Daft Daleks are back next week!

Here's an advance preview of a snippet of one panel from my next Daft Dimension strip. See the full story in Doctor Who Magazine No.537, - on sale Thursday 4th April! Available from WH Smith, supermarkets, newsagents, and comic shops. 

New convention date: LFCC for July!

One of my favourite conventions, the London Film and Comic Con takes place over three days in July and I'm very happy to say that I've been invited as a guest again. 

The dates for this year's show are Friday 26th July to Sunday 28th July inclusive and the venue is once again the huge Olympia building. If previous events are anything to go by the weekend will be very busy so order your tickets now! 

There will be loads of comic creators there, as well as many actors from film and TV. I know that some people are tired of "comic cons" that feature very few comics guests but LFCC isn't like that. There'll be around 70 professional comics guests, plus small press, so this is the place to be! 

Find out more at their Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/LondonFilmandComicCon/

...and on their website for ticket details etc:
http://www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com/index.php

They will be announcing more guests soon!

(Yes, I know they used a Nigel Parkinson drawing of Dennis in the advert but I have drawn Dennis in the past, and it's just to represent The Beano anyway.)

Advance peek: Keyhole Kate (Dandy Annual 2020)

Here's an advance look at a panel from one of the Keyhole Kate strips I've drawn for The Dandy Annual 2020. 

I've written and drawn three full page strips featuring Kate for the book, which will be published around July/August of this year. I've been drawing the adventures of Keyhole Kate for the annual for seven years now, and I still consider it a privilege to work on one of The Dandy's original characters! (In case you didn't know, Keyhole Kate debuted in The Dandy No.1 back in 1937!) I also coloured and lettered the strip, and I designed the logo, so it's all me!

How can a character who's main attribute is snooping through old-style keyholes be relevant in the 21st Century? Well, it's not always easy to find a way, but that's the fun of it, and I think it still works. Kate's more manic, more obsessed than ever, and you'll see what she's up to next when The Dandy Annual 2020 is published later this year!

Cor!! Buster preview

Here's a preview of a panel from the strips I've drawn for the Cor!! Buster Humour Special. Top photo is from my original art at the inking stage. Underneath is the published version, after I'd coloured it in Photoshop (and filled in the solid blacks) and Leila O'Millar had lettered it. 

You can see more from this forthcoming comic on my other blog here:
https://lewstringer.blogspot.com/2019/03/preview-cor-buster-humour-special.html

New feature series for Comic Scene

The latest issue of Comic Scene is in the shops now and I've joined the team as one of the new writers on the mag. Every month I'll be writing about some aspect of British humour comics in the new Corker! section. For the first one it's a speedy run through the Game Changers of the Funnies, - covering some of the most influential artists in the history of children's humour comics in Britain.

There are loads of other features too of course, and you can find out more at the Comic Scene website here:
https://comicscene.org 

Cor!! and Buster Special - coming soon!

It's the International Day of Happiness and I'm happy 'cos I've just received my complimentary copies of the Cor!! Buster Special! Here's a glimpse of the strip I drew, and the cover by Neil Googe. It'll be in the shops on 17th April, or you could order it directly from the publisher along with the other specials they're doing this year:
https://treasuryofbritishcomics.com/catalogue/

Number Six (and his Unmutual Tricks)

Back in 1996 I created this page for a fanzine devoted to The Prisoner TV series. The background story to it being that, as The Prisoner never had its own comic strip in the 1960s, I was speculating as to how it might have been adapted as a humour strip. Unlikely of course, but it was fun to do!

Sadly, the "Be Seeing You" sign that Number Six used in the series (shown in the title panel) has very unwelcome fascist similarities today. Just thought I'd better mention that before some moron thinks it supports those white supremacist idiots! 

The original art is owned by the commissioning editor so this is just a photograph but I might redraw it one day. For now though, seen for the first time outside of that fanzine's readership, here's Number Six and his Unmutual Tricks! (If you're not familiar with the old Prisoner TV show the humour might be lost to you, so apologies for that, but hopefully there's enough of you to "get" it.) 

I haven't been involved with Prisoner fandom for years but if you're a fan of the show (and of Portmeirion, the village in Wales where it was filmed) I recommend The Unmutual website. It's a hive of information!
https://www.theunmutual.co.uk

"Tour dates" for 2019

Here are the comic conventions I'll be at this year. To find out more info on each, check out the links in the sidebar on your right. 

Hope to see some of you at these shows! 

New event: Worcester Comics Festival

If you're in Worcester on August 17th, drop into the Worcester Comics Festival, an all new comics convention at the Worcester Arts Workshop! I'm pleased to reveal I'll be one of the guests so come along and say hello, buy a comic or three, or commission a sketch. See you there! 

More info:
https://www.facebook.com/Worcester-Comics-Festival-1724385314334356/

Cor!! Buster - behind the scenes

© Rebellion Publishing Ltd.

Bad Penny and Gus Gorilla will be amongst the classic characters returning in Rebellion's next special. Here's a comparison between a section of a panel in its roughed out stage and the finished version. See the full story in the Cor!! and Buster Humour Special on 17th April!

Back in the VIZ

There's a new issue of Viz in the shops today, - and I'm very pleased to be back in its pages. You'll find a new adventure with Felix and his Amazing Underpants on page 45 as our half-naked hero gets involved in a Brexit-related jape. Artwork and initial plot by me, script by Graham Dury and Simon Thorp. 

I first worked for Viz about 30 years ago, and became a regular contributor in the 1990s until just a few years ago when other commitments kept me busy elsewhere. I'd been intending to submit something again for a long time and finally got around to it. 

Whether I'll be a regular contributor again remains to be seen, as each idea submission has always been on a case by case basis. Plus they have more contributors than they used to, so there's some fierce competition out there! I'm currently working on a script for the next issue though, so fingers crossed! 

Viz No.284 is in newsagents and supermarkets across the UK from today, price £3.70. Here's the cover, by Simon Thorp, to look out for...

Robo-Capers can be yours!

I'm selling another one of my Robo-Capers originals on eBay this week. This is the actual artwork (not a print) that I drew back in late 1986 (published in 1987) for Marvel UK's Transformers comic. 

Black ink on Bristol Board. 

You can follow the auction (and hopefully bid for it yourself) at this link:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ROBO-CAPERS-ORIGINAL-ART-BY-LEW-STRINGER-TRANSFORMERS-1987/202620911553

Good luck!

New convention announcement!

It's a pleasure to be able to announce that I'll be one of the guests at Oldham Comic Con on Saturday 11th May at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in Oldham. This is the third annual event for the con but the first one I'll be attending. I was invited last year but had to back out at the last minute 'cos of flu so I'm really looking forward to being there this time! 

Other guests include Laura Howell, Aneke, Ian Richardson, Mike Collins, Al Ewing, Simon Myers, Amy Chu, Dylan Teague, Jon Davis-Hunt, and more! All good people and great comics creators, so come along and join us!

More info at the Oldham Comic Con Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/events/325271371350982/permalink/401995937011858/

New DEREK THE TROLL this weekend

After skipping an issue last month, Derek the Troll is back in Goof! on Saturday 9th March with a two page episode! I wanted to make sure subscribers didn't have a Derek shortage in their package so I've made up for his absence last month with a double length episode this time. 

Can Derek escape from a watery doom at the hands of the Doris the pirate? Find out in Goof! No.8, exclusively online tomorrow!

You can subscribe to Goof! at £12 for 12 issues, - and all the previous issues are immediately available when you sign up! Goof! is full of humour strips from a wide variety of creators, and is aimed at all ages, - so get in on the action today!
https://www.goofcomic.co.uk

Support humour comics!

Just a reminder that my self-published comics are still available to buy directly from my website. Combat Colin! Derek the Troll! and Pedantic Stan! Top quality printing and great reproduction of classic strips from the 1980s/90s. 

http://www.lewstringer.com/page7.htm

Daft Macra!

In my Daft Dimension strip this month I've chosen to focus on the Macra, the rarely seen Doctor Who monster that is being revived in an animated version of The Macra Terror, coming soon to Blu Ray / DVD. (The original 1967 episodes were lost and the new animated reconstruction uses the audio recordings.)

You can see the strip in Doctor Who Magazine No.536, on sale in WH Smith, supermarkets, selected newsagents and comic shops from Thursday 7th March. £5.99

The end of EPIC!

Here's a preview of my final Hygiene High strip for D.C. Thomson's Epic magazine. The publication ends this week with issue No.157. 

Hygiene High, about a school for stinky kids, has been running since Epic No.127, two years ago. It's written by Niall Murray and drawn by me. I can't say I'll really miss the "gross humour" aspect as I'd been doing that sort of stuff for Epic and Toxic for years, but I hope to find more regular work to replace the material I've lost. 

Epic started out as BeanoMax in 2007, and was later retitled Dennis and Gnasher Magazine, then Dennis and Gnasher's Epic Magazine, and finally Epic. Twelve years is a pretty respectable run for a magazine these days. As far as I know there are no plans to replace it with a new comic.

35 years in comics

I was wondering why today's date felt relevant, then I remembered... I sold my first professional cartoons in 1983 but I wasn't earning enough to turn pro, then it was on this day, March 2nd 1984, when I went full time and registered as self employed. 35 years to the day, freelancing in comics, and I've met some great people along the way, including many of you who have become firm friends. 

I've also encountered people along the way who have stated that it's impossible to earn a living solely doing British comics... and admittedly there have been tough times, but I've been doing comics week in, week out, for 35 years and managed to pay off my mortgage a few years ago so it is possible, and many others will have similar stories to mine. 

It's never an easy ride being self employed, and a lonely path to take, but if you have a passion for something you have to follow it. Each year is unpredictable and you never know what ideas and characters will spring forth, what opportunities will come along. For all the highs and lows I'd still rather be doing this for a living than anything else, so thanks for all your encouragement and friendship over the years. Onward into the unknown and hopefully more daft comics! (The photo above is from 1985 but it's the closest one to the date. That was when I was still living with my mum so the floral wallpaper wasn't my choice. :))

Comic Fest in the news

Had a mention in a Manchester newspaper this week in regards to the Manchester Comic Fest where I'll be a guest along with Nigel Parkinson, David Leach and others on April 27th. 

Hope to see you there! To book your tickets, go to this website:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/manchester-comic-fest-tickets-55129615163