The latest Phil-Comics auction is live on eBay, with around 365 listings, and there’s plenty on offer for most vintage British comic collectors, including some original art.
A small selection of the auction’s online highlights are shown below, including a rare Beano and Dandy advertising pack we previously featured here, plenty of horror comics and magazines, original comic art – including an episode of Lew Stringer’s “Robo Capers” from Marvel UK’s Transformers comic – and plenty of comics with their original free gifts, including The Beano, GIRL, Go Girl, POW!, Valiant and WOW!
The auction, which also features plenty of Beano comics, a number of early Enid Blyton books and issues of TV Comic featuring Doctor Who, begins wrapping next Sunday, 9th February 2025.
Run by Phil Shrimpton, the award-winning Phil-Comics specialises in vintage comics and related items such as annuals, holiday specials, free gifts and original artwork.
A full page strip of “X-Ray Specs” from Buster cover dated 2nd April 1988. The art is believed to be by Mike Lacey, as he was the original artist from 1975 when the strip launched, but Jimmy Hansen ghosted for him at times, so there’s a small chance it might be his work. Either way it’s a lovely page with beautifully crisp lines
“Mr. Quiet” Mr. Men art for the issue of the preschool title Playhour, cover dated 19th July 1986“Mr. Slow” Mr. Men art for the issue of the preschool title Playhour, cover dated 17th January 1987
A page of original “Nancy” comic artwork, drawn and signed by Ernie Bushmiller syndicated for publication on 10th November 1951. Drawn on a piece of fairly thick card which measures 49.5 x 15.5 cm (19.75 x 6.75 inches). This card has been glued to the rear top edge to a piece of green mount board which is a little wider still on all four sides
A three panel “Robo-Capers” strip drawn and signed by Lew Stringer for Marvel UK’s Transformers No. 42, the New Year issue for 1986). The art is mounted within mount board and the overall size of the mountboard measures 38 x 18 cm (15 x 7 inches)
King Features “Popeye” artwork making up the full syndicated strip for Sunday 8th March 1959, which still has larger space to this day than the weekly strips. Story written by Tim Sims and art by Bill (Bela) Zaboly. Each of the three pages measures 27.5 x 6.25 inches. Some light staining to the front and tape marks to the reverse
Comics Include …
The last issue of Action, cover dated 12th November Nov 1977, prior to its merger with Battle
Combat Library No. 1. Published by G.M. Smith in 1959. The auction has a huge number of copies of this war comic on offer
Girl Volume 1 No. 1 cover dated 2nd November 1951, with Princess Elizabeth Presentation feature pullout, folded in half and half again and tucked in inside the cover
Go Girl magazine Volume One No. 1 cover dated 13th January 1968 with Free Gift – a Girl-Glo Ear Gear. Published by City Magazines (who published TV Century 21), Phil-Comics have only come across one issue of this title before (#9) so this is a first time for us for the first issue. It has a mix of comic strips and articles / features like you’d find in a magazine
Hey Diddle Diddle No. 1 with Free Gift Picture and Stickers, published by IPC in 1972. Intriguingly, this edition features an interesting, original sticker to the top left cover corner which says “25th March 1972 Complimentary Copy, Not For Resale”. The free gift wall picture is unused. Also present is a small sheet of four stickers which came with the issue dated 18th March of the same year. Denis Gifford’s 1985 Guide Book, the published edition of Hey Diddle Diddle No. 1 was dated 25th March so perhaps that date is wrong, as the comic here has No. 1 on the cover. This is one of numerous comics and free gifts in this current auction
House of Hammer comic magazine No. 1 (October 1976) – one of several issues on offer
Joe 90 No. 26 cover dated 12th July 1969, this issue featuring a dramatic Land of the Giants cover – one of several Century 21 publications on offer, including editions of Lady Penelope and TV21
Ring Raiders Nos. 1,2,4,6 cover dated September – December 1989 with Free Gift Poster with art by Ian Kennedy. No. 2 has the unused free gift poster still stapled in at the centre page
The only Ring Raiders special, published in 1990, with lovely Ian Kennedy cover art
Speed No. 1, cover dated 23rd February 1980 with Free Gift Speed Red Plane
TV Comic No. 366 cover dated 8th November 1958 – a smashing Fireworks issue
The first issue of Valiant, cover dated 6th October 1962, with two free gifts, one a League Ladder Table with tabs for the English and Scottish First Divisions (Phil-Comics have sold this four times before) and also a Pocket Rocket, which is much harder to find and this is only the second time they have handled one
Wow No. 1 cover dated 5th June 1982 with its Free Gift – an unused Funny Face Maker
Reference Works…
DC Thomson Comic Annuals Identification Guide 1921-1964 by D.J. Adley and W.O.G. Lofts, published in 1975. The authors were early pioneers of British comic and annual collecting and carried out lots of research from within comics and also at the British Library. This was one of their early guide where they have identified the dates of many DC Thomson’s repertoire of annuals published from 1921 to 1964. None of them between these years were dated and so this caused much confusion with collectors, so this was an invaluable guide. At the time of publication of this guide only seven of the eight Black Bob annuals had been discovered and several Broons and Oor Wullie annuals were missing, such was the difficulty back then of sourcing the original annuals. The authors acknowledged this and went on to publish more guides in later years with additional information as and when it was discovered
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.
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