Author Archives
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.
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In Review: The Boys – Highland Laddie
The Boys: Highland LaddieWriter : Garth Ennis Artist: John McCreaCollecting issues #1-6 of the Highland Laddie series, along with a complete cover gallery.by Darick RobertsonOut: 22nd April 2011 (Titan edition) The Book: Mind reeling from recent events in The Boys… Read More ›
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Jeff Hawke’s Cosmos Vol 6 No 3 Now Available
The new issue of Jeff Hawke’s Cosmos has just been released with its usual selection of complete stories from artist Sydney Jordan’s Daily Express strip, detailed background notes on the strips themselves as well as other articles. Volume 6 Number… Read More ›
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Tube Surfing: Weddings, Selling, Voting and Recovery
At the time of writing the royal wedding is less than two weeks away and Markosia’s Kate and William: A Very Public Love Story written by Bleeding Cool’s Rich Johnston and illustrated by Mike Collins (on the bride’s side) and… Read More ›
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Eagle Times Enters Its 24th Year Of Publication (Volume 24, Number One)
Eagle Times, the journal of the Eagle Society, reaches its 24th year of publication (Volume 24, Number One) with three articles on British artists – from original Eagle, cutaway artist Hubert Redmill and the rather better known Brian Lewis, plus… Read More ›
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Countdown to Comics Launch Pad Begins
2000AD editor Matt Smith, photographed at Bristol UK Comics Festival, 2004, holding a copy of small press comic FutureQuake Add a Caption Save CaptionCancel This summer, a unique event takes place at The Studio, Birmingham, bringing together seasoned professionals and… Read More ›
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Darkie’s Mob joins Titan’s ‘Battle’ line-up
After a long wait, Titan Books has published a full, uncensored collection of Darkie’s Mob, John Wagner and Mike Western’s hard-hitting Far East World War 2 adventure, first published in Battle Picture Weekly. In the hellish, humid jungles of Burma,… Read More ›
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Panel Borders: Spring Conventions – revealing nore about Sprit of Hope
Continuing radio show and podcast Panel Borders‘ month of shows about anthologies and collectives, they have a trio of interviews recorded at two recent comic book conventions in London. Recorded at Kapow!, Islington Design Centre (April 2011): Alex Fitch talks… Read More ›
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Myriad Editions announces First Graphic Novel Competition
Scouting through the large number of graphic novel publishers at the London Book Fair, I came across news of a graphic novel competition being run by Brighton-based publisher Myriad Editions, publishers of the brilliant Rumblestrip album by Woodrow Phoenix some… Read More ›
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London Book Fair maintains interest in graphic novels
The London Book Fair will again be promoting graphic novels tomorrow (13th April) with a seminar entield The Graphic Novel Renaissance, chaired by Paul Gravett. Has a “tipping point” been reached for graphic novels? Leading editors and publishers from the… Read More ›
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Kapow breaks world records, announces 2012 return
Kapow ComicCon. Photo: Stereo @rtist. See Original on flickr Guinness World Records, the official authority on record-breaking, has confirmed that two new Guinness World Records were set at the Kapow Comic Convention over the past weekend. Comic book artists from… Read More ›
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Al Davison signs aboard for Blood and Light
Renegade Entertainment has announced Al (The Spiral Cage, Doctor Who) Davison will draw Blood and Light, a new project from the publisher run by Alan Grant, Alexander Finbow and Doug Bradley.“Blood and Light is a story I’m very passionate about,… Read More ›
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Kapow 2011: A Round Up
Kapow ComicCon. Photo: Stereo @rtist. See Original on flickr (with thanks to Dave Stokes for letting us re-publish his Round Up – original version, with swearing, on his blog here; and Stero @rtist Ketan Majmudar for permission to use some… Read More ›
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Cartoon Museum to exhibit ‘Doctor Who in Comics’
(Updated with thanks to Anita O’Brien): London’s Cartoon Museum has announced it will host an exhibition of art charting Doctor Who’s career in comics, from his very first appearances in TV Comic in 1964 through to the present day. Doctor… Read More ›
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The Strange Attractions of Alan Moore
(with thanks to Pádraig Ó Méalóid): The most recent issue of Strange Attractor Journal contains, amongst much else, the text for Alan Moore’s unfinished John Dee opera, focusing on the life of the well known English mage, which he was… Read More ›
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MCM Expo London Comic Con Records Best Ever Ticket Sales
Advance ticket sales for next month’s MCM Expo London Comic Con – which includes the presentation of the Eagle Awards – have just topped an incredible 15,000, the highest recorded at this stage in the show’s decade-long history. The event’s… Read More ›
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Stately Hunt Emerson releases CD
Birmingham-based cartoonist Hunt Emerson is to release a single, Josephine, on May Day 2011. Released on the new Spritely Records label, Josephine is a song by legendary singer-songwriter John Otway and described by Hunt as “an epic tale of innocence… Read More ›
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Foyles exhibits Pinocchio art from new Knockabout graphic novel
Foyles London is currently hosting an exhibition of original artwork from Pinocchio, the award-winning graphic novel by French comic artist Winshluss, which will be published by Knockabout Comics later this month. Winshluss is best known for co-writing and co-directing the… Read More ›
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International Alternative Press Festival announces final events line up, benefit gig
Here’s the full, final rundown of events at the International Alternative Press Festival in London, which begins at the end of May. We’ve mentioned some of this before but the project deserves as many plugs as it can get… The… Read More ›