Tuesday, April 16, 2019

Comics advertised on TV

It was a regular occurrence for new UK comics and free gift issues to be advertised on TV throughout the 1960s. I remember many a time when I'd come home from school, see an ad for a comic and rush up to the corner shop to buy a copy. They all tended to follow a similar pattern: show the free gift in action, a few brief images from the strips, and concluding with the cover and an enticing "Out Now!" blurb. Who could resist?

 Sadly, those numerous 1960s TV ads don't seem to exist now... or are waiting to be rediscovered. I've even asked television archivists if they've found any in their searches but unfortunately they haven't. Such a pity, as I have vague memories of short, snappy adverts for Sparky, Pow!, Fantastic, and many, many more. 

 However, some more recent TV ads have been preserved, thanks to video, and transferring them to You Tube. (I say "more recent", but these will still be ancient to the younger readers of this blog.) Quality is poor, but better than nothing! 

 First up, a selection of adverts for Look-In from the late 1970s...

An ad for the first issue of 2000AD from 1977:

The ad for the relaunch of Eagle in 1982:

A free gift issue of The Beano (1994):

A free gift issue of The Dandy (1994):

...and finally a plug for 2000AD's revamp in 1994:

You'll find a few more if you search You Tube. Let me know if you ever find any from the 1960s!



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6 comments:

  1. Fred KarnoTuesday, 16 April 2019 at 09:50:00 BST

    The space spinner sure was a popular free gift...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lew StringerTuesday, 16 April 2019 at 11:43:00 BST

    Even moreso later. There were frisbees given free with loads of comics throughout the 1990s. I remember because I used to give them to my dog to play with and she had about 20 of them in her toy box in various stages of destruction.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nutty Big DTuesday, 16 April 2019 at 14:59:00 BST

    Great if they discover the one for Wham! They should have animated General Nitt's Barmy Army, but instead showed his opponents.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Fred KarnoWednesday, 17 April 2019 at 09:49:00 BST

    I don't think a small lollipop would pass muster as a free gift these days...

    ReplyDelete
  5. KalFriday, 19 April 2019 at 16:01:00 BST

    Oh, lord! The Look-In ad at 2:26 brings back memories (the Star Wars issue with free transfers).

    Almost every newsagents I went to had sold out of the bloody thing. The one that did have it, someone had nicked the transfers. I was very, very displeased.

    ReplyDelete
  6. SimonWednesday, 1 May 2019 at 12:20:00 BST

    The Look-In jingle still sits in my mind.

    I'm always hoping the Mighty World of Marvel ad will find its way on to YouTube.

    ReplyDelete

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