Most of Nevil Shute's novels are now in the UK library on CD in mp3 format
December 2011
Two new additions to the Virtual Museum - a photo of Nevil Shute's slide rule, and a photo of his portrait - both owned by Dan Telfair, Founder of the Nevil Shute Foundation
The UK library now has a copy of a DVD (UK513) showing the memorial service for Nevil Shute Norway held at St Thomas' church, Langwarrin on 17 January 1999
Arne Reill has told us of an interesting link to a newspaper article in the York Press concerning the old tram garage in the city, later used by Airspeed.
One of our Dutch readers, Frank Zomerdijk, has sent a Wikipedia link to some information about Luke & Co, boatbuilders on the Hamble in UK. Luke's Yard and the Hamble river feature throughout Nevil Shute's novels.
An article by Gadepalli Subrahmanyam summarising Nevil Shute's novels.
Another extract from the Daily Express of Tuesday 22 January 1935 concerning the visit of Mr Fokker to Airspeed. This is in the PhotoTimeLine for 1931 - 1940 page 4. This is immediately followed by another article from the Daily Mirror of 6 February 1935.
A cutting from a newspaper about an explosion at the Airspeed factory is included in the PhotoTimeLine for 1931 - 1940 page 2. (courtesy Steve van Dulken of The British Library)
Another cutting from the Daily Mirror of 21st August 1936 about the occasion when two employees tried to steal an aircraft to make their fortune in the
Spanish Civil War (also courtesy Steve van Dulken of The British Library)
It has been decided that, instead of a list of Shutists wishing to contact others at the end of each newsletter, the listing wil be held on the website under "Local Shutists" (see menu item on left). If anyone would like to be added to this list, country by country, please tell the webmaster, David Dawson-Taylor.
The UK library has acquired a new book (UK509) - "The Sinn Fein Rebellion" - which is a compilation of letters of Mary Louise Hamilton Norway (Nevil Shute's mother) entitled "The Sinn Fein Rebellion as I saw it" and a report by Arthur Hamilton Norway (Nevil Shute's father) entitled "Irish Experiences in War". The book is edited and introduced by Keith Jeffery.
A report on the gathering of Shute enthusiasts at Shrewsbury at the end of June 2010 is available here
A transcript of an article written for "The Salopian" (the Shrewsbury School Magazine) about the Easter Uprising in Dublin in 1916. It is alleged that this was written by Nevil Norway as he was a boy at the school that year, and he would have visited his parents in Dublin (where his father was the head of the post office) at the time.
June 2010
A listing of translations into other languages of Nevil Shute's novels has been resurrected.
The UK library has recently acquired the CD of the book by Philip R Davey entitled "When Hollywood came to Melbourne - The story of the making of Stanley Kramer's film of 'On the Beach'"- UK library Number UK506.
After 12 years of founding, leading and master-minding the Nevil Shute Foundation, Dan Telfair has handed over the reins to John Anderson who has taken over as Vice President. We thank Dan for all the hard work he has done over such a long time in promoting Nevil Shute and the Foundation.
Laura Schneider has compiled the results of the feedback survey of the gathering "The Nevil Shute Legacy" in Australia in 2007
The addition of some material to the UK library (UK 503, 504 & 505). The first of these three is a biography of Barnes Wallis by his daughter, Mary Stopes-Roe
An analysis of the UK2009 post Conference Survey has been included in the UK 2009 report.
An article written by John Anderson after his visit to Cavendish Morton.
The report of the 6th Biennial Conference, held in York, United Kingdom, is now included. Photographs of the event will follow later.
A definition of the word "drummer" found in "So Disdained".
Gerald Pawle's Book "The Secret War" has been republished by Seaforth Publishing as "The Wheezers and Dodgers". It's a paperback priced at £9.99. ( ISBN 978-184832-026-0.)
A photograph of a letter by Nevil Shute's father to the Master of Balliol College Oxford
A more detailed listing of items held in the OZ library
A photograph of a small portion of one of the main spars of the R100.
A copy of a copy of an photo (and therefore regretably rather blurred) from the "West Yorkshire Passenger Executive" showing an Airspeed "Ferry" being moved out of the factory (the bus garage) at night.
An interesting article written by Gary Swinson about his visit to the Welsh border, where he discovered the house where Sir Thomas merton collaborated with Barnes Wallace in the development of, among other devices, the famous "bouncing bomb"
Three useful links to short film clips of R100 and R101 (courtesy John Anderson and Dick McIntyre):-
House of Stratus no longer publish any of Nevil Shute's books. Instead they will be published by Random House, www.randomhouse.co.uk. The first four (A Town Like Alice, On the Beach, Pied Piper and Requiem for a Wren) will be available at the beginning of September, with the remainder by "Publish on Demand" later.
The definition of the word "scunner", found in "Requiem for a Wren"
Some new and updated photographs (courtesy Michael Hannan) of South Hill, the house in Dublin where Nevil Shute's father lived when he was Secretary to the Post Office in Ireland, including a letter written by Nevil Shute after his visit there in 1946.
The definition of "heads" derived from the fact that in olden times, they were situated at the front of the ship. (See glossary for more detail).
The definition of "Froth-blower cuff links", worn by Stenning in Chapter 8 of "So Disdained", has been added, thanks to Chris Phillips. Interestingly, in John Betjeman's poem "The Varsity Students Rag" the first line of the second verse starts "I started a rag in Putney, at our Frothblowers Branch down there"
Further audio books on CD have been acquired for the UK library. These are "A Town Like Alice", "Trustee from the Toolroom" and "Breaking Wave/Requiem for a Wren"
At long last, the photographs of the OZ2007 gathering - "The Nevil Shute Legacy" - are now on the website. Go to Gatherings/oz2007.php to see them.
"House of Stratus" have been added to the list of resources for the purchase of Nevil Shute's novels
The narrative of the OZ 2007 Conference - "The Nevil Shute Legacy" -, written by the Conference Manager, Laura Schneider, is now available on the website.
The UK library has recently acquired four audio books on compact disc. They are "What Happened to the Corbetts/Ordeal", " Beyond the Black Stump", "Pastoral" and " On the Beach". They can be found in the UK library listing at stock numbers UK073 to UK076.
Two more book covers - "On the Beach " and "Pastoral", courtesy Charles D., of Dalton, Minnesota, USA
Barry Stobart Hook believes that the picture of "the very pretty woman" sitting on the right in the interior of the AS6 Envoy on page 3 of the 1931 - 1940 chapter of the PhotoTimeLine is his mother. A publicity shot of the same lady taken for Airspeed at the time can be seen linked to that page.
A very sharp-eyed correspondent, John Cooper, has pointed out that the picture on page 5 of the 1931-1940 chapter of the PhotoTimeLine was not HMS HOOD at all, but HMS NELSON. I've now changed the photo to the correct battleship, HMS HOOD.
A definition of "pitot" as found in "Stephen Morris"
Additional voting for your favourite books has put " Trustee from the Toolroom" in first place again.
An article by our chief researcher, John Anderson, on "Nevil Shute, Sailing and 'RUNAGATE'"
More books covers for "Stephen Morris", "Landfall", "No Highway", "Pastoral", "Pied Piper", "Requiem for a Wren" and "Round the Bend", all courtesy of Andy Burgess.
Another book cover for "An Old Captivity" has been found. (Bottom right of page)
More votes for your favourite books are coming in. "A Town Like Alice" has just pipped the post from "Trustee from the Toolroom"
One of our eagle-eyed readers (Martin Heyes) has pointed out two errors in the newsletter of March 2004, namely that Eric Hiscock was born in 1900 (not 1908), and that he was born in Oxford not Southampton.
