Just time for a quick news item. Thanks to members on Comics UK for spotting this. Comic titles we thought we'd never see again have been revived by DC Thomson in the form of four hardback annuals. The Best of The Hotspur, The Best of Bunty, The Best of The Topper and The Best of The Beezer are now available (in 'limited copies') from the DC Thomson shop:
https://www.dcthomsonshop.co.uk/our-brands/annuals-calendars/annuals.html?p=1
'Best of' no doubt means they'll be all-reprint, (even the covers are from old annuals) but this is still exciting news for collectors of British comics. Let's hope they sell well so more may follow next year!
I didn't know about this until I read about it on the Comics UK forum today but the Victoria and Albert Museum is currently hosting an exhibition of British adventure comics.
Entitled On Eagle's Wings: British adventure comics, 1950-1969 the exhibition covers the boom period of boys and girls adventure weeklies ushered in by Eagle in 1950 and runs from January 7th to May 27th. Free admission.
This was truly a golden era for UK comics, seeing the launches of Lion, Valiant, June, Victor, Bunty, Commando, Hornet, Tiger, TV21, and numerous other adventure titles that left a lasting impression on the British comics industry and the readers.
For more details visit the V&A website.
Here's a short selection of seaside-based strips from various British comics over the years. First up we have Lazy Larry from The Dandy No.325 (dated 17th August 1946). Two things about this strip spring immediately to mind. One is the old science-defying comic cliche that an air bed pumped up with air will somehow defy gravity. The other is that British comics often relied on justice and fair play, but here two little brats pick on a tramp who is minding his own business and there's no retribution in the payoff. That said, no real tramps were harmed in the making of this strip and the artwork by Dudley Watkins is ace.
A good example of the sort of justice seen in old comics is this Homeless Hector strip below from Illustrated Chips No.2,813 (July 5th 1947). Hector and Mog get their revenge on a greedy beach photographer by using his own props against him. Arthur Martin drew the Hector strips around this time but this doesn't look like one of his.
That same issue also featured Peter Quiz at the seaside. Another tale of justice, although the use of the 'n' word in a children's comic is shocking by today's standards. Art by Arthur Martin.
A month later, in The Beano No.316 (23rd August 1947), Pansy Potter uses her strength to gain the advantage in a sandcastle-building contest, but it backfires on her. Art by Basil Blackaller by this period I think.
With a few exceptions, today's pre-school "comics" are often nothing but basic activity magazines but back in the "golden age" of comics tabloid wonders such as Playbox offered cover to cover stories. (The point being, surely, that it's better to encourage children to read rather than just to colour in pictures.) This issue of Playbox (No.1,102, July 31st 1948) saw some of its characters visiting the seaside. The Jumbo strip was I believe by Freddie Crompton, whilst the lower strip featuring Tuffy and His Magic Tail was drawn by Arnold Warden.
Moving forward to the sixties we have a Georgie's Germs story from Wham! No.116 (3rd September 1966). By this time the humour of comics has become a bit more gross. Perhaps ahead of its time as such comedy wouldn't really catch on for a few decades. I'm not sure who the artist is here, but it's definitely not by Leo Baxendale or Cyril Price who did some of them.
Here's an odd tale of Shiner in the Chips section of Whizzer and Chips dated 8th August 1970. Nice artwork by Mike Lacey and the strip would work if a black eye looked like a suntan and if the colourist hadn't mistakenly given Shiner an all-over tan in the last panel!
The humour in girls' comics seemed more gentle from the few I've seen. Here's a Bunty cover of issue 1226 (July 11th 1981) with the title character putting sand to good practical use. Art by Doris Kinnear.
A few years later, May 27th 1989, and a Nikki cover by Paul Grist, better known today of course as the creator of the Jack Staff comic.
