Prat returns!

The Dandy Annual 2018 will be out very soon, and Postman Prat returns in its pages. Here's a clip of one of the pages I did for the book.

You can order your copy directly from D.C. Thomson...
https://www.dcthomsonshop.co.uk/our-brands/dandy/dandy-annual-2018.html

Prat Preview

Here's a sneak peek at a panel from this week's Postman Prat strip. Prat and village idiot Ted Welly combining their intellect, but for what purpose? It's bound to end in tears. Script by David Mason, artwork by me. See it in The Dandy this Wednesday, January 18th, price £1.99. (Cover by Jamie Smart, below.)


Save 50% an issue by subscribing to The Dandy. 15 issues for just £15!
http://www.dcthomsonshop.co.uk/Group-Dandy.aspx

Meanwhile, Paul H. Birch has just reviewed the current Dandy Annual over at the Birmingham Mail website:
http://blogs.birminghammail.net/speechballoon/2012/01/the-dandy-annual-2012.html

Sneak peek: The Dandy No.3562

Here's a quick preview of The Dandy that will be on sale from Wednesday. With a festive cover by Nigel Parkinson the issue begins the run up to Christmas with The Dandy Advent Calendar across the centre pages by Nigel Auchterlounie (who also has a brand new series beginning this issue; My Freaky Family.)

And just what is Postman Prat up to?


Be prepared that this week the price has risen to £1.99 (after being the lower price of £1.50 for a year). Unavoidable sign of the times unfortunately, but bear in mind it used to be £2.50 just over a year ago and it cushions the blow a bit. Better still, it's far cheaper if you subscribe at 15 issues for just £15. (Then you'll get your Dandy in advance, like I did.)

Update: It didn't take long for some to start complaining on various forums about the price increase. Dandy-bashing (and Beano-bashing) seems to be a popular sport amongst some comic fans. Well, I say comic fans. I get the impression that Dandy and Beano are the only titles some of them follow, judging by how they seem oblivious to the fact that budget cuts and price increases are affecting many titles.

They also complain about the reduction in originated pages in Dandy and Beano. (Perhaps they haven't noticed that practically every Marvel and DC comic - dozens of titles - have also lost two pages of strip content recently, and that Marvel raised their prices from $2.99 to $3.99.) Folks, look beyond Dandy and Beano. Look beyond comics. There's a recession on and it's not getting easier.

As I've said on various comic forums (and which has pretty much been ignored by the critics) each British comic is allocated its own budget. Sadly, these days, that budget can't always stretch to fill every page with new strips. So editors have to spread it out. Some weeks the comics will feature more new stuff than others. A reduction in new material one week might simply mean more is being allocated for an upcoming issue (eg: the Christmas issue). I think fans should respect the editors for doing a juggling act, not crucifying them for not spending money they don't have. No one likes the situation, but the scrutiny and sneering of some "fans" towards children's comics does no one any good and just creates a growing, unpleasant pessimism on the forums.

And let's not forget that reprints and "filler" (feature) material are not a recent development in British comics. Far from it! For just one example, 40 years ago The Dandy was running three pages of reprint every week, when it just had 20 pages. The IPC comics were often much worse, with reprints being a frequent way to pad out their weeklies. A better awareness of history might calm the outrage of critics somewhat.

Does anyone have a time machine I could borrow? I want to go back to 1890 to moan to Alfred Harmsworth about the number of reprints in Comic Cuts No.1. It'll be the death of the comic industry that one.

On the stands this week...

Here's a couple of comics I've contributed to that are on sale now from newsagents and supermarkets. First up, Toxic No.192 from Egmont has 40 pages of strips and features plus a few free gifts including a 300 page Jack Christie novel, Day of the Assasins, by Johnny O'Brien. Great value for £2.75!

There are six all-new strips in this issue: Busted Bieber, Captain Gross, Bro vs Bro, Luke's Spooks, my Team Toxic strip and the debut of Quiff & Rooney by Stik. (Unfortunately my punchline "It looks like Hallie is going to meet the stars after all" as a starstruck Hallie Tosis blasts off into space is missing. Perhaps it was too corny even for comics!)

I was also commissioned to design an X-Factor Bonkers Maze for this issue which was great fun. I was pleased to see it spread across pages 10 and 11. The published version has a few tweaks, with artwork rearranged and blown up, so I thought you might like to see the original version here. (Captions would have filled the white areas.) Start from the centre and avoid Jedward's Dressing Room, Simon Cowell in the shower, and the Zombie Judges! Your goal is fame, fortune, a castle, a pool and a robot butler...


Elsewhere on the stands today you'll find The Dandy No.3554 from DC Thomson at a mere £1.50, assuming your newsagent is one of the ones still stocking it. (Distribution seems patchy in some towns these days sadly.) Including the eye-catching Nigel Parkinson cover there's 22 pages of new material including the start of a new series, Rocky's Horror Show by Wilbur Dawbarn.


Usually, David Mason provides the scripts for Postman Prat (and a great job he does) but I was asked to write the one that appears this week. As well as drawing and colouring it I was also asked to letter it, (previously this was done in-house by DC Thomson staff) and I will be lettering it every week from now on.


There you go, two ongoing titles proving that the mainstream UK humour scene is still in there fighting. Chortle!

Another Dandy bumper issue today!

This week's edition of The Dandy, out today, is another bumper 44 page special. Again, the cover is in a taller format to hopefully give it more attention on the crowded newsstands. (Next week reverts to the usual £1.50 32 page format.)

Once again it's another packed issue full of brand new material. There's a good range of material here from Nigel Parkinson, Wayne Thomson, Andy Fanton, Jamie Smart, David Mostyn, Nik Holmes and many more.

I think this issue sees the last Postman Prat for a while, but he will return! Next issue sees the debut of four new strips (including a revamped Harry and his Hippo) for a vote-off where the readers decide who stays and who goes.

The cover mount for this issue is an early April Fool's joke of the old fake knife through head toy. Just the sort of gruesome but harmless fun that kids enjoy.


The Dandy No.3523 • £2.50

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Vote for your Dandy favourites!

This week's issue of The Dandy (No.3521, out today) features a two page survey for readers to fill in and post to determine what will appear in future issues of Britain's longest running comic.


As well as asking readers to vote for their five favourite strips there are also sections to cover other aspects such as what they'd change about the comic.

The form can also be filled in online at http://www.completeasurvey.co.uk/Dandy

Postman Prat takes a break in a few weeks but I'd really appreciate your votes for the strip, and for Kid Cops, which should return soon.

This issue of The Dandy also features the debut of The Etherington Brothers' Yore (yes, they get a credit in the title, - a far cry from the Dandy of old), plus lots of other funny stuff including Desperate Dan versus Dennis the Menace in The Arena of Awesome by Jamie Smart.

The Dandy. Out now. £1.50

Preview: This week's Dandy

Here's a sneak peek at the cover of this week's issue of The Dandy, on sale from Wednesday 26th January. Under a new cover by Nigel Parkinson there's the usual mixture of strips including Bork, Desperate Dan, Pre-Skool Prime Minister, and more.

A brand new strip debuts this week: Graeme Reaper, and there's the second episode of Stan Helsing by Nik Holmes. A reader's page also makes its return, under the new name Mailbag.

With a script by Philip Madden and artwork by me, Postman Prat has fun teasing dogs with a dog whistle. Will it rebound on him with well-deserved hilarious consequences? This is The Dandy. Of course it will!


The Dandy No.3519 32 full colour pages £1.50 On sale Wednesday.