Latest artwork auction ends on Tuesday

Just a reminder that the auction of two pieces of my original art comes to a conclusion on Tuesday evening (2nd August). 

There's a Combat Colin from 1989, and a Daft Dimension from 2018. Thank you to those of you who have already placed bids and I hope a few more of you will be interested before the auctions end.

By the way, the Combat Colin page hasn't yellowed with age. The Bristol Board I used in the 1980s was slightly off-white compared to the bright white of today's Canson Bristol Board.

You can find my listings and more detailed photos of each item on eBay at this link:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/graphite47/m.html?item=203554298786

Enjoy the summer... and summer specials!

Not much new stuff to report on of late. Due to the effects of Covid and other health issues I haven't even drawn anything for three weeks apart from the quick sketch I showed last week. However I am determined to get back on that horse, or in this case the stool by my drawing board and crack on with work today.

In the meantime, don't forget that The Dandy Summer Special is still available in shops (if you're lucky). I did a full page Keyhole Kate strip for it plus a half page illustration. There's a photo above of the illustration when it was on my drawing board back in early February.

You can order The Dandy Summer Special from the DC Thomson Shop at this link:

https://www.dcthomsonshop.co.uk/the-dandy-summer-special-2022 

As we're fast approaching August now that means that the annuals will be out soon! Hopefully those of us who pre-ordered them will receive them over the coming days.

 

More artwork for sale!

I'm selling off some more of my original artwork. A Combat Colin strip from 1989 (Transformers, Marvel UK), and a Daft Dimension featuring Daleks from 2018 (Doctor Who Magazine). All bids very much appreciated. Auction ends next Tuesday (2nd August). Here's the link...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/graphite47/m.html?item=203554298786

Flashback: On this Day 35 years ago...

On this day in 1987, Oink! No.33 was published which was a personal milestone for me as it featured the first cover I'd done for a mainstream comic. A bit rough and ready but it suited the subject matter. 

A few years ago I wrote an article on the process behind the cover so here it is again...

Back in 1987 I was commissioned to draw the cover to Oink! No.33 featuring my Tom Thug character. This was the first time I'd drawn a cover for a mainstream comic, so it felt quite a privilege. 

As with any cover for a comic, the editor wanted to see a rough first, to make sure it had the impact they were looking for. You can see my pencil rough above, and all the notes and suggestions added in blue biro by editor Mark Rodgers. Mark wanted the cover to be less "Whizzery", a reference to the comparatively pedestrian humour of Whizzer and Chips, and suggested the kids piling out of school should be "less cute" and "more punky / revolting". Mark also suggested barbed wire on top of the school wall, and a squashed teacher behind the gate that Tom Thug kicks open.

Bearing Mark's notes in mind, I set to work producing the finished art, and here it is...

Now, you'll notice that there are a couple of blobs in the sky. This photo is of the art after it was returned to me. What happened was that the Oink! studios had a leaky roof and after a torrential downpour one day some of the artwork got soaked! My cover was one of the pages that was fortunately salvageable, as the water damage would be covered up by the logo and topline (which were added onto an acetate overlay as shown below)...

...and here's the final result in print, from 35 years ago today...

in retrospect my style was still developing and there's parts I'd do differently now (and I think Photoshop colouring would improve it) but I was very proud to see my first cover on the shelves of newsagents all those years ago.

Contributing to Oink! was a very happy and productive time for me and I was in every issue. At the same time I was also doing Robo-Capers in The Transformers and Combat Colin in Action Force. Life was good back then.

If you want to see a peek at some of the other contents for this issue, then hop over to Phil Boyce's OiNK! Blog where he's reviewed this comic today...

https://oink.blog/2022/07/25/oink-33-summer-thug-life/

 

This Comic Is HAUNTED - Kickstarter launched

I'm contributing a page to a brand new independent horror comic - This Comic Is Haunted, - which launched its Kickstarter on Saturday. 

My strip will be a self-contained full pager and I'll reveal more about it at a later date. (I'm still fine-tuning the script at the moment, delayed because I was ill.) 

The comic is edited by Dave Heeley of The77 and other contributors include Alan Hebden, Bambos Georgiou, Jo Heeley, Andrew Richmond, Ian Stopforth and more.

Please support this new venture and visit the Kickstarter page to see the various pledge levels...

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pandora1/this-comic-is-haunted

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The Dreaded Lurghi

As some of you know, two weeks ago I tested positive for COVID. That's the LFT photo above, with that grim dark line giving no doubt that I was positive. Symptoms always vary from person to person of course. First I had a really sore throat and lost my voice (in addition to feeling unwell), then after a few days my voice returned but I lost my senses of smell and taste and felt totally exhausted.

Now, the positive line has virtually vanished at last but I'm still without those two senses, have a cough, and feel woozy and get tired easily. I'll recover eventually no doubt, and I've fared better than many, but just wanted to say that Covid can definitely get a grip on the system. Yes, it is mild for some, but it shouldn't be dismissed as harmless for everyone.

Anyway, my apologies for not posting much about current work recently. I haven't actually done any drawing or scripting for two weeks as I didn't feel well enough to concentrate on it properly or achieve a standard that was satisfactory. It still feels like my antibodies are battling the Covid virus like a scene from Georgie's Germs in Wham! comic. (See my version of that below. The first drawing I've done in a fortnight.) That also means I haven't earned anything for a fortnight either of course. (No sick pay for the self employed.) I feel a little bit brighter today but it comes and goes so I'll focus on what I can this week and hopefully get back in the game!

Best wishes and good thoughts to others out there fighting this annoying virus. 

Alan Grant

Enniskillen, 2016. Me, Laura Howell, Alan Grant, Clint Langley, Sue Grant.

 

I'm very sorry to hear that the writer Alan Grant died this morning. His wife Sue posted the news on Facebook today.

A prolific and always entertaining writer on 2000AD, Batman, and numerous other comics over a long and very respected career. He was 73. 

Alan was also a familiar face at various comic conventions over the decades. The last time I saw him and Sue was in 2017 at the Enniskillen Comic Fest in Northern Ireland. 

I great guy who always had time for fans and fellow pros alike, Alan will be much missed by the comics community. My deepest sympathies to Sue, his family, and many friends.  

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-62255222 

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Cheeky Monkeys!

Twenty years ago in 2002, Toontastic Publishing launched Lucky Bag Comic. The novelty was that it was a comic bagged with gifts and sweets and you didn't know what you were getting until you opened the bag! 

Little were we to know it'd soon become the industry norm! It worked for Lucky Bag Comic because that was its USP but when everyone started doing it, the shelves just became a mess of bulky plastic bags.  

Anyway, back to 2002, and the 32 page Lucky Bag Comic featured all new content every issue by a variety of humour creators including Mark Bennington, Joe Matthews, Nigel Kitching and Ian Rimmer. Plus me! My contributions were The Horror Bags (a family of gormless monsters) and, for the eaerly issues, The Cheeky Monkeys! I didn't create the characters. I think they were the invention of the editors James Hill and Rob Sharp. They were fun to do.

Above is the Cheeky Monkeys strip from issue No.1. I think I wrote the script but I'm not sure. Someone else coloured and lettered it, but I definitely drew it. You might recognise the security guard. Yes, he bares a striking similarity to a grown up Tom Thug from Oink! and Buster. Could it be him? I couldn't possibly say, considering Toontastic don't own Tom Thug. :) Just a bit of fun to imagine that's one of the jobs Tom would do when he grew up. (Although any job of Tom Thug's would be short lived due to his incompetence.) 

I didn't do Cheeky Monkeys for long. Another artist took over after a few issues. I carried on with The Horror Bags for about 25 issues or so as I recall. I think the comic itself lasted about three years.  

You can read more about Lucky Bag Comic in this blog post of mine from a couple of years ago:

http://lewstringercomics.blogspot.com/2020/10/remembering-lucky-bag-comic.html

 

The77 No.8 is out!

The eighth issue of top indie comic The77 is now available to order. Sadly because of Covid I wasn't well enough to get Sgt. Shouty done for this issue but it will appear in issue 9. However there is a Sgt. Shouty full page pin up included. (Sample of it above.)

You can order The77 and all back issues from these links:

https://the77comic.bigcartel.com/products 

https://getmycomics.com/ 

Cover by Andrw Sawyers.

 

The heat is on!

Perfect timing! Here's a preview of part of my next Daft Dimension strip that I drew weeks ago. At the time I drew it I expected it might be warm this week, but I didn't know it'd be this hot! (38 degrees C today and tomorrow!) See the full strip in Doctor Who Magazine No.580 this Thursday!

Stay cool and safe, everyone! I'm still testing positive for Covid so I'm not leaving the house anyway but if you're out and about I hope you can find some shade! 

Here's the cool issue of Doctor Who Magazine to look for this Thursday. Available from WH Smiths, selected newsagents, supermarkets, and comics shops.

 

Pups take a rest

Here's a preview of next week's Pup Parade that will appear in Beano No.4145 on sale Wednesday 20th July.

Sadly it'll be the last Pup Parade for the forseeable future as the strip is taking a rest after its 20 week run. I've no idea when it'll return. 

I've enjoyed being back in the Beano again this year and I hope I'm commissioned for more work in the future. At the moment though there's nothing in store (apart from a full page one-off about another character that will appear in a few weeks time). 

As regards other work, The Daft Dimension will continue in Doctor Who Magazine as far as I know. 

Regarding private commissions, Covid still has a grip on me and it's exhausted me. I hope to be well enough soon to get back to drawing.

 

 

This week's Beano

 Little glimpse at a panel from my latest Pup Parade strip. 

In Beano No.4144, out now.  

LFCC 2022

Thanks to everyone who dropped by at LFCC at the weekend. It was good to catch up with friends I hadn't seen for three years or more and meet the readers.

Sadly I had to come home early on Sunday as I was feeling so unwell. I'd tested negative for Covid every day but... when I got home and did another test it was most definitely positive. (I must have caught it before I went to LFCC.)

Feeling rough at present and very tired so unfortunately this post won't be as lengthly as I'd hoped. Will list names etc in another post when I'm more with it. Main thanks to Tim Pilcher, Amy, and the team for running the comics zone. It was good fun.

 

 

It's the London Film and Comic Con this weekend!

Click image to see it full size.

I'm very much looking forward to the London Film and Comic Con (LFCC) this weekend at Olympia in Kensington. My first London event in three years. It's a three day show that runs from Friday 8th July to Sunday 10th July!

As you can see from the image above there will be a lot of guests from the world of comics attending so I hope you'll come and join us.

I'll have a table in the Comic Zone on the first floor which you can see in this graphic...

I'll be bringing along my comics to sell as well as drawing sketches on request. I may bring along some original art too if I have time to sort some out (and if it's small enough to fit in my case without damaging it). I have a card reader now so credit cards are accepted.

On Saturday at 11.00 AM I'll be on a panel with Rachael Smith, Nigel Parkinson, and Ben Dickson as we discuss what goes into creating comics for kids.

On Sunday at 3.00 PM I'll be on stage talking to Dave Gibbons and Tim Pilcher about Dave's forthcoming autobiography Confabulation. 

For full info about the event, see the LFCC website at this link:

https://londonfilmandcomiccon.com/

For the list of comics guests and their details see this link:

https://londonfilmandcomiccon.com/guests-main/guests-comic-creators/

Hope to see you there!

Pups at the beach!

In last week's Beano we saw the Bash Street Dogs set off on their travels, and in the next Beano we see where they've arrived at. Yes, they're at the beach. (Lucky them!) You can see the full Pup Parade mini-strip in Beano No.4143 when it goes on sale in shops on Wednesday 6th July!

 

 

Mighty Macc-Pow Memories

Thanks to Marc and Jane Jackson for a brilliant MACC-POW! yesterday in Macclesfield and for looking after guests very well. (Thanks to Marc's pal Tristam Maddocks for the lift from the station. I couldn't walk up that cobbled hill very well with current Tendinitis.) Good to see Ché Michael again as Spider-Man meeting me at the station!  

It started off quietly as most shows often do but became quite busy from mid-day and I enjoyed drawing various sketches for people. 

Photo by Kevin J. Lyons after I did this Dalek sketch for him.

What really made the day was catching up with friends such as Laura Howell, Tim Quinn, Sean Phillips, Dan Whitehead, Charlie Adlard, Emmeline Pidgen, Sonia Leong, Kev F. Sutherland, John Jackson and more, albeit too briefly in some cases. Good to meet new people too such as artist Sayra Begum and Tim's publisher Iman Kakai-Lazell. 

Charlie Adlard, me, and Tim Quinn.

Speaking of Tim, I must give a plug to his latest book, Monster Marvel Memories which is a chunky volume covering the comics careers of Tim Quinn and Dicky Howett and the work they produced for Marvel, IPC, and many other publishers (and also Tim's work with other artists such as Charlie Adlard and Steve Parkhouse). The book is like a scrapbook of memories and strips compiled by Iman Kakai-Lazell and is worth a place on any comic fan's bookshelf! You can order it directly from the publisher at this link:

https://moochinaboutltd.bandcamp.com/merch/monster-marvel-memories-by-tim-quinn-dicky-howett