Danny Dare & The Secret Portal — Mark Powell

Orphaned at age 5, Danny Dare, a city dwelling boy, withdrew from the world. Aged 11, with tousled brown hair, green eyes and long gangly legs, he now lives with his Grandparents in a rambling old country mansion called Downe Hall, in England. Set amongst green lawns, tall hedges, wide flower beds, fishponds and bluebell-covered woods, it opens up for Danny a world of adventure – trees to climb, camps to build, new friends and cool clear streams to splash in. One rainy October day, whilst recovering from flu, Danny explores his Grandfather's old shed. It's a dusty, dark shed full of oil cans, strange-looking tools, wooden boxes, cobwebs and rows and rows of old engine parts carefully labeled and placed on wooden shelves around its walls. A large, now somewhat rusty, white and red enamel sign nailed to the wall reads: 'Café Racer 63'. Underneath a dusty canvas sheet, buried beneath a mountain of cardboard boxes full of old newspapers, Danny discovers a vintage Norton motorcycle. As he climbs aboard to play, he discovers a new channel for his imagination – but when he throttles back and changes gear, something magical happens; Danny finds himself four years older and transported through a secret portal – back to the year 1963. An adventure unfolds.