Billy Bunter's Brainwave by Frank Richards.

Published July 1953 by Cassell & Co (Reprinted 1957 and 1962)

Illustrated by R. J. Macdonald.

This story concerns Wingate & the coming first eleven match against St. Jim’s; Loder’s resentment at not being in the team; and the fatuous Bunter who has contrived in his usual way to antagonise Loder. All re-hashed from previous Magnet stories. But, none the worse for that.

Bunter is directed by Wingate to take a message to Loder. Loder’s study is vacant, so, naturally the fat owl noses around in the cupboard. No tuck is available, but a pile of illicit cigarettes is. Naturally Bunter pilfers them. Naturally he smokes some of them. Naturally Loder catches him. Naturally – especially in the circumstances – Bunter prevaricates, and the matter goes to Quelch. Sometimes in the past, the over zealous prefect has been Carne, but, of course the outcome is the same. Loder, instead of the minor satisfaction to be got from lagging a junior for smoking, finds himself lagged, when Bunter is forced to confess where he found the smokes.

Quelch, with his customary icy respect for protocol, cannot deal with Loder himself. But, he can, & does, “mention” the matter to Wingate. Loder sees his precarious place in the first eleven slip completely way. Being Loder he harbours thoughts of vengeance, not only upon Bunter, but also on George Wingate.

Loder, as we know, has a number of unsavoury & undesirable friends. One of these, well known to us all is Joe Banks.  Under the familiar big oak (sometimes it is a beech) in Friardale Wood a dreadful plot is hatched.

If Loder is to be dropped from the Big Game, then Wingate will be also!

Mr Banks is generally portrayed as a shady type, but, honest in his own way. We discover here he has, if not morals, then certainly scruples.

In 1925 we had been told that Wingate’s home was close by Wharton Lodge. Presumably, but not definitely in Surrey, but certainly a long train ride from Friardale. In later stories, & in fact in the forerunner to this story, Wingate had lived in Chester. Now, in 1953, the family have, apparently, moved to Belwood, in Sussex. An uncustomary lapse of memory by Charles Hamilton? Or, if Mr Wingate was a clergyman, maybe he moved parishes?

As usual, Bunter, secretly eavesdropping behind the tree, overhears this plot. To do him credit, he does try to warn Wingate that he is being plotted against. Unfortunately, when he arrives at Wingate’s study, the head prefect is absent, but, a bag of biscuits isn’t, although it does not take Bunter long to dispose of them – he is finishing the last one when Wingate comes in.

Wingate seems less interested in listening to Bunter’s tale of eavesdropping than in his pilfering from a senior study!

However, William George Bunter does possess a conscience. Of sorts. He is genuinely concerned about Wingate’s danger. Finally he has a “brain-wave.” There is a way to warn Wingate, & save the game, despite his reputation as an Ananias.