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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Read this blog on your mobile
John Roshell over at Active Images put me on to feedm8, which offers a means to make a more mobile-friendly version of this blog for phones. Thought I’d give it a try: check out the “get mobile version button”, right…
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Thunderbirds: the Dan Dare connection
BBC4 is continuing its efforts to mine Britain’s rich science fiction and comics culture with a new documenatary on the 1960s cult classic puppet show Thunderbirds. Dan Dare fan site dandare.info reports the Beeb has discovered Dan Dare was an… Read More ›
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Bruin Up
Way back when I came up with a lab animal gag I still like and my mate Tim Stevens did too since he’s remembered it 20 years later, and suggested an update. So here are both cartoons in ROK Comics… Read More ›
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TV is bad, bad, bad
Bad news for TV fans. Sitting too close to the TV has been proved to be bad for childrens eyes, but a new study also show too much television may be linked to a bad attention span. According to a… Read More ›
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Big Ben Animated series in development
Former Comics International and Warrior editor Dez Skinn has been in touch with downthetubes to update us on his upcoming projects — the first of which is an animated show based on one of the characters from Warrior – Big… Read More ›
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American extremists seek history re-write
Who would have thought it? Web search engine giant Google rightly marked 50 years of spaceflight with a terrific Sputnik-decorated version of their logo last week, but now it seems right wing commentators in the US feel this is the… Read More ›
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Alan Moore interviewed
“Alan Moore, the undisputed, eccentric king of comic-book writing, made it acceptable for literary-minded adults to enjoy books about superheroes. Will his new book do the same for erotica? Susanna Clarke, the novelist and long-time Moore devotee, speaks to him… Read More ›
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Ex Astris Episode 7 – Ambush
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Ex Astris Episode 5
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Ex Astris Episode 6
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Ex Astris Episode 4
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Ex Astris Episode 3
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Ex Astris Episode 2
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Ex Astris Episode 1
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Save Kids TV campaign – Petition the PM!
Pact has set up a petition on the Number 10 website to highlight the plight UK kids TV is under, highlighted by the Save Kids TV campaign who have a comic about the issue on ROK Comics, republished below. To… Read More ›
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New Dennis the Menace animation in the works
Beano character Dennis the Menace is being updated in a new animated version for CBBC. Trade magazine Broadcast and other sources report DC Thomson is working with animation company Red Kite to deliver the 52 x 12-minute Dennis & Gnasher… Read More ›
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Happy Birthday Sputnik!
Space flight is 50 years old this week and although the space race may well have been borne by the desire to develop bigger and better nuclear weapons – according to the accounts of Russian scientists reported in USA Today… Read More ›
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Wallace & Gromit Return
Huzzah! Variety reports Aardman Animation’s Wallace & Gromit are back at work, with a new film to be shown on BBC1 at Christmas next year. Trouble at’ Mill, co-written by Nick Park and Bob Baker, sees Wallace and Gromit open… Read More ›
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Jeff Hawke – Lunar 10
The Jeff Hawke Club have released their Cosmos special, Lunar 10. This 192 page softcover book collects 10 different complete Jeff Hawke stories set on the Moon. It includes Time Out Of Mind, originally published in the Daily Express in… Read More ›
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Titan Magazines’ new DC title
Titan Magazines recently launched a fourth comic licensed from DC Comics. DC Universe Presents Batman Superman follows on the heels of Superman Legends, Batman Legends and Justice League Legends to the UK news stand. Featuring stories and artwork never previously… Read More ›






