Author Archives

• Replacing Eagle: The Comics That Didn’t Make It – Part 3 Eureka

  By Jeremy Briggs on 18 April 2019

  

  This series of articles by Jeremy Briggs covers the dummy comics that were created through the years as potential ‘modern’ versions of the original Eagle comic from the 1950s and 1960s, none of which ever made it to newsagents’ shelves…. Read More ›

• Replacing Eagle: The Comics That Didn’t Make It – Part 2 Terra Nova

  By Jeremy Briggs on 17 April 2019

  

  This series of articles by Jeremy Briggs covers the dummy comics that were created through the years as potential ‘modern’ versions of the original Eagle comic from the 1950s and 1960s, none of which ever made it to newsagents’ shelves…. Read More ›

• Replacing Eagle: The Comics That Didn’t Make It – Part 1 Lost Eagle and Lightning

  By Jeremy Briggs on 16 April 2019 • ( 1 )

  

  April 1950 saw the publication of the first issue of the weekly boy’s comic, Eagle. It was an immediate success with its mixture of historical, modern-day and futuristic adventure strips with some humour plus factual articles and cutaways, and, unlike… Read More ›

• How Do You Write About Comics That Were Never Published?

  By Jeremy Briggs on 15 April 2019

  

  I have been writing articles about old British comics for websites, fanzines, magazines and books for over 10 years now and I know that it is best done when you have physical copies of the comics in front of you… Read More ›

• Who was Ian Kennedy’s Space Captain Dave Garratt?

  By Jeremy Briggs on 24 February 2019 • ( 1 )

  

  (Originally posted 29 March 2016 – updated 24 February 2019) There is a little known science fiction comics character called Dave Garratt who appeared in at least three of the Collins Boys’ Annuals published by William Collins Sons And Co… Read More ›

• In Review: Commando Presents Ramsey’s Raiders Volume 1

  By Jeremy Briggs on 12 December 2018

  

  DC Thomson’s Commando digest sized combat picture library has been running continuously since 1961 and in that time it has become the British comic with by far the greatest number of issues ever published with over 5180 under its ammo-belt…. Read More ›

• DC Thomson’s Heritage Brands Editor Gordon Tait Talks Buckets, War and Reprints

  By Jeremy Briggs on 11 December 2018

  

  As the new Heritage Brands Editor at DC Thomson, replacing Kirsten Murray who inaugurated the role, Gordon Tait brings a great depth of knowledge and experience to the position that includes editorship of 104 issues of Commando a year plus… Read More ›

• Commando’s commemoration of the Great War Armistice concludes with the final two Weekes’ War stories

  By Jeremy Briggs on 29 November 2018

  

  Commando has been running World War One stories for the duration of November in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Armistice which stopped the fighting. The highlight of this has been the sequence of five connected stories under the… Read More ›

• British Comics Swap Meet in Fife This Coming Weekend

  By Jeremy Briggs on 24 September 2018

  

  After this last weekend with two of the largest UK comics events, Thought Bubble in Leeds and MCM Scotland in Glasgow, next weekend 29-30 September 2018 one of the smallest UK comics events will be happening in Lochore in Fife…. Read More ›

• Comics @ Borders Book Festival 2018

  By Jeremy Briggs on 3 June 2018

  

  The Borders Book Festival in the Scottish town of Melrose, perhaps best known for its Abbey and the Melrose Sevens rugby tournament, is not a literature festival that normally covers comics in any great depth but that has changed this… Read More ›

• Glenrothes Comic Con returns to the Rothes Halls next Saturday – 9 June 2018

  By Jeremy Briggs on 2 June 2018

  

  Last year Fife Council put on the inaugural Glenrothes Comic Con in the town’s Rothes Halls with artist Gary Erskine as the event’s Creative Director. Gary’s participation ensured that the event was a truly comics flavoured comic con and the organiser’s… Read More ›

• Words From Beyond: Lady Penelope Artist Frank Langford Part 2 – Andersonic Quotes

  By Jeremy Briggs on 10 April 2018 • ( 1 )

  

  In the first part of this Words From Beyond feature on artist Frank Langford we reprinted a rare interview with him from Tardis fanzine dated February 1976. For this second part we begin with a selection of quotes from Andersonic fanzine dated… Read More ›

• Words From Beyond: Lady Penelope Artist Frank Langford Part 1 – Tardis Interview

  By Jeremy Briggs on 9 April 2018 • ( 1 )

  

  Frank Langford is a familiar name when it comes to comics having illustrated fan favourites like Thunderbirds’ Lady Penelope in the 1960s and BBC TV’s Doctor Who in the 1970s, yet when Gordon Blows interviewed him in the third issue… Read More ›

• Comics @ Aye Write!: Glasgow’s Book Festival 2018

  By Jeremy Briggs on 11 February 2018

  

  The Glasgow book festival Aye Write!  has announced its line-up for 2018 and as usual it includes a selection of comics events. These all take place in either the Mitchell Library or the CCA in central Glasgow over the weekend of… Read More ›

• Crowdfunding Spotlight: Steven Ingram’s “Left” on Kickstarter

  By Jeremy Briggs on 29 January 2018

  

  Artist and writer Steven Ingram has been making comics for over 10 years and since 2013 he has been self publishing Left which tells the story of Sam, a girl who is trying to keep away from a cult she was a member of… Read More ›

• Airfix artist Roy Cross “Swift” covers on eBay

  By Jeremy Briggs on 24 December 2017

  

  Four lovely covers for Swift, the younger readers stablemate to Eagle, are currently on offer on eBay (at eye-watering prices). Published in 1962, they’re all by artist Roy Cross who’s perhaps best known for his work illustrating Airfix Model box… Read More ›

• Luck Of The Legion: Selem Raschid’s Return – Another Forgotten Eagle Play

  By Jeremy Briggs on 25 July 2017 • ( 1 )

  

  After the recent discovery of a forgotten Dan Dare stage play that ran in London’s Half Moon Theatre in 1972, covered in Spaceship Away issue 42 and here on downthetubes , comes the realisation that there was another play featuring… Read More ›

• In Review: MULP – Sceptre Of The Sun Issue 4

  By Jeremy Briggs on 24 July 2017

  

  Writer Matt Gibbs and artist Sara Dunkerton return with the penultimate episode of their globe spanning 1930s adventure MULP: Sceptre Of The Sun. This mousey take on Indiana Jones has been a favourite here on downthetubes from the beginning and as… Read More ›

• Crowdfunding Spotlight: The Penned Guin Presents – To Coldly Go

  By Jeremy Briggs on 22 July 2017

  

  Back in January we spotlighted The Penned Guin Treasury Edition, a thick A4 collected edition of some 500 of writer/artist Alan Henderson’s humorous penguin strips which was crowdfunded on Kickstarter to over 250% of its target. The completed book was… Read More ›

• Sneak Peek: MULP – Sceptre Of The Sun Issue 4 by Matt Gibbs and Sara Dunkerton

  By Jeremy Briggs on 17 July 2017 • ( 1 )

  

  Writer Matt Gibbs and artist Sara Dunkerton’s anthropomorphic rodent adventurers return in the penultimate issue of MULP: Spectre Of The Sun. Published by Improper Books, MULP issue 4 was launched at the Cardiff Independent Comic Expo on Saturday 8 July and will… Read More ›