Philip Turner
Encyclopedia
Philip William Turner is an English
author best known for his children's books about the fictional town of Darnley Mills and (under the pseudonym Stephen Chance) about the Reverend Septimus Treloar.
, Canada
on December 3, 1925 to English
parents from Peterborough
, Cambridgeshire
, Philip Turner was brought to England in 1926. He was educated at Hinckley Grammar School in Leicestershire
and spent many school holidays exploring the East Anglia
n fen
s whilst staying with his grandparents. He served his National Service
from 1943 to 1946 as a Sub-Lieutenant
Mechanical Engineer in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. He then resumed his education at Worcester College, Oxford
, whence he graduated in 1949. He married Margaret Diana Samson in 1950 with whom he had two sons and a daughter.
Turner was ordained a priest in the Church of England
in 1951 and served in parishes in Leeds
, Crawley
and Northampton
. In the late 1960s he became the Head of Religious Broadcasting for the Midland Region and subsequently became a teacher at Droitwich Spa High School
, chaplain of Eton College
and a part-time teacher at Malvern College
, Worcestershire
.
He began writing religious pieces in the mid 1950s, and in 1964 the first of his children's novels was published. Set in the fictional town of Darnley Mills in North East England, Colonel Sheperton's Clock involves a schoolboy mystery woven into an account of a boy's surgery to heal a disabled leg. Four subsequent books in the series told more stories of the three heroes of the first and another four created a local history from the nineteenth century up to the Second World War.
Turner won the Carnegie Medal
for children's literature for his second novel The Grange at High Force
in 1966.
He also wrote several books for young adults under the name Stephen Chance. The Danedyke Mystery was adapted for television in 1979.
Philip and Margaret lived in West Malvern for 30 years until his death from cancer in January 2006. He is buried at St. Mathias Church, Malvern Link.
Retitled The Adventure at High Force for the United States edition.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
author best known for his children's books about the fictional town of Darnley Mills and (under the pseudonym Stephen Chance) about the Reverend Septimus Treloar.
Life
Born in British ColumbiaBritish Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on December 3, 1925 to English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
parents from Peterborough
Peterborough
Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, Philip Turner was brought to England in 1926. He was educated at Hinckley Grammar School in Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
and spent many school holidays exploring the East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
n fen
Fen
A fen is a type of wetland fed by mineral-rich surface water or groundwater. Fens are characterised by their water chemistry, which is neutral or alkaline, with relatively high dissolved mineral levels but few other plant nutrients...
s whilst staying with his grandparents. He served his National Service
National service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
from 1943 to 1946 as a Sub-Lieutenant
Sub-Lieutenant
Sub-lieutenant is a military rank. It is normally a junior officer rank.In many navies, a sub-lieutenant is a naval commissioned or subordinate officer, ranking below a lieutenant. In the Royal Navy the rank of sub-lieutenant is equivalent to the rank of lieutenant in the British Army and of...
Mechanical Engineer in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. He then resumed his education at Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in the eighteenth century, but its predecessor on the same site had been an institution of learning since the late thirteenth century...
, whence he graduated in 1949. He married Margaret Diana Samson in 1950 with whom he had two sons and a daughter.
Turner was ordained a priest in the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
in 1951 and served in parishes in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, Crawley
Crawley
Crawley is a town and local government district with Borough status in West Sussex, England. It is south of Charing Cross, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town of Chichester, covers an area of and had a population of 99,744 at the time of the 2001 Census.The area has...
and Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
. In the late 1960s he became the Head of Religious Broadcasting for the Midland Region and subsequently became a teacher at Droitwich Spa High School
Droitwich Spa High School
Droitwich Spa High School is a Secondary school and specialist Sports College in Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire, England It serves the town of Droitwich Spa and the surrounding villages with 1395 students enrolled, including 276 students in the sixth form...
, chaplain of Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and a part-time teacher at Malvern College
Malvern College
Malvern College is a coeducational independent school located on a 250 acre campus near the town centre of Malvern, Worcestershire in England. Founded on 25 January 1865, until 1992, the College was a secondary school for boys aged 13 to 18...
, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
.
He began writing religious pieces in the mid 1950s, and in 1964 the first of his children's novels was published. Set in the fictional town of Darnley Mills in North East England, Colonel Sheperton's Clock involves a schoolboy mystery woven into an account of a boy's surgery to heal a disabled leg. Four subsequent books in the series told more stories of the three heroes of the first and another four created a local history from the nineteenth century up to the Second World War.
Turner won the Carnegie Medal
Carnegie Medal
The Carnegie Medal is a literary award established in 1936 in honour of Scottish philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and given annually to an outstanding book for children and young adults. It is awarded by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals...
for children's literature for his second novel The Grange at High Force
The Grange at High Force
The Grange at High Force is a children's novel by Philip Turner, published in 1965. It won the Carnegie Medal for that year. It is the second in the author's Darnley Mills series, set in a mill town in the north of England, between the moors and the sea...
in 1966.
He also wrote several books for young adults under the name Stephen Chance. The Danedyke Mystery was adapted for television in 1979.
Philip and Margaret lived in West Malvern for 30 years until his death from cancer in January 2006. He is buried at St. Mathias Church, Malvern Link.
Works
- Christ in the Concrete City, (London: S.P.C.K., 1956) [a play]
- Cry Dawn in Dark Babylon, (London: S.P.C.K., 1959) [A dramatic meditation]
- Tell it with Trumpets — Three experiments in drama and evangelism, (London: S.P.C.K., 1959)
- Casey — A dramatic meditation on the Passion, (London: S.P.C.K. 1962.
- The Christmas Story — A carol service for children, (London: Church Information Office, 1964)
- Colonel Sheperton's Clock, (Oxford: University Press, 1964) [Darnley Mills]
- Peter Was His Nickname, (London: Waltham Forest Books, 1965) [On Saint Peter, the apostle.]
- The Grange at High ForceThe Grange at High ForceThe Grange at High Force is a children's novel by Philip Turner, published in 1965. It won the Carnegie Medal for that year. It is the second in the author's Darnley Mills series, set in a mill town in the north of England, between the moors and the sea...
, (Oxford: University Press, 1965) [Darnley Mills] - Sea Peril, (Oxford: University Press, 1966) [Darnley Mills]
- Steam on the Line, (Oxford: University Press, 1968) [Darnley Mills]
- War on the Darnel, (Oxford: University Press, 1969) [Darnley Mills]
- Wigwig and Homer, (Oxford: University Press, 1969) [for younger children; illustrated by Graham Humphreys]
- Devil's Nob, (London: Hamilton, 1970) [Darnley Mills]
- Powder Quay, (London: Hamilton, 1971) [Darnley Mills]
- Septimus and the Danedyke Mystery, (London: Bodley Head, 1971) (as Stephen Chance)
- Septimus and the Minster Ghost, (London: Bodley Head, 1972) (as Stephen Chance)
- Dunkirk Summer, (London: Hamilton, 1973) [Darnley Mills]
- Septimus and the Stone of Offering, (London: Bodley Head, 1976) (as Stephen Chance)
- Skull Island, (London: Dent, 1977) [Darnley Mills]
- Septimus and the Spy Ring, (London: Bodley Head, 1979) (as Stephen Chance)
- Rookoo and Bree, (London: J.M. Dent & Sons, 1979) [for younger children; illustrated by Terry Riley]
- Decision in the Dark – Tales of Mystery, (London: J.M. Dent & Sons, 1978)
- The Good Shepherd (1986) [illustrated by Bunshu Iguchi]
- Three One-Act Plays (c1987)
- The Candlemass Treasure, (London: Lutterworth, 1988)
- The Bible Story (1989)
Footnotes
Retitled The Mystery of the Colonel's Clock for the United States edition.Retitled The Adventure at High Force for the United States edition.