Caption Comics Festival is the UK’s longest running comics event that focuses on professional networking, support and community, dedicated to indie and self-published sequential art, taking place in Oxford at Seacourt Hall over the weekend of 8th – 9th August.
The Caption committee has announced a guest list of both seasoned industry pros and upcoming talent for 2026, including a number of the leading independent comic news and publishing site Broken Frontier‘s 2026 Six To Watch creators.
Independent Comic Creators
Hannah Berry’s painterly style is applied to crime noir, social issues, and personal narratives. A former Comics Laureate, Hannah is a trustee for the Cartoon Museum, a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, founder of the Howard League for Penal Reform, the Society of Authors’ Comics Creators Network and Comics Cultural Impact Collective.
Karrie Fransman has created comics for Penguin Random House, The Guardian and The Times. Karrie is also a member of the Comics Cultural Impact Collective, an independent collective group of UK comics professionals working together to raise awareness for the cultural impact of comics.
Kieron Gillen is co-creator of Phonogram, DIE, The Power Fantasy and The Wicked and Divine, and has written for Marvel and Star Wars comics. His move from video game journalism to comics was via self-publishing and promoting his work at events like Caption.
Scarlett & Sophie Rickard – Sisters who work together to make graphic novels. Sophie does the words and Scarlett draws the pictures. Their first book Man’s Best Friend has been followed by three adaptations including The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, which was nominated for an Eisner award. Their work This Slavery (2025) was included in the shortlist for the British Book Awards 2026 Graphic Novel of the Year.
Myfanwy Tristam is a Brighton based artist who makes comics about politics, activism, social memoir, fashion and pop culture. Interested in the power of comics to educate, enrage and create change in the world, Myfanwy is Director of the Comics Cultural Impact Collective. Their work has been shortlisted for numerous prizes including the First Graphic Novel Award. Her latest graphic novel, Noisy Valley: The Art of Protest, is published by Self Made Hero and has received widespread attention.
2026 Broken Frontier Six To Watch Creators
Yu-Ching Chiu is an award-winning illustrator based in Cambridge and Taiwan. They like to create intricate pencil-drawn illustrations using visual metaphors, usually depicting whimsical or curious themes. Chiu’s work has been recognised in the 3×3 Illustration Awards, Applied Arts Illustration Awards, and the Faber FAB Prize.
Daisy Crouch is a UK comic creator chosen to be one of Broken Frontier’s 2026 Six To Watch creators after crowdfunding and self-publishing her series, Very Hungry Women.
Francis Todd is the creator of Caribou and editor at Blue Funnel Books, specialists in publishing hand-drawn narrative comics. He is also one of the Broken Frontier 2026 Six to Watch.
Shri Gunasekara is a storyteller and illustrator who focuses on putting small everyday moments in healthy dynamics front stage, depicting relationships that are not reliant on drama to progress the story.
Jua O’Kane is a multi-disciplinary illustrator who explores themes of trans and queer identity, spirituality, intimacy and psychedelia, informed by growing up as a queer person in post-ceasefire Northern Ireland.
Comic News Guests
This year’s Caption includes a special panel offering insight into comic news media, featuring several comic journalists.
Rich Johnston is founder of Bleeding Cool, and was one of the earliest online comics journalists, working continuously since 1992. He has also created many of his own comics and is a political cartoonist.
Andy Oliver is independent comic news site Broken Frontier’s Editor-in-Chief. He is a co-organiser of Small Press Day and oversees Broken Frontier’s annual ‘Six Small Press Creators to Watch’ mentoring initiative. He is a member of the Comics Research Hub at the University of the Arts London.
Lydia Turner – Broken Frontier’s New Managing Editor. Lydia previously wrote for Pipedream Comics, and The Comics Courier. She also co-organised Small Press Day 2025, and chaired panels for the event. Her comic niches tend to be horror or super cutesy.
Also at Caption is Tony Hitchman, a retired science teacher and the co-author of Using Comic Art to Improve Speaking Reading and Writing, and other books aimed at using creativity to enhance learning and critical thinking. He’s written and drawn for DC Thomson, the Newcastle Science Comic, and various small press initiatives. Tony is the MC for Caption’s Saturday night quiz.
This year’s Caption t-shirt design is by Sean Azzopardi, a Hull based artist who specialises in painting and graphic media. His imprint, Phatcomics, founded in 2001, has created and published over 60 mini comic books and novels including Ed, Twelve Hour Shift, The Voice of the Hall, Street Art and Protest: A Visual History, and Life’s a Party, an ongoing autobiographical series of comics.
Tickets for Caption 2026 are on sale now at caption.sumupstore.com
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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.
Categories: British Comics, Comics, Creating Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Events
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