Author John McShane recounts the story of the all-new Glasgow Looking Glass, its publication celebrated at a special event last month at the Mitchell Library, alongside an exhibition that continues this July…
“Dearest Reader,
“Please accept our humble apologies for the tardiness of this latest issue of the Glasgow Looking Glass … Nearly two centuries is really far too long to wait for a new instalment.”
In late 2024, I decided to email Susan Taylor at Glasgow Life to suggest that, with June 11th 2025 being the 200th anniversary of the World’s First Comic, it would be fitting to have an exhibition in the Mitchell Library, Glasgow. It was in that establishment in 1984 that my friend Denis Gifford discovered the importance of this publication. He became the first person in 60 years to write about it.
Just after I pressed Send, an email arrived in my Inbox. It was from comic writer Colin Maxwell, who suggested that we should celebrate this important date by publishing The New Glasgow Looking Glass. When the stars align like that, it would take a foolish person to ignore them.
Susan has done a marvellous job of exhibiting, on the 5th floor, some of the gems from the Mitchell’s collection of the Looking Glass. She also invited the following to talk about the publication: Laurence Grove, Colin Maxwell, and myself… But also, John Watson, who is a direct descendant of the original publisher, editor, and printer of the Looking Glass, also called John Watson. It was an absolute privilege to meet John after 40 years of writing about his ancestor’s publication.
After Alois Senefeder’s invention of lithography (= writing on stone), lithographic presses began to be established in Glasgow in the early 1820s. It seems to have been John Watson who thought of this original idea of a fortnightly publication containing cartoons and parodies. The magazine soon changed its name to the Northern Looking Glass, in order to expand its readership to Dublin, London, and, yes, even Edinburgh.
Later magazines like Punch took up the idea many years later. In 1920, the Looking Glass was referred to as “the Scotch Punch”. In actuality, Punch is the English Looking Glass.
Colin Maxwell has indeed published a new issue. The cover, by Pete Renshaw, depicts the history of comics in the UK from 1825 with the addition of Rodolphe Töpffer’s invention, encouraged by no less a person than Goethe, of the graphic novel. Töpffer single-handedly produced his first graphic novel in 1827, also using lithography.
In addition to the historical importance of this publication, it, and Colin’s new number, are very enjoyable. Settle back and be entertained by life in the 1820s and by life now. You have a treat awaiting.
John McShane
Article © 2025 John McShane
• You can buy a copy of The New Glasgow Looking Glass from the Maximized Comics Web Shop
• Glasgow through the Looking-Glass continues until 31st July 2025, The Mitchell Library, North Street, Glasgow G3 7DN | Official Site | Read the accessibility guide for The Mitchell Library on AccessAble | Autism-friendly guide to the Mitchell Library
• On downthtubes: Through the Looking Glass: Inside the pages of the Oldest Comic in the World
By Laurence Grove, University of Glasgow
• Michael Dempster’s research into the Looking Glass on Wee Windaes
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Categories: British Comics, Comics, Creating Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Events, Exhibitions, Features, Other Worlds
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