In 1946 Charles Skilton read an article about Frank Richards in the 'Picture Post' entitled 'Do you remember Billy Bunter' in his hotel while on Honeymoon in Oban and contacted him with a view to producing the Bunter stories in book format. You can read the article here. Richards readily agreed and the Amalgamated Press relented allowing Greyfriars and Bunter to reappear in book format only. Richards suggested his usual payment of 30 shillings per thousand words but Skilton, being a fair man (and allegedly being a bit short in capital), suggested royalties instead so Richards made £1000 on the first book rather than the £90 he would have received otherwise. Despite the paper shortages of the time the books were a hit.
Skilton produced nine books before selling the rights to Cassell who went on to publish another 29, having the sense and taste to retain the yellow dustjackets. It would appear however that Skilton retained an interest in the publication as he continued to send out letters advising when new books were due to be published. You can read a selection of them here. The first letter is of particular interest, it suggests that at the time of Hamilton's death Skilton was only aware of two more books in the pipeline. The fact that Cassell went on to publish another seven gives some support to the people who believe the final few books were written by someone else. You can read a review of the Skilton and Cassell publications from the Book and Magazine collector of Sept 1986 here.
The illustrator R. J. MacDonald died in 1954, his last drawings appearing in 'Billy Bunter's Double' in 1955. At this point C. H. Chapman took over and illustrated the remainder of the books.
Between 1965 and 1972 Armada produced 14 books, some being based on the Cassell books, others on SOL's and Magnets. They weren't great but they did introduce a number of new readers to Hamilton.
In 1982/83 Quiller Press reprinted six stories and asked Kay King to edit them to make them more suitable for the market of that time. She removed much of the slang and 'political incorrectness' which resulted in a version which appealed to neither old or new readers. The enterprise was not a success.
In 1991 Hawk books started to produce facsimiles of the Skilton and Cassell books and by 1995 had reprinted 23 of them. It was rumoured that copyright issues stopped production but it is also known that a large number of them were remaindered and appeared in cut price bookshops. You can see some of the very colourful Hawk book catalogues here.
01- Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School was published in 1947 by Charles Skilton and was illustrated by R.J. MacDonald. It was an instant success selling 25,000 copies within weeks - all that was allowed as post war paper shortages were still a reality. It was reprinted in 1982 by Quiller press after being 'updated' by Kay King. It didn't appeal to either old or new readers and was deemed a failure. It was also reprinted by Armada (1968) and Hawk (1991).You can read a review of the original story by Brian Graeme here.
05- Billy Bunter's Christmas Party was first published in 1949 by Charles Skilton and was illustrated by R.J. MacDonald. It was reprinted by Hawk in 1993. You can read a review by Michael Bailey here.
07- Billy Bunter Amongst the Cannibals was first published in 1950 by Charles Skilton and was illustrated by R.J. MacDonald. It was reprinted by Hawk in 1995. You can read a review by Brian Graeme here.
11- Billy Bunter's Beanfeast was published in 1952 by Cassell & Co and was illustrated by R.J. MacDonald. It was reprinted by Hawk in 1993. You can read a review by Brian Graeme here.
15- Bunter does his best was published in 1954 by Cassell & Co and was illustrated by R.J. MacDonald. It was reprinted in 1982 by Quiller press after being 'updated' by Kay King. It was also reprinted by Hawk (1991). You can read a review of the original story by Brian Graeme here. Justin wrote a review comparing both the Cassell and the Quiller versions, you can read it here.
16- Billy Bunter's Double was published in 1955 by Cassell & Co and was illustrated by R.J. MacDonald. This was to be RJ MacDonald's last book, he passed away in 1954 and the rest of the books were illustrated by C. H. Chapman, the original Magnet artist who first put Bunter in his famous check trousers. It was reprinted by Hawk in 1993. You can read a review by Brian Graeme here.
21- Billy Bunter Afloat was published in 1957 by Cassell & Co and was illustrated by C. H. Chapman. It was reprinted by Hawk in 1991. You can read a review by Brian Graeme here.
22- Billy Bunter's Bargain was published in 1958 by Cassell & Co and was illustrated by C. H. Chapman. You can read a review by Brian Graeme here.
28- Billy Bunter's Treasure Hunt was published in 1961 by Cassell & Co and was illustrated by C. H. Chapman. You can read a review by Brian Graeme here.
29- Billy Bunter at Butlins was published in 1961 by Cassell & Co and was illustrated by C. H. Chapman. The yellowjacket edition cost 9/6 but there was a five bob version available from the Butlins camps making this one of the easiest issues to get hold of. You can read a review by Brian Graeme here.