I came across another comics gem in one of our two local Waterstones this weekend, just on sale in the UK — Charles Schultz Peanuts are being collected chronologically in some classy but reasonably priced hardback editions. These really nice… Read More ›
British Comics – Books
The Hammer Story book launch
The launch of the new edition of Titan Books’ The Hammer Story is being celebrated with a special one-day event at the Cine Lumiere in Queensberry Place, London SW7, this coming Saturday, 27th October. The event will include cinema screenings… Read More ›
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 ›
In Review : The War Libraries
To give it its full title The Fleetway Picture Library Index Volume 1: The War Libraries makes this reference book sound very grand, perhaps a little foreboding and even rather dry. Yet nothing could be further from the truth. Compiled… Read More ›
Sweeney Todd from the Titan Squad
Titan Books has acquired the worldwide publishing rights for Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, the new Tim Burton movie slated for UK release on 25 January 2008. The film, which stars Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter… Read More ›
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 ›
In Review: The Great Game
I’ve just finished reading the hardback of the excellent Scarlet Traces: The Great Game. Written by Ian Edginton and drawn by D’Israeli this is their second sequel to HG Wells’ The War Of The Worlds. For those unfamiliar with the… Read More ›
Titan Re-Releases "Hammer Story"
Fifty years ago, Hammer Films released their first ‘gothic’ horror movie, The Curse of Frankenstein, beginning a series of films that changed the face of horror cinema. ‘Hammer Horror’ made international stars of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, and inspired… Read More ›
More fantasy films on the way
Everyone seems to be chasing the next Harry Potter, and Warner Bros., who produce the box office-busting films (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix took in an estimated $44.2 million in its first full day in the US… Read More ›
Alice In USAland
Ansible 240 reports that the Dark Horse version of Bryan Talbot’s excellent Alice In Sunderland has been nominated in the Graphic Novels section of the American Quill Book Awards “the only televised literary prizes”. More details and a full listing… Read More ›
Upcoming British Comic Collections
Just a quick look at a few of the titles that we can expect to see over the coming months… First up is Charley’s War Volume 4, subtitled “Blue’s Story”. Continuing the story of World War One, this time the… Read More ›
The power of personal e-mail marketing…
Some good news from my friend Lou Anders, Editorial Director at US publisher Pyr, an imprint of Prometheus Books. Last year Lou wrote plugging one of Pyr’s authors, David Louis Edelman, whose novel Infoquake, described on America’s National Public Radio… Read More ›
Iraq in comics
Over on Slate, there’s a selection of some of the best new comic books commenting on the Iraq war, including a mention for the much-talked about Web comic Shooting War by Anthony Lappé which Warner Books is publishing in 2007… Read More ›
More manga from Harrison Davies?
I bumped into artist Paul Harrison Davies yesterday, looking a bit knackered from the recent happy birth of his daughter but still bubbling at reaction to his fab strip in Constable and Robinson’s recently-published Mammoth Book of Best New Manga,… Read More ›
Cat Tracking into parallel dimensions
It’s a well known fact that many SF and comics writers own cats. Don’t ask me why, it’s just one of those weird rules of the universe. Of course many freelancers work from home, but even they must sometimes wonder… Read More ›
Beaver and Steve
Ages ago, possibly even on this blog, I raved about Beaver and Steve, an online strip from the superbly talented James Turner (a fellow 20sixer, he of Erudite Baboon). Anyway, he’s only gone and had many of the strips collected… Read More ›
Going Underground
This web site is occasionally visited by people seeking more information about London’s Tube, and leave disappointed, so I’m happy to report the ongoing success of a site that is actually about London Underground, written by friend, Mecca Ibrahim: http://london-underground.blogspot.com…. Read More ›
Jeff Anderson Heads for the Riddler’s Fayre
British comics artist Jeff Anderson, whose work on the critically acclaimed Lion Graphic Bible earned him and writer Mike Maddox a prestigious Angouleme award in 2000, is busy at work on a new project — a five-part graphic novel from Highland Books…. Read More ›
Unofficial Doctor Who Television Companion Republished
The acclaimed Doctor Who reference book The Television Companion is being reissued next year by Telos Publishing. Rather than being a straight reprint authors David J Howe and Stephen James Walker intend to rework some of the material from the… Read More ›
Top Tips: Insider’s Guide to creating comics published
Just published by A & C Black, Robin Hall’s Trade Secrets is an excellent book about how to become a successful cartoonist or comics artist, featuring tips from a huge number of professional artists. It also features, with my permission,… Read More ›