Department of the Peculiar Goes POP! is back and seeking support on Kickstarter – the continuation of the wonderfully-bonkers story of a mysterious British government department investigating the paranormal, from writer Rol Hirst and artist Robert Wells.

The story centres on the efforts of the DOTP – a fictional government department responsible for investigating peculiar occurrences, people and phenomena – to stop a ‘peculiar’ named Gavin Leech, the manager of a hopeless rock band called Areshole, who discovers that he has the ability to bestow them with talent and make them superstars… but not without making some sacrifices first.
The money raised by this latest campaign form the talented team will be used to fund the publication of Department of the Peculiar Goes POP! #2, which is fully drawn and ready to go to press.
Copies of #1, which was successfully Kickstarted and published last autumn, are also available as part of this campaign, and there are also a limited number of copies of two older DOTP comics available, but you don’t have to have read these to enjoy ‘Goes POP!’

Goes POP! #1 ended on a cliffhanger, so the team can’t really post any whole interior pages for #2 as party of their campaign, but they have plenty to tease you there to try to gain your support, and suffice to say if you enjoyed #1 as much as I did, then you’ll want to check out #2 right now!
DOTP Goes POP! #2 offers 32 black & white interior pages – a final 27 pages of the Goes POP! story, an extra three-page DOTP strip, and two pages of DOTP-related illustrations Robert drew while working on this issue), with colour covers by Robert and a painted inside back cover by Phil Elliott.
As with the last campaign for this project, one of the reward options is for an A4-sized inked sketch of the DOTP character of your choice as your favourite pop / rock star.

“Thanks to everyone who has backed us so far,” says Robert. “We had a pretty good weekend and Department of the Peculiar Goes POP! #2 is now 79% funded, with three weeks still to go. Hopefully, we will hit our initial target fairly soon and I’ll be able to add a stretch goal to enable us to add an extra item to the package.”
Robert is nothing if short of inventive when it comes to this book, so I’m wondering just what that might be! Do check out the project – I think it’s well worth a look!
• Check out the Department of the Peculiar Goes POP! 1 & 2 campaign here on Kickstarter
• Digital versions of the two older DOTP comics (and Goes POP! #1) will be available to download for free (here) for the duration of the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Rol Hirst is a writer and English teacher whose previous comics include The Jock (which ran for more than 30 issues in the ’90s), PJANG and Too Much Sex and Violence. Before we detained him, he lived in Huddersfield with his partner, Louise, and their son, Sam.
• Blog | Twitter: @rolhirst | Check out his books for Kindle on AmazonUK (Affiliate Link)
Robert Wells is a cartoonist and illustrator who has been writing and drawing comics since the 1990s. He currently resides in a secure wing of The Sanatorium – HQ of the Department of the Peculiar – and won’t be released until he’s worked off my debts by drawing new DotP adventures. His wife and two dogs are occasionally allowed to visit.
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
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.
Categories: Crowd Funding Projects, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News