Looking at it now, the style is crude and the gag very lame, but seeing it in print back in 1983 gave me a huge boost to my self esteem. At the time I was on the dole, having quit a dead-end office job, and had been trying to break into comics for a couple of years with no luck. (In retrospect it's understandable I made no initial headway because my work simply wasn't professional standard then.)
I'd been producing several fanzines and small press comics in order to gain experience and feedback, and Alan Moore (whom I knew from the Westminster Comic Marts and inevitable pub-meets) suggested I try Marvel UK with some ideas. He introduced me to Marvel editor Bernie Jaye in February 1983 and she asked me to submit some work. I soon came up with a variation on Marvel's "What If...?" series, sent in a bunch of cartoons, and at the April Westminster Comic Mart Bernie told me she'd be running them in The Daredevils from issue 7, published in June 1983. I was on cloud nine for the rest of the day!
The rate was very low; £5 a cartoon. Not enough to enable me to get off the dole at that point (and yes, I did declare it) but what it gave me was far more important, - the encouragement to carry on. Prior to that, I'd been on the verge of giving up my ambitions to be a cartoonist, but the euphoria of seeing my work in print gave me the confidence and incentive I needed. It's true what they say; once you've been published it gives other editors the assurance that you can do the job. After that, more work swiftly followed and I went full time self-employed in February 1984. I've been fortunate to work for many publications over the years; Oink!, Beano, Dandy, Sonic the Comic, Viz, Buster, Toxic, Doctor Who Magazine and many more. All thanks to Alan Moore and Bernie Jaye for having faith in me back in 1983.
Most importantly, I'd also like to thank all of you who have supported my work over the years, and I hope you continue to enjoy what I produce.
