Delving through the Marvel UK archives, we occasionally come across work by talented creators that has, sometimes, been overlooked – and the inking of Colin Fawcett, who passed in August 2012, aged just 44, falls into that unfortunate category.
Colin’s work for Marvel UK included links on later issues of the limited series, Gun Runner, published in 1993 and 1994, and he also worked on Captain Planet and James Bond Junior.
From about 1999/2000 until his death in 2012, he worked for various games companies, latterly at Sony in Liverpool, although he began his Fawcett Comics blog in 2006 hoping to journal the development of his own comic, which is still online.
Sadly, we don’t know if he ever completed the planned 64-page story, but he left some tantalising hints about its content. It also includes some wonderful illustrations of DC and Marvel characters such as the Human Torch, Shazam and Supergirl.
Colin was a much loved member of APA 247, an apa for Legion of Super-Heroes fanatics! “He used to produce a regular zine called Nova Express,” Hass Yusuf recalls. “He is still much missed – a wonderful talent who left us too soon.”
“Colin was a fantastic creative guy, I worked with him a few times when he was a video game Art Director at Sony Liverpool,” fellow artist Ross Dearsley, who drew Marvel UK’s Shadow Riders series, recalls.
“Everyone who knew Col will tell you they were his best friend, and it’s no lie, he really had dozens of best pals,” comic creator Nigel Parkinson recalls. “He was the most affable and gregarious of chaps. We never had to look for a review of a new movie or TV show or bar or book or restaurant, as Colin would be there on Day One and be keen to let you know what he thought. In 1993 he helped me out for a while inking and colouring my pencil lay-outs for the ‘Grange Hill’ comic strip [for Fast Forward]. I would put a big close up picture of one of the characters every week, so that Colin could enjoy spending time doing the hair. He loved doing hair, as he said ‘maybe because I haven’t got any’.
“He was never happy doing comics because he felt he was too slow to make a living at it, but if he could somehow have speeded up or found short cuts, he could have been a very good comics illustrator.
“Few people will have seen his contributions to a round robin blog several of us, including Dave Taylor, D’Israeli, Woodrow Phoenix and Ian Culbard did in 2008, but they fit in smoothly alongside the work of those professionals.
“Little known facts about Colin are he was a singer and played in a local band from time to time, and was captain of our music quiz team at the FACT bar in Liverpool. When we moved on to the Movie Quiz, it was at his enthusiastic instigation. After he died, some of us decided to carry on and renamed the team in his honour after something we always said if he hasn’t around – ‘Colin Would Know’.”
• Colin Fawcett died in 2012 but his blog is still live at fawcettcomix.blogspot.com
Our thanks to Robert Bown for prompting this item, Hass Yusuf, and Nigel Parkinson for his memories of Colin – check out Nigel’s blog at nigelparkinsoncartoons.blogspot.com
Web Links
• Nigel Parkinson pays tribute to Colin Fawcett, August 2012
Nigel tells us copies of Who Killed Round Robin?, which Colin jammed on, were also printed up as a floppy book – ask him or D’Israeli at Comic Cons if you’d like to see it!
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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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