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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Leopard of Lime Street Fun…
A few years ago, UK indie publisher Starscape, run by Chris Smillie, licensed some of Buster‘s Leopard of Lime Street strips from Egmont. “I made an ad for Starscape by using some images, making an animated comic,” says Chris,… Read More ›
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NASA’s Hitch Hiker Fans ‘Tweet’ Their Praise
Penguin Books and NASA have very different ideas about celebrating the 30th anniversary of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. NASA did it by having their LCROSS (Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite) vehicle tweeting lines from Hitchhiker’s, just before it… Read More ›
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Visiting Artists Petition Close to Target
The petition against the British Home Office’s ludicrous restrictions preventing non-EU artists and academics from participating the UK’s cultural life – rules which could affect visiting comic artists to conventions in future – is getting closer to its target of… Read More ›
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Matters of Convention: The Alternative Press Fair
Continuing our series of interviews with British comic convention organisers, for this sixth instalment Matthew Badham talks to comic creator Jimi Gherkin about the The Alternative Press Fair, which is being held annually in London. These convention features are being… Read More ›
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Fifth Temple Spotlights Comics Talent
The Temple Issue 5 is now complete and available to download for free from the British comic creators group’s forum. Compiled by John Kirkham, at 80 megs and over 160 pages it’s the biggest issue yet, with class contributions inside… Read More ›
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Commandos At The Ready
A new batch of Commando issues from DC Thomson goes on sale tomorrow (8th October) in all good newsagents. As usual, the releases are a mix of new and reprint titles, with Issue 4235, “Desert Dispatches”, a continuation of a… Read More ›
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Tube Surfing: Doctor Who, Gnasher and Dave Gibbons
• Ace media site Den of Geek has the latest pics from BBC TV’s Sarah Jane Adventures here. Panini, publishers of Doctor Who Magazine, have just put out a great special on the show, featuring a full rundown of episodes… Read More ›
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Grab the new TOXIC!
The latest issue of Egmont’s TOXIC title, featuring humour strips by Lew Stringer and others, is on sale now. As well as strips and features, the issue comes with three free gifts: a Grabbing Hand, Star Wars Magnets and a… Read More ›
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Draw Baby, Draw!
As part of Leeds “Light Night” event this month, the Thought Bubble Festival team have organised a special free event encouraging everyone to come along and draw to your heart’s content. On Friday 9th October, Thought Bubble will take part… Read More ›
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Judge Dredd’s Crime Chronicles Released
Top audio adventure company Big Finish, perhaps best known for their Doctor Who productions, has just made a long-awaited return to the 2000AD universe with a brand new series of adventures in crime and space. Judge Dredd: Crime Chronicles finds… Read More ›
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Milligan signs For EA Comics Army of Two
Electronic Arts Inc. has that it has signed a deal with IDW Publishing to expand two of its intellectual properties, Army of Two and Dragon Age, into comics under a new EA Comics imprint with IDW beginning in January –… Read More ›
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Conservative Leader Cameron Focus of Cartoon Exhibition
Brilliant British cartoonists site Bloghorn draws our attention to two political cartoon exhibitions featuring cartoons lampooning Conservative leader David Cameron open in London next week, at the Chris Beetles Gallery and the Political Cartoon Gallery. Peter Brookes: The Best of… Read More ›
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ABC Warriors Animated
2000AD ABC Warriors from Firestep Films on Vimeo. Found on Vimeo by Paul Eldridge, this is an animation trailer for ABC Warriors, created by Firestep with the full cooperation of Rebellion Games, the Rights Holders to the 2000AD catalogue. Impossible… Read More ›
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New Striker Collection Online
A new collection of Striker stories has just been published online via MyEbook.com. “Dead Man Walking”, set in Haiti, was a fan favourite, but creator Pete Nash warns that it should not to be read by the politically correct! Pages… Read More ›
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Telegraph’s "Alex" on iPhone, iTouch
Celebrating the first anniversary of the Credit Crunch, Alex, the investment banker we all love to hate, whose strip adventures now appear in the Telegraph, has been brought to new life on the iPhone and iPod touch, in an “all-new”… Read More ›
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MistyComic Fan Special Finally Published
A not-for-profit second Mistycomic.co.uk Special, inspired by the 1970s British girls comic, Misty, is now available from the official Misty Comic web site. Not to be confused with the recent Egmont Misty Classic Comic on sale now in WH Smiths… Read More ›
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London Alternative Press Event Announced
Alternative Press are hosting another awesome evening of Zines, comix, book arts and poetry at their second Zine Friendly event at the Foundry in London in November, in order to promote the new project, the Zine Friendly Blog. A resource… Read More ›
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Book and Magazine Collector Issue 313
The long running series of articles on Great British Comics Artists by David Ashford and Norman Wright in Book and Magazine Collector has reached part 32. This issue’s subject is Alan Philpott. Philpott was the artist who created Robot Archie… Read More ›
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Commando Webbing: New Interview With Editor Calum Laird
Mike Eriksson of the war digest site Where Eagles Dare has put up a new interview with Commando editor Calum Laird in which Calum updates readers on his first two years as Commanding Officer of Britain’s last traditional war comic…. Read More ›
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Spooky Salem Brownstone Promo Released
As if it wasn’t quirky and unsettling enough, Walker Books have just released a video on YouTube to promote the new graphic novel Salem Brownstone: All Along the Watchtowers by John Harris Dunning and Nikhil Singh, showing off more of… Read More ›