
HOME, Manchester’s centre for contemporary art, theatre and film, is launching Our Plague Year – a brand new, weekly comic strip by illustrator Nick Burton.
An alternative retelling of life in the Derbyshire village of Eyam during the plague outbreak of 1665-66, Our Plague Year is a provocative, funny and thoughtful take on human behaviour and global pandemics.
“It draws a parallel between the plague that hit Eyam, Derbyshire in 1665/66 and the virus we’re all experiencing today,” says Nick. “More importantly, it features entitled children, wretched husbands, vinegar, toads, treacle, a wise-woman and plenty of complaining!”
Our Plague Year will be made available on HOME’s website each week from 27th May, with email subscribers able to receive the latest strip two days early, on a Wednesday.
Nick Burton is an illustrator and storyteller living in Manchester, England, who works on both personal and commercial projects. His comics and illustrations have been featured in Wired, The New York Times, Ride Journal, GQ and more.
Nick’s recent comic tale of a lost bicycle, Lily (told from the perspective of the bicycle), was a finalist in the recent Manchester Open Awards 2020 at HOME.

HOME – currently closed due to lockdown restrictions – is a place for curiosity seekers, for lovers of the dramatic, the digital and the deeply engaging, for radicals and reciprocators, in the heart of Manchester. Its two theatres are a playful platform for new, commissioned work and its five cinema screens light up with challenging, independent, provoking films. The gallery space is home to the very best in contemporary art.
And, from personal experience, the food is delicious! It will be great to see it reopen in due course.
• If you’d like access to the first 12 Our Plague Year strips, sign up here on the HOME web site
• Nick Burton is online at nickburtondraws.com | Instagram
Categories: British Comics, Digital Comics, downthetubes News