John Fenwick Anderson Blackburn (26 June 1923 – 1993) was a British

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

who wrote thrillers, and horror novels. Blackburn was described as "today's Master of Horror" by ''

The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication i ...

''. Mike Ashley , ''Who's Who in Horror and Fantasy Fiction''. Elm Tree Books, . (p. 36) Many of his books feature

stock characters A stock character, also known as a character archetype, is a fictional character in a work of art such as a novel, play, or a film whom audiences recognize from frequent recurrences in a particular literary tradition. There is a wide range of st ...

, including General Charles Kirk of British Intelligence and his friends, the

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...

Sir Marcus Levin and his Russian wife Tania.

Life

Blackburn was born in the village of

Corbridge Corbridge is a village in Northumberland, England, west of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle and east of Hexham. Villages nearby include Halton, Northumberland, Halton, Acomb, Northumberland, Acomb, Aydon and Sandhoe. Etymology Corbridge was kno ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

and schooled at

Haileybury College Haileybury may refer to: Australia * Haileybury (Melbourne), a school in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia **Haileybury Rendall School, an offshoot in Berrimah, North Territory, Australia China * Haileybury International School, an international ...

. He was the brother of the poet

Thomas Blackburn Thomas, Tom or Tommy Blackburn may refer to: *Anthony Blackburn (born 1945), British vice-admiral and Equerry to the Royal Household, commonly known as Tom Blackburn *Thomas Blackburn (entomologist) (1844–1912), Australian entomologist *Thomas Bl ...

. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

(1942–45) he served in the Merchant Navy as a radio officer. He attended

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

after returning to civilian life – the alma mater of both his father Eliel and brother Thomas – and graduated in 1949. Blackburn taught for several years after that, first in London, and then in Berlin. He married Joan Mary Clift in 1950. Returning to London in 1952, he took over the management of Red Lion Books and began writing in his off-hours, eventually becoming a full-time writer after the success of his first book, ''A Scent of New-Mown Hay'', in 1958. A persistent theme in Blackburn's writing was the controversial topic of

race relations Race relations is a sociological concept that emerged in Chicago in connection with the work of sociologist Robert E. Park and the Chicago race riot of 1919. Race relations designates a paradigm or field in sociology and a legal concept in the ...

. This is perhaps most prevalent in his 1970 novel ''Blow The House Down'', which featured a racist organisation called 'God's True Sailormen' fighting against what they saw as the dangers of

miscegenation Miscegenation ( ) is the interbreeding of people who are considered to be members of different races. The word, now usually considered pejorative, is derived from a combination of the Latin terms ''miscere'' ("to mix") and ''genus'' ("race") ...

, and contains, as publisher

Valancourt Books Valancourt Books is an independent American publishing house founded by James Jenkins and Ryan Cagle in 2005. The company specializes in "the rediscovery of rare, neglected, and out-of-print fiction," in particular gay titles and Gothic and horr ...

notes, 'passages in which both white and black characters use epithets that would likely not be considered acceptable in a book published today'. Adrian Schober has argued Blackburn was likely interested in racial intolerance because of his own family history in colonial

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

, which had seen intermarriage between whites and native women over previous generations.

Style

His horror novels are often structured as thrillers, with

detective story Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...

plots involving international

espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangibl ...

, but often leading to either a

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

al resolution.

Don D'Ammassa Donald Eugene D'Ammassa (born April 24, 1946) is an American fantasy, science fiction and horror critic and author.David Pringle David Pringle (born 1 March 1950) is a Scottish science fiction editor and critic. Pringle served as the editor of ''Foundation'', an academic journal, from 1980 to 1986, during which time he became one of the prime movers of the collective whic ...

, ed., ''St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost & Gothic Writers''.(London: St. James Press, 1998) (pp. 57-9).Frank Denton "Blackburn, John (Fenwick)", in ''Twentieth Century Crime and Mystery Writers'', edited by James Vinson and D.L. Kirkpatrick. St. James Press, 1985. (pp. 75-6).Darren Harris-Fain, "John Blackburn", in ''British Fantasy and Science Fiction Writers Since 1960''. Farmington Hills, MI: Thomson/Gale, 2002. (pp. 98-102).Hugh Lamb, "Blackburn, John", in Sullivan Jack, ed., ''

The Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural ''The Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural'' is a reference work on horror fiction in the arts, edited by Jack Sullivan. The book was published in 1986 by Viking Press. Editor Sullivan’s stated purpose in compiling the volume, ...

''. New York: Viking. (p. 37). This means that, as with some of the books of

James Herbert James John Herbert, OBE (8 April 1943 – 20 March 2013) was an English horror writer. A full-time writer, he also designed his own book covers and publicity. His books have sold 54 million copies worldwide, and have been translated into 34 l ...

, many of Blackburn's horror novels are notable for pace and plotting rather than for atmospheric effects. Blackburn specialised in mixing modern concerns such as

germ warfare Biological warfare, also known as germ warfare, is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, insects, and fungi with the intent to kill, harm or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war. Bi ...

and international conspiracies with ancient traditions and curses, often to ingenious effect. ''The Flame and the Wind'' (1967), by contrast, is an unusual

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

set in

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

times, in which a nephew of

Pontius Pilate Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of J ...

tries to discover the facts about the crucifixion of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction ''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'' (SFE) is an English language reference work on science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and f ...

has noted that in many of Blackburn's novels 'a powerful ambience of Horror derives from a calculated use of material from several genres, including science fiction, often simultaneously; he was a sophisticated, commercial exploiter of

Equipoise Equipoise may refer to: * Clinical equipoise, or the principle of equipoise, a medical research term * Equilibrioception, the state of being balanced or in equilibrium * Boldenone undecylenate, an anabolic steroid, by the trade name ''Equipoise'' * ...

in fantastic fiction'. His use of science fiction is generally borderline, though not in ''Children of the Night'', which features – in classic sci-fi fashion – an underground

lost race The lost world is a subgenre of the fantasy or science fiction genres that involves the discovery of an unknown Earth civilization. It began as a subgenre of the late- Victorian adventure romance and remains popular into the 21st century. The g ...

, this time with telepathic powers.

Adaptations

Blackburn's novels ''Nothing But the Night'' and ''The Gaunt Woman'' were the basis for screenplays. ''The Gaunt Woman'' appeared as a made-for-TV movie in 1969 as ''Destiny of a Spy'' and '' Nothing But the Night'' was released to theaters in 1972.''A Scent of New-Mown Hay'' was also adapted as radio serial for

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

in 1969.

Critical Reception

John Welcome in the ''Irish Times'' praised Blackburn's ''Blow The House Down'' as a "brilliant evocation of present-day stresses...more than a thriller, a contemporary novel and good one".John Welcome, "Crime Novels" in the ''Irish Times'', May 30, 1970 (p.8). Blackburn's novel ''Bury Him Darkly'' was included by horror historian Robert S. Hadji in his list of "unjustly neglected" horror novels for ''

Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone Magazine ''Twilight Zone'' literature is an umbrella term for the many books and comic books which concern or adapt ''The Twilight Zone'' television series. Comics Gold Key Comics published a long-running ''Twilight Zone'' comic that featured the likene ...

''. Frank Denton described Blackburn as "undoubtedly England's best practicing novelist in the tradition of the thriller/

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

novel." Hugh Lamb lauded ''Our Lady of Pain'' as "a ''tour de force'' version of the legend of the

evil eye The Evil Eye ( grc, ὀφθαλμὸς βάσκανος; grc-koi, ὀφθαλμὸς πονηρός; el, (κακό) μάτι; he, עַיִן הָרָע, ; Romanian: ''Deochi''; it, malocchio; es, mal de ojo; pt, mau-olhado, olho gordo; ar ...

". Lamb added that he regarded Blackburn as "certainly the finest British novelist in his friend and deserves the widest recognition." Don D'Ammassa described ''Bury Him Darkly'' as a "nicely crafted, often surprising, and definitely gripping thriller."

Howard Waldrop Howard Waldrop (born September 15, 1946) is a science fiction author who works primarily in short fiction. He received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 2021. Personal life Though born in Houston, Mississippi, Waldrop has spent ...

wrote an appreciation of Blackburn's novel ''A Scent of New-Mown Hay'' for the book ''Horror: Another 100 Best Books''.Howard Waldrop, ''A Scent of New-Mown Hay'', in

Kim Newman Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula (1931 ...

and Stephen Jones, ''Horror: Another 100 Best Books'', Carroll & Graf, 2005. (pp. 173-7).

Bibliography

Horror novels

* ''A Scent of New-Mown Hay'' (1958) * ''A Sour Apple Tree'' (1958) * ''Broken Boy'' (1959) * ''A Ring of Roses'' (1965) * ''Children of the Night'' (1966) * ''Nothing But the Night'' (1968) * ''Bury Him Darkly'' (1969) * ''Blow the House Down'' (1970), a non-supernatural story in which a

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

deliberately designs a building to be a death-trap * ''Devil Daddy'' (1972) * ''For Fear of Little Men'' (1972) * ''Our Lady of Pain'' (1974), based on

Elizabeth Bathory Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

, suggested by and dedicated to

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a long career spanning more than 60 years, Lee often portrayed villains, and appeared as Count Dracula in seven Hammer Horror films, ultimat ...

Thrillers

* ''Dead Man Running'' (1960) * ''Bound to Kill'' (1963) * ''The Winds of Midnight'' (1964) (published in the US as ''Murder at Midnight'') * ''Packed for Murder'' (1964) * ''The Reluctant Spy'' (1966) * ''The Gaunt Woman'' (1967) * ''Blue Octavo'' (1967) * ''Colonel Bogus'' (1969) * ''The Young Man from Lima'' (1970) * ''The Household Traitors'' (1971) * ''Deep Among the Dead Men'' (1973) * ''Mister Brown's Bodies'' (1975) * ''The Face of the Lion'' (1976) * ''The Cyclops Goblet'' (1977) * ''Dead Man's Handle'' (1978) * ''The Sins of the Father'' (1979) * ''A Beastly Business'' (1982) * ''A Book of the Dead'' (1984) * ''The Bad Penny'' (1985)

Historical novels

* ''The Flame and the Wind'' (1967)

New Publications

began reprinting John Blackburn's works in 2013. In 2017

Centipede Press Centipede Press is an American independent book and periodical publisher focusing on horror, weird tales, crime narratives, science fiction, gothic novels, fantasy art, and studies of literature, music and film. Its earliest imprints were Cocytus ...

launched their program to reissue Blackburn's most significant novels of weird fiction and by 2020 they had published eight novels including ''A Scent of New-Mown Hay'', ''Bury Him Darkly'', ''Children of the Night'' and ''Devil Daddy''.

References

External links

*
Author biography and reprint editions for John Blackburn at Valancourt Books
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackburn, John 1923 births 1993 deaths English horror writers English thriller writers English science fiction writers English historical novelists British Merchant Navy personnel of World War II English booksellers People from Corbridge Writers from Northumberland 20th-century English novelists English male novelists 20th-century English male writers English male non-fiction writers Writers of historical fiction set in antiquity Alumni of King's College, Newcastle British Merchant Navy officers 20th-century English businesspeople