Those of you who read the early issues of Whizzer and Chips may remember Denis Gifford's inventive comic strip Steadfast McStaunch, that appeared on the inside back page of the Chips section. However, the character wasn't new to comics. He had originated in the pages of Knockout comic in September 1950, running on and off until June 1952, also written and drawn by Gifford.
Shown above is an episode from Knockout No.662 (November 3rd 1951). Below, is the strip from Knockout No.690 (May 17th 1952).
Denis Gifford's mixture of puzzles and comic strips was a good concept, and clearly one that IPC's Bob Paynter thought worth resurrecting in 1969 for the launch of Whizzer and Chips. Rather than reprint the 1950s version, Bob commissioned brand new strips for Denis to create.
Here are the first two episodes of the new series, from Whizzer and Chips Nos.1 and 2 (18th and 25th October 1969)...
You'll have noticed by now that there's a considerable redesign in the appearance of Steadfast. In the 1950s he appears to be a dog, somewhat modeled on the animated character Droopy, whereas in the 1969 series he's a human court jester. Gifford's art style had also developed in the intervening years and had become more polished and distinctive.
Always a fun page to read and participate in (you'll see I joined the dots in the puzzle in the one above) but sadly Steadfast McStaunch was dropped from Whizzer and Chips in 1970 in favour of more traditional and formularized fare.
