Lashings of more adventures with some of Enid Blyton’s best-loved characters are in store with a new series announced yesterday by her estate.

The Famous Five, The Faraway Tree and Malory Towers will all be revisited in 20 new books to be published over the next two years.

Chorion, who own the rights to Blyton’s characters, said the new stories would “remain true to Blyton’s classic storytelling style and values”.

The Famous Five will be the first to return, with the Famous Five’s Survival Guide.

Touted as “a brand new Famous Five mystery and adventure survival handbook in one,” the new book reunites the grown-up Julian, Dick, Anne and George. Amid lashings of ginger beer, piping-hot tea and strawberry jam, they revisit the only case they failed to solve in their childhood — The Mystery of the Royal Dragon of Siam.

A spokeswoman for Chorion, who have commissioned the new adventures said: “The Survival Guide is packed full of stolen treasure, problem solving, traps and traitors.

“Included are their personal diary pages and all the clues they collected about the mystery at the time.

“As the Famous Five tell their story they also share their guide to solving mysteries and adventuring in the great outdoors with tips on cracking codes, using a compass, building an escape raft and camping.”

In September the Faraway Tree will return in a new adventure for the first time since 1951.

A spin-off story, The Enchanted World, will focus on Silky the Fairy, and be told in a modern style.

Written by Elise Allen the new story will follow the fairy and her four new friends, Melody, Petal, Pinx and Bizzy, on a mission to save the magic faraway tree from an evil troll.

New stories from The Wishing-Chair, Malory Towers and The Secret Series books will be published in 2009.

Jeff Norton, of Chorion, said: “Blyton’s stories have been enjoyed by millions over the years and there is a huge demand for more of her magical storytelling.

“Blyton was passionate in her advocacy of child literacy and as the guardians of her estate we see it as our duty to continue that legacy.

“By creating new stories that capture Blyton’s values of imagination, wonder, thrills and happy endings, we hope to complement her original and ongoing titles and bring joy to millions more children in the years to come.”

Last week Blyton topped a poll of 2,000 to be named the nation’s best-loved writer, beating William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and Roald Dahl.

Blyton’s creations were criticised as sexist and racist during the 1960s, but have recently come back into favour. She wrote 700 stories over her 40-year career. Eight million Blyton books, including more than a million Famous Five, are still sold worldwide every year.

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