London-based publisher Allison & Busby will reissue four classic titles from Norman Thelwell‘s cartoon collection later this month.
Thelwell, who died in 2004, is regarded as the unofficial artist of the British countryside and is one of the most popular cartoonists in Britain since the World War Two. He commented on many aspects of human behaviour, but he is perhaps most synonymous with little girls and their little fat ponies who helped to ensure his continuing popularity and his immortality, but he was a master of sharp social comment and sheer zany humour, and the foibles of the British at work or at play were his favourite themes.
He was also a serious landscape artist, painting in watercolour and oils. His 34 books have sold over two million copies in the UK and been translated into languages as diverse as Finnish and Japanese and his drawings have been used on many different kinds of merchandise including stationery, jigsaws, table mats, china, glass, door mats, socks and bed linen.
All four of the re-issued books are tongue-in-cheek guides to varied hobbies and country pursuits: fishing, gardening, sailing and golfing.
All will be available in hardback and priced at £9.99 each.
- Compleat Tangler aims to show what fishermen really get up to when they abandon a warm bed before the crack of dawn, stuffing a bag with tins of assorted maggots, pulped bread and a folding campstool, responding to the primitive thrill of hunting wild creatures, and furthering the art of manipulating your tackle
- Up the Garden Path is the perfect gift for any gardener who has experienced overbearing neighbours, the pains of building a water feature, unruly indoor plants, and the battle to dig the lawnmower out from the shed.
- Three Sheets to the Wind is a vital necessity in the kitbag of any sailor who has misinterpreted a distress signal, worn stilettos on board, abandoned ship or experienced irreparable damage to their social status at the club.
- Finally, Play It As It Lies is ideal for any golfer who has experienced the horrors of sporting the wrong attire on course, losing his ball, or been wronged by unforgivable gamesmanship.
• The official Norman Thelwell is at: www.thelwell.org.uk
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “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