Coming soon from the Treasury of British Comics is Misty: 45 Years of Fear, a hardcover collection bringing together some of the best stories of the classic British girls’ horror comic – and Rebellion have revealed their webshop edition exclusive cover, pre-orders open now.
The collection includes several classic tales from the title’s original run and two stories from the 2020 Misty Special, one, “Home for Christmas“, written by Lizzie Boyle, featuring art by David Roach.
Back in 1978, British comics were changed forever with the release of Misty, the classic weekly cult horror comic for girls. Masterminded by Pat Mills, the creator of 2000AD, this weekly comic featured the best comics talent working on haunting, terrifying tales.
With work by John Armstrong, Shirley Bellwood, Mario Capaldi, Brian Delaney, Jordi Badia Romero and Jaume Rumeu Perera, this hardcover collection is out on 13th September 2023.
The collection includes the long stories “Moonchild” (by Pat Mills and John Armstrong, previously collected in Misty Volume One), “The Nightmare Academy” (writer unknown, art by Jaume Rumeu Perera), “The Loving Cup” (writer unknown, art by Brian Delaney), “The Sentinels“(by Malcolm Shaw and Mario Capaldi, previously collected in Misty Volume Two) and the shorter stories “The Power of Young Melissa“, “The Twin Catastrophes“, “The Day The Sky Grew Dark” (writer unknown, art by Jorge Badia Romero), “Mirror Mirror” (writer unknown, art by Isidre Monés, “Home For Christmas” (by Lizzie Boyle with art by David Roach, which featured in the 2020 Misty Special) and “The Aegis” (by Kristyna Baczynski and Mary Safro, also from the 2020 Misty Special).
From high 1970s glamour to chilling stories that have haunted readers for decades this collection curates the creepiest, campest Misty serials and short stories alongside critical essays, in a volume perfect for readers old and new.
• Pre-order Misty: 45 Years of Fear – the Treasury of British Comics web shop exclusive edition here
• Misty: 45 Years of Fear – the standard edition – is available to pre-order now from AmazonUK | Treasury of British Comics
ABOUT THE CREATORS
THE WRITERS
Pat Mills is the creator and first editor of 2000AD. He developed Judge Dredd and is the writer-creator of many of 2000AD’s most popular stories such as “Sláine”, “Nemesis the Warlock” and “A.B.C. Warriors”. Amongst his credits are Marshal Law (Marvel and DC Comics), co-created with Kevin O’Neill, the French graphic novel series Requiem, Vampire Knight with artist Olivier Ledroit, and Be Pure! Be Vigilant! Behave! The Secret History of 2000 AD and Judge Dredd. His other projects include Joe Pineapples: Tin Man, illustrated by Simon Bisley and Clint Langley, Spacewarp, and Kiss My Axe! The Secret History of Sláine the Warped Warrior.
Malcolm Shaw began his career in journalism with D C Thomson, Dundee, in the mid 60s. He became chief sub editor on Red Star Weekly before he left in 1968 to work in London. For the next four years he worked at City Magazines on Men Only, Parade, Go Girl and Provincial Press Features as a features writer. He also wrote comedy sketches for an agency. He went for a job as editor of Romance and My Story and the interviewer asked him to spell “mantelpiece.” He spelt it correctly and was given the job. In 1972 he joined the Girls’ Adventure Group at IPC Magazines, subbing and writing on various comics and Mates, teenage romantic fiction. He became editor of the revamped Mirabelle in 1977 and stayed with the paper until it folded. In 1979 he became freelance working on Girl, Tammy, 2000AD, Princess, Tina (Holland), Saint (Sweden), Jackie, Blue Jeans and Misty. He was probably best remembered as editor of Misty – a popular girls’ mystery comic which proved popular with all the family. Malcolm wrote many Misty stories. In 1980 he moved to Barcelona for a year with his partner and two sons. Many of the artists who worked for the girls’ comics such as Blas Gallego, Jose Canovas, Santiago Hernandez, Rafael Busom, lived in Barcelona and they became firm friends. He returned to London in 1981 and shortly before his death he was helping develop BEEB – a new children’s magazine based on BBC TV programmes – for Polystyle Publications. He died the day before his 38th birthday.
THE ARTISTS
John Armstrong was a British comics artist best known as the co-creator of Tammy’s “Bella at the Bar”. He worked for many of the girls titles, starting in the 1950s, with his work appearing in Girl’s Crystal, School Friend, Misty, Tammy, as well as DC Thomson’s Bunty. For Misty, he drew the iconic serial “Moonchild”. He died in 2018, aged 94.
Shirley Bellwood began working on comics in the 1950s, with her first work believed to be on C Arthur Pearson’s Glamour Library. She would go on to draw story pages for titles such as Mirabelle, Romeo, Roxy and Valentine. Unusually, her name sometimes appeared on this early work, indicating the esteem in which she was held. From the 1970s onwards she drew for the new wave of girls comics such as Sally, Jinty and – of course – Misty. She created the character of Misty and drew her throughout the comic’s run. Outside of comics, Shirley was a highly respected portrait painter who took commissions from MPs, lords and celebrities. She provided illustrations for a large number of children’s books, as well as several books for the Folio Society. She trained at Leeds College of Art and held major exhibitions with the Royal Portrait Society. Shirley’s portraits contain a real sense of character and she was particularly skilled at painting children and animals, which she pursued further when she moved out of London in later life. Shirley died on 1 February 2016 in hospital in Worcester, aged 84.
Mario Capaldi was born in Glasgow in 1935. His ancestors originally hailed from a village close to Montecassino in Italy, migrating to the UK in the latter half of the nineteenth century. As a child, Mario’s talent for drawing was never encouraged and by the 1950s he was working for his families’ ice-cream business in Middlesborough. Though mainly self-taught, he did eventually study art at Contantine College. Mario had a long and impressive career in comics working for IPC and Marvel on such titles as Hurricane, Tiger, Eagle, Tammy, Jinty, Misty, Roy of the Rovers, Thundercats, Care Bears, James Bond Junior, Sesame Street, Count Duckula and Battle Action Force. Beyond comics he illustrated children’s books, including the Famous Five, Rupert the Bear and Disney’s Aladdin. He also worked on a Charles Dickens project for the New York Saturday Evening Post.
Born in 1939, Brian Delaney was a Scottish comics artist and painter who worked for many of the girls comics, drawing “The Four Faces of Eve” and “The Loving Cup” for Misty, Swedish superhero Kerry Drake for Serie, and countless other comics work for the DC Thomson comics Romeo, Mandy and Diana. One of his many skills was celebrity likenesses, leading him to work on DC Thomson’s Jackie and Tops, as well as Grange Hill magazine for IPC. He died in 2021, aged 82.
Jaume Rumeu Perera was born in 1930 in Catalonia. He began drawing comics in 1952 when he signed to the art agency Creaciones Editorial, under the name Romeo, and debuting on the comic Johnny el Temerario (Johnny the Daredevil). A master of multiple genres, he drew science fiction, adventure, espionage, sports and romance comics and during his forty year comics career his work was published across Europe. In the UK he worked primarily romance and girls’ comics, adopting the pseudonym Homero in the late 1960s. For DC Thomson he drew “Susette” for Cherie and “Juliette” for Romeo, and for IPC, he drew comics for Tammy, Jinty and Misty. His work for Misty includes such iconic stories as “The Black Widow”, “Spider Woman” and “The Loneliest Girl in the World”. As the comics market shrank in the 1980s, he continued to draw comics across the continent, such as football comics for DC Thomson and horse comics for the Swedish and Dutch market. He retired from drawing comics in 1992, and died in 2003.
Jordi Badía Romero, also known as Jobaro, Jorge or Jorge B. Gálvez, was a Spanish comic artist. He began his career in the 1950s, illustrating Spanish adventure and romance stories, often working with his brother, Enrique Badía Romero.
- About the Author
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: British Comics, British Comics - Collections, Comic Previews, Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News
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