Happy Birthday, BEANO, 85 today!

By John Freeman on July 26, 2023

Britain’s weekly BEANO comic celebrates 85 years of publication today, with a wraparound cover crammed with celebrities chose by readers.

First published in July 1938, the Beano crew soldiered through World War Two, danced through the 1950s and 1960s, re-energised up by creators like the late Leo Baxendale, and continues to delight children across the country to this day, with a lineup of ace creators such as Nigel Auctherlounie, Andy Fanton, Laura Howell, Nigel Parkinson, Lew Stringer, and many, many others – thank you to them all!

The characters on week’s cover are drawn by Nigel Parkinson, the cover itself assembled by the BEANO’s designer Mark McMail.

The BEANO still sells well over 40,000 copies a week – how many superhero comics can claim that kind of devotion?

The longest-running strip in BEANO is “Dennis the Menace“, which has been running for seventy years. Other long-running strips include “Minnie the Minx“, “Roger the Dodger“, “The Bash Street Kids” and “Billy Whizz“, still in the comic today, alongside newer characters.

2018 Facsimile Beano No. 1 - 1938 - sans Peanut — *2018 Facsimile Beano No. 1 – 1938 – sans Peanut, the much outdated mascot of the time*

The birthday issue, on sale in all good newsagents now, the comic also available on subscription, features a host of celebrity cover stars, all handpicked by the ultimate mischief experts… kids, natch! although whether they all read the BEANO, we can’t say for sure.

*Beano at 85 cover celebrities, chosen by readers*

Don’t be a party pooper, grab your copy from newsagents, now! Either join the party or suffer serious FOMO – it’s your call!

• Check out BEANO online at Beano.com for more fun, character guides, free comics and more

• Subscribe to BEANO here

About the Author
Latest Posts

John Freeman

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.