I'm pleased to say that after a year's absence I'll be back in the Beano next week with the start of a new series of Pup Parade mini-strips. Very happy to be working on these characters again. I've no idea how long it'll run for but I've done about nine so far.
My first series of Pup Parade was in 2016 but of course the characters have been around far longer than that, dating back to the 1960s when Gordon Bell was the original artist. In more recent times, Steve Beckett and Nigel Parkinson have been amongst the artists drawing the strip before it was handed over to me six years ago.
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| How the art looked before completion. |
As some newer, young readers won't be familar with the Bash Street Dogs I thought this first one should feature all of them and serve as a sort of introductory piece. It's a bit restrictive to have nine characters in three-panel mini strips every week so after this one I'll focus on two or three each week, with every Pup taking turns to be the main focus.
Beano No.4126, in shops on Wednesday 9th March. £2.99. Here's the cover by Nigel Parkinson to look out for...
i see they put the price up to pay for you. just out of interest can you reveal what % you artists get from sales?
ReplyDeleteYou're assuming too much Craig. Contributors receive a flat rate for each job, no percentage of sales. The cover price is determined by other factors such as the cost of paper, printing, distribution, and the percentage the retailers take.
ReplyDeleteSo, no, they didn't put the price up to pay for me!
ReplyDeleteGreat to see you back in the Beano Lew!
ReplyDeleteThanks Leo. I hope it's for a good run this time.
ReplyDeleteThe price actually went up from £2.75 a couple of months ago. It's to be expected every so often.
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to see that as well as Pup Parade, there's a few completely new characters starting in this issue. The mini strips are a good way to test out new ideas.
Subscriber here, so received the comic today (saturday) :D
ReplyDeleteI must say, I have mixed feelings Lew, which doesn't really have anything to do with you tho.
To start with, enjoyed all the new strips. Yours was easily the best imo. It's great to see the beano produce new strips. I have been a sub for almost a year, and they've pretty much stuck with the same current lineup. Aside from 1 Ball boy allstar strip in the summer. So these strips are very welcome.
Now here's why I'm a little annoyed. First off, they promote 3 of the new strips on the front page, but they don't promote pup parade? The most recognisable "new" strip of all. I just don't understand it. They should promote your new strip lew, older readers would instantly recognise it, more sales could be achieved etc.
My other grumble. 3-4 panels for each new strip? Why so little? They have a full page dedicated to jokes next to it, there is a full page cross word, a full page art challenge, etc. There is 15 full pages in all of non-comic material... surely they could have given you and other artists full pages of your own, or at least half a page like JJ and Angel face? Come on Beano.
I know this has nothing to with you Lew in terms of how they set up choose material, etc, but god damnit, your work is worth more than 3 panels. lol.
Anyhow, rant over. I suppose we should be grateful for small mercies. At least your back, and a v good start to the strip. lets hope it's a long run and who knows maybe they'll consider lengthening the strips. I hope so at any rate!
Thanks Anon, although I wish you'd put your name to it because as your nice comments champion my corner so well I'm sure some will think I've written it myself. :) The feature pages help balance the budget, so replacing them with strips wouldn't be feasible unfortunately. Plus there are readers who like the activity pages. As for the Pups not getting a mention on the cover... yes, it would have been good. Perhaps they'll get a mention on a future cover. Would be nice.
ReplyDeleteThanks James. Yes, always good to see new characters. Look out for one of them turning up in Pup Parade in May.
glad you are back....hopefully no more endings...you are too good to not be in The Beano..
ReplyDeleteThanks Peter. Much appreciated. I hope so but I know this business is such a roller coaster. I miss the days when a strip would run for years and you'd have peace of mind; four years on Combat Colin, ten years on Tom Thug, sixteen years on Team Toxic, etc.
ReplyDeleteThree panels? You deserve a full page. What's going on?
ReplyDeleteThere are 17 artists working on the Beano at present so it's just a matter of space I think. The main characters such as Dennis, Minnie, Roger, Bash Street, get more pages because they're the core of the comic. It would be good to have even a half page but I'm grateful for the mini-strip.
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