Best of British magazine celebrates 85 years of BEANO

By John Freeman on June 30, 2023

The July edition of the long-running nostalgia magazine, Best of British, features an affectionate and wholesome tribute to The Beano as it reaches its 85th birthday.

The cover, originally the 1973 Beano Summer Special, by the late David Sutherland, features an illustration including many Beano characters, past and present, such as Dennis the Menace and Gnasher, Biffo the Bear, The Bash Street Kids, Minnie the Minx, Little Plum, Roger the Dodger, Grandpa and at least one of The Three Bears!

Inside, are two solid comic-themed features. In the first, Chris Hallam takes a good look at The Beano‘s past, present and future. What would modern readers make of the original 1938 comic? What would older readers make of the comic today? Can The Beano escape the sad fate of its old sister paper, The Dandy, which ceased to appear regularly in print after 2012? Story-wise, which old favourites are still going? Beano creative director, Mike Stirling provides some valuable insights too.

Elsewhere in the magazine, Chris also posts a tribute to Demon Headmaster actor, Terence Hardiman.

In a second comics-based feature, “Homegrown Superheroes”, David McVey explores the careers of some of the often unfairly overlooked stars of the British comics of the past.

The feature focuses exclusively on DC Thomson titles such as The Dandy, Sparky and, of course, The Beano itself, noting characters such as Dreamy Dave and Dozy Dora, Jimmy and his Magic Patch, Billy the Cat, and even Invisible Dick (no, really, no tittering in the back) are all covered.

Best of British is the UK’s most popular nostalgia and heritage monthly magazine and your go-to for fascinating stories of day-to-day life in Britain throughout the twentieth century, as well as celebrating the finest parts of British history that still survive today. Each issue is packed with stories and pictures “guaranteed to bring the memories flooding back”.

• Best of British is published every month, priced £4.95. It is available in shops or to order – head to bestofbritishmag.co.uk for more information | Also available digitally from PocketMags

Best of British – July 2023 Features in full…

Best of British magazine (July 2023) - Demon Headmaster

• COVER STORY: A Big Birthday On Bash Street – Celebrating 85 years of The Beano
• Homegrown Superheroes – Remembering some largely forgotten British comic book stars
• A Demon Performer – A tribute to the actor Terrence Hardiman
• Food & Drink – A visit to Stokes Tea & Coffee’s historic High Bridge Cafe in Lincoln
• Forties Post – Wartime living in Talacre Warren
• Round The Auction Houses – A selection of recent gems and a preview of auctions to come
• Window On The Past – Ice-cream memories from The Francis Frith Collection
• Club Class – The golden age of cycling clubs
• Still Keen – We chat to The Cuckoo Waltz and Doctors star Diane Keen
• Fitting The Bill – Former The Bill star Andrew Mackintosh discusses his new podcast
• Steaming To The Sea – The trains that built the seaside
• A Golden Summer Of Puppeteering – The remarkable puppeteer, traveller and writer Walter Wilkinson
• Welcome Back To Beningbrough – How a conservation programme led to some interesting discoveries

Thanks to Lew Stringer for identification of the cover art

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “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.