Orkney’s The Orcadian newspaper paid tribute to the NHS and key workers on the Scottish island last week. They published a special edition on 9th April 2020 featuring a cover by the newspaper’s regular cartoonist, Orkney resident Alex Leonard.

In tandem with NHS Orkney and Orkney Islands Council, the newspaper is pledging its support to Orkney’s heroes – those who are working to keep the island’s community safe and thriving during the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Alex Leonard is the paper’s regular cartoonist, who has been drawing its “The Giddy Limit” strip since 2005, every week.

“Back then, I think its safe to say, we did wonder how it would fare,” the paper notes on its website.

“Producing a fresh, new strip to a tight deadline every week for 52 weeks of the year, is no mean feat and we wondered whether there would be enough material out there for Alex to work with.

“But we needn’t have worried. Now, over 15 years on, ‘The Giddy Limit’ has become an integral part of Orkney life. This weekly, light-hearted look at life in the county has taken on a life of its own and its characters have become household names. Sometimes it’s poignant. Sometimes it’s satirical. But it’s always funny. And because of this, ‘The Giddy Limit’ has become a firm favourite with The Orcadian readers and is one of the first pages turned to when the newspaper comes out on a Thursday morning.”

• To buy a copy of this special edition, published on 9th April 2020, visit The Orcadian web site here – be sure to make sure you ask for the specific edition

• A range of gifts and souvenirs featuring illustrations from Alex Leonard’s ‘The Giddy Limit’ cartoon series published in The Orcadian are available here

• Find our more about ‘The Giddy Limit’ and its creator here on the strip’s official web site: www.giddy-limit.com

With thanks to Colin Noble for spotting this

John Freeman

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: British Comics, British Comics - Newspaper Strips, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News

Tags: Alex Leonard, downthetubes News, Humour Comics, NHS Orkney, Orkney Coronavirus Pandemic, Orkney Islands Council, The Giddy Limit, The Orcadian