snubby ever so often.they would hav goos jobs -- like Fatty, Bets and the others who would continue to be the find outers-- --In my mind's eye they.will always remain young ,.beautiful , handsome and vibrant.I never will think of them growing old and.having walking sticks etc.-- even.mr Goon
.


--

[Katharine]

I don't mind either point of view. I don't think that I've ever given much thought to what happened to the characters when they got older, with perhaps the except of Barney and Diana who I perhaps vaguely thought of as ending up as a couple.

I did like the idea of Luke ended up working for his local parks department though.

[Stephen]

I do remember back in the 80s when I was a nipper myself, I spent a good day going through my Blytons and drawing up a list of what years the characters would have been born, based on their given or guessed ages in the first book of each series. A bit of harmless fun that didn't seem so bad back then. But the scary thing is, these children would now all be in their 80s and 90s!

[dsr]

Of course, in Enid Blyton books, not only did the children never age, but time didn't pass in the outside world either. A bit like Jennings in that respect - year after year rolled round in Linbury Court, spring term, summer term, autumn term in sequence year after year, and Jennings only ever had one birthday when he turned from 10 to 11.

So not only are the children still their "real" ages, but they still live in a village with a policeman, bakers who deliver, cooks and housekeepers, and eternal sunshine. Bliss.

(And no coronavirus!!!)

[Nair Snehalatha]

Nice to think of Blyton's characters as timeless-- where time stands still-- no grey.hair or wrinkles or faded eyes. They are always youthful, joyous , merry and carefree-- enjoying scrumplicious food at all hours of the day-- sometimes nights too-- in the school stories on.midnight feasts

[pete9012S]

Mr Goon - eternally romping with his chum in the fens and spinneys, as the twilight bathes the hedgerows like a lambent flame..