The Blackburns Take Over

The Blackburns Take Over is a 1942 radio serial by Max Afford. It was one of a series of adventures featuring the detective hero Jeffrey Blackburn and his wife.

It was the fifth Blackburn series for radio. This installment starred a new pair of actor in the leads, Grant Taylor and Patricia Kennedy.

Taylor was the fourth Jeffrey Blackburn (following James Raglan, Peter Finch and Douglas Kelly) and Kennedy the fourth Elizabeth Blackburn (after Hilda Scurr, Neva Carr Glynn and Margaret Macgregor). Afford stressed the comedy for this installment.

Taylor left the role while the serial was still being made to join the army. He was replaced by Max Osbiston.

Premise
"Jeffery and Elizabeth visit a waxworks... Jeffery feels that one of the wax models is a real body. He is right. The body turns out to be that of Stephen Ashley, scientist, who had been at work on a secret weapon tor the British Government. "

Cast

 * Grant Taylor and Max Osbiston as Jeffrey Blackburn
 * Patricia Kennedy as Elizabeth Blackburn
 * Hal Percy as the physical culture expert, Steve Buckley
 * Reginald Wykeham as Inspector Read
 * Clifford Cowley as Count Crivelli

Select episodes

 * Ep 1 (4 Jan) - "A Scientist is Lost and Found"
 * Ep 2 (11 Jan) - "Unusual Behaviour of a Gentleman"
 * Ep 3 (18 Jan) - "Mr. Blackburn is Embarrassed"
 * Ep 4 (25 Jan) - "John Southey’s Story"
 * Ep 5 (1 February) - "The Interrupted Experiment"
 * Ep 6 (8 February) - "Mystery Over Monk’s Hill. "
 * Ep 7 (15 February).- "Elizabeth Does It Again."
 * Ep 8 (22 February) - "The Room of Shadows "
 * Ep 9 (1 March) - "Flashes in the Dark"
 * Ep 10 (9 March) - "The Message from the Dead"
 * Ep 12 (22 March) - "The Chief Disciple"
 * Ep 13 (29 March) - "Return to Dust"