Editing Charles Chilton (section)

==Career==

His first role as a producer was for ''I Hear America Singing'', after which he moved to the BBC variety department. He then presented his own show between 11pm and midnight called ''Swing Time'', and a weekly jazz programme called ''Radio Rhythm Club''. Next came five years' war service with the [[Royal Air Force|RAF]], after which he was sent to [[Ceylon]] to run the forces radio station with broadcaster [[David Jacobs (broadcaster)|David Jacobs]], later to participate in Chilton's radio series ''[[Journey into Space]]''.

Back in the BBC he wrote and produced programmes for, among others, [[Roy Plomley]], [[Michael Bentine]] and [[Stéphane Grappelli]]. In 1947 he married Penelope (née Colbeck (born 1921)), who was a secretary at the corporation.<ref name=":0" /> He was then sent to the United States to research, write and produce a number of series based on American western history. One of these, ''Riders of the Range'', lasted for five years until 1953. During its run, ''Riders of the Range'' attracted audiences of around 10 million.<ref>{{cite news|title=Writer of Horse Operas Will Finally Visit West|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ys8vAAAAIBAJ&pg=6557,2917841|newspaper=[[Ottawa Citizen|Evening Citizen]]|date=22 September 1950|accessdate=11 June 2011|page=20}}</ref> Chilton wrote a comic-strip version of the series drawn by {{ill|Frank Humphris|fr}} for the ''[[Eagle (comic)|Eagle]]'' which outlasted the radio version, and wrote another western series, "Flying Cloud", for the ''Eagle''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s sister comic ''[[Girl (comic)|Girl]]''.<ref name=Eagle>{{cite web |url=http://eagle-times.blogspot.com/2008/07/eagle-writers-charles-chilton-1917.html |title=Eagle Writers – Charles Chilton (1917 – ) |date=30 July 2008 |work=eagle-times.blogspot.com |accessdate=4 January 2013}}</ref> Chilton was also briefly a producer on the comedy series ''[[The Goon Show]]''.<ref>{{cite news|title=The Goon Show must go on – 60 years since its first broadcast|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2011/may/27/goon-show-60th-birthday|work=[[The Guardian]]|author=Jonathan Sale|date=27 May 2011|accessdate=11 June 2011|location=London}}</ref>

Major international recognition came with his science-fiction trilogy ''Journey into Space'', which he wrote and produced between 1953 and 1958.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article3670690.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110517104226/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article3670690.ece|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 May 2011|title=Journey into Space – Frozen in Time|author=Paul Donovan|date=6 April 2008|accessdate=11 June 2011|work=[[The Sunday Times]]|location=London}}</ref> His interest in space and space travel also led him to join the [[British Astronomical Association]] and the [[British Interplanetary Society]].<ref>{{Cite journal |title=1953JBAA...63..127. Page 127 |url=https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1953JBAA...63..127. |access-date=2023-02-04 |journal=Journal of the British Astronomical Association|date=1953 |volume=63 |page=127 |bibcode=1953JBAA...63..127. }}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |title=2013JBAA..123..171M Page 171 |url=https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/full/2013JBAA..123..171M |access-date=2023-02-04 |journal=Journal of the British Astronomical Association|bibcode=2013JBAA..123..171M |last1=McGee |first1=H. |date=2013 |volume=123 |page=171 }}</ref><ref name="Round Midnight">Interview with Charles Chilton, ''Round Midnight'', [[BBC Radio 2]], 1989</ref>

He was presented with an [[Order of the British Empire|MBE]] in 1972.<ref>{{cite news | url= https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2013/jan/14/charles-chilton | title= Charles Chilton obituary | work=The Guardian | first=David | last=Rayvern Allen | date=14 January 2013 | accessdate=28 September 2020}}</ref>

He spent his last years acting as a tour guide for the Original London Walks company.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}