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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Another Gaming Magazine bites the dust
icv2 reports Wizard Entertainment is ending publication of InQuest Gamer, effective in September. The most recent issue shipped was #149, which arrived in comic stores on 1st August. This is another item of bad news for game magazine fans, suggesting… Read More ›
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Virgin Comics Dan Dare, film to come?
(This post last updated 27/8/07, with thanks to Richard Sheaf and Derek Wilson): Information on Virgin Comics Dan Dare title due in November and news on a film project has begun to emerge. The new Dan Dare comic will be… Read More ›
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Small Pressers Appeal
Comics columnist and downthetubes contributor Matthew Badham will be speaking at a comics and animation conference, The Aesthetics of Trash at Manchester University at the end of August and is appealing for information from small press publishers. “I’m going to… Read More ›
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Project: Rooftop to host ‘Wieringo Week’ tribute
In memory of Mike Wieringo, who passed away earlier this month, Project: Rooftop has announced an open call for redesigns of Bart Allen (Impulse/Kid Flash/The Flash), the character created in 1994 by Wieringo and Mark Waid. Submissions will be accepted… Read More ›
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Comics Britannia Series Info
The BBC have released full transmission details for Comics Britannia (or, How we grew up with comics and how comics grew up with us…), a series of four documentaries on comics which will screen on BBC4, to be broadcast as… Read More ›
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Making the most of classic War Comics
Carroll and Graf (the same publishing house of critically acclaimed The Mammoth Book of Best New Manga) releases The Mammoth Book of Best War Comics this month and the news has been picked up by several sites, including Releases de… Read More ›
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Wallace and Gromit web site revamped
Cynopsis reports that Aardman Animations has tapped the ROO Group, an online video solutions company, to re-launch its Wallace and Gromit website (www.wallaceandgromit.com) with increased video functionality. Wallace and Gromit content, including a series of short films and clips from… Read More ›
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Hold Your Dinosaurs!
Although we now know T-Rex might have actually caught up with that landrover in Jurassic Park (it could certainly have iutrun most of the England football team based on last night’s performance), we don’t know any more about the next… Read More ›
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Strange Embrace #3 Released
Strange Embrace #3 (the third issue in an eight-issue series) by British artist and writer David Hine is now on sale in specialist comic shops. These days, Hine, who writes a regular column for comics news site Broken Frontier, is… Read More ›
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Dalek Empire: The Fearless
Big Finish has just released an awesome CGI trailer to promote Dalek Empire IV: The Fearless, a mini-series of four, full-cast audio dramas with each chapter released on single CD. Spanning four spin off series from Big Finish’s Doctor Who… Read More ›
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Keith Robson’s History Of Comics
It has been open since the end of June and will end on Sunday 2nd September, but if you are near Hartlepool in the next couple of weeks then it is worth paying a visit to the Museum Of Hartlepool… Read More ›
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Cubicle 7 licences DC Thomson’s Starblazer for ‘space roleplaying adventures’
Head into space with Starblazer (not literally…)
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The Unofficial HANDbook of the Marvel Universe!
Here’s a fun comics project from a real unsung talent. London-based comics fan and longtime frequenter of comics events Martin Hand has started a project on his livejournal to draw some of his favourite Marvel Comics characters, including the Absorbing… Read More ›
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Kids Comics Competition announced
The Birmingham International Comics Show (BICS) in partnership with Peters the Booksellers and TBK Magazine recently launched the National Comic Art Competition. Kids across the UK and beyond have been invited to tell a two page comic story about how… Read More ›
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Read Yourself Raw
Online comics ‘zine Read Yourself Raw has just had another update, which includes previews of new book, comic and manga releases for October 2007 and a new Essential Reading list. The site’s worth a visit for its huge links section… Read More ›
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Star Wars Exhibition extended
Star Wars – The Exhibition has today announced that due to overwhelming popular demand the run at County Hall, Westminster, London will be extended until 12 January 2008. Exhibition Coordinator Jonathan Sands said: “The Exhibition is proving so popular that… Read More ›
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Comics Artist Phil Gascoine: Tributes Pour In
Tributes to one of Britain’s unsung comic heroes, Phil Gascoine, who has died after a short illness, have poured into downtheubes after an online appeal. You can read them alongside a 2006 interview with Phil here, while over on Bear… Read More ›
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Reboot Competition
Here’s some news of a great competition (its deadline 26 August) for comic artists courtesy of Josh Roberts, who runs the terrific comics web site comicspace – if you want to track down your favourite comic creators, try here! Vancouver-based… Read More ›
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Celebrity Chef
First we had Fanny Craddock, next Delia Smith, then Nigella Lawson, and now we have Maw Broon! Courtesy of those nice people at Waverley Books, Maw Broon’s Cookbook is due to be released on an unsuspecting world in October, just… Read More ›
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CBBC LIne Up includes "Sarah Jane Adventures"
The BBC’s revamped CBBC launches its new programming season on 3 September 2007 with a slew of fantasy and drama shows including Adventure Rock, a new online game and play environment for children which allows children to inhabit a virtual… Read More ›