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A British comic is a periodical published in the United Kingdom which contains comic strips. It is generally referred to as a '''comic''' or a '''comic magazine''', and historically as a '''comic paper'''. British comics are typically aimed at children, and are published weekly, although some are also published on a fortnightly or monthly schedule. The British comic The Dandy is the world's longest running comic, The Beano , another British comic, is the second longest running comic and the third longest running comic, Comic Cuts , is also British. OVERVIEW British comics typically differ from the American Comic Book in a variety of respects. Although historically they shared the same format size, based on a sheet of imperial paper folded in half, British comics have moved away from this size, with the Beano and The Dandy the last to adopt a standard magazine size in the late 1980s. Until this point, the British comic was also usually printed on newsprint, with black or a dark red used as the dark colour and the four colour process used on the cover. The Beano and The Dandy both switched to an all colour format in 1993. '', January 6 1940 edition]] Although originally aimed at the semi-literate, working class, the comic eventually came to be seen as childish, and hence was marketed towards children. In today's market in Britain comics intended for teenagers or adults are considered to be more or less stretching the medium beyond its primary audience. Historically, stories were of one or two pages in length, although they can now last longer and continue over a number of issues and period of time. Whilst some comics contain only strips, other publications have had a slightly different focus, providing readers with articles about, and photographs of, Pop Stars and Television / Film Actor s, plus more general articles about teenage life, whilst throwing in a few comic strips for good measure. Since the 1950s, it has been traditional that the most popular comics have annuals, usually published just in time for Christmas , and summer special editions. In British comics history there are some extremely long-running publications such as '' The Beano '' and '' The Dandy '' published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd , a newspaper company based in Dundee , Scotland . ''The Dandy'' began in 1937 and ''The Beano'' in 1938. They are both still going today. The '' Boys' Own Paper '' lasted from 1879 to 1967. The intellectual span of British comics over the years has stretched all the way from the cheerfully moronic obscenities of '' Viz '' (adult) to the political awareness of '' Crisis '' (adolescent to adult) and the sound educational values of '' Look And Learn '' (children's). There has also been a continuous tradition of black and white comics, published in a smaller page size format, many of them war titles like '' Air Ace '' inspiring youngsters with tales of the exploits of the Army , Navy and RAF mainly in the two World War s, also some Romance titles and some Western s in this format. HISTORY 19th Century In the 19th century, Story Paper s, also known as " Penny Dreadfuls ", served as entertainment for British children. Comic strips began to emerge slowly. '' Ally Sloper's Half Holiday '', (1884), is reputed to be the first comic strip magazine to feature a recurring character, and the first British comic as would be recognised today. In 1890 two more comic magazines debuted to the British public, Comic Cuts and Illustrated Chips, both published by Amalgamated Press . These magazines notoriously republished British and American material, previously published in newspapers and magazine, without permission. The success of these comics was such that Amalgamated's owner Alfred Harmsworth was able to launch both '' The Daily Mirror '' and '' The Daily Mail '' newspapers with the profits. 20th century Over the next thirty years or so comic publishers saw the juvenile market as the most profitable, and thus geared their publications accordingly, so that by 1914 most comics were aimed at eight to twelve year olds. The period between the two wars is notable mainly for the publication of annuals by Amalgamated Press, and also the emergence of DC Thomson , launching both ''The Beano'' and ''The Dandy'' in the late 1930s, as previously noted. It is these two titles, more than any other, that have come to define a comic in the British public's mind. Their successful mix of irreverence and slapstick led to many imitators, notably '' Topper '' and '' Beezer ''. However the originators of this format have outlasted all rivals, and are still published today. '', 12 October 1963 ]] During the 1950s and 1960s the most popular Comic Magazine for older age-group boys was '' The Eagle '' published by Hulton Press . ''The Eagle'' was published in a more expensive format, and was a gravure-printed weekly. This format was one used originally by ''Mickey Mouse Weekly'' during the 1930s. ''The Eagle's'' success saw a number of comics launched in a similar format, '' TV Century 21 '', ''Look & Learn'' & '' TV Comic '' being notable examples. Comics published in this format were known as "slicks". At the end of the 1960s these comics moved away from gravure printing, preferring offset litho for cost considerations due to decreasing readership. However the boys adventure comic was still popular and titles such as '' Valiant '' and '' Tiger '' published by IPC say new adventure heroes become stars, including '' Roy Of The Rovers '' who would eventually gain his own title. Odhams Press was a company which mainly printed new material which was adventure orientated, though it was the first to reprint American Marvel Comics material in titles such as '' Smash ''. The late 1960s and 1970s saw the Underground Comics movement inspiring two new comics in Britain. '' Oz '' and '' Nasty Tales '' were launched with the Underground premise of counter culture rebellion, and ''Oz'' notably featured the character '' Rupert The Bear '' performing sexual acts. The content of both magazines saw them tried at the Old Bailey under the Obscene Publications Act , with the ''Oz'' defendants convicted, a conviction overturned on appeal, and the ''Nasty Tales'' defendants cautioned. However, both these comics ceased publication soon after their trials, as much due to the social changes which saw the end of the counter culture as any effect of the court cases. In the 1970s, few comics in the "slick" format were launched, ''Countdown'' was one, a publication similar in content to ''TV 21'' and ''TV Comic''. ''Vulcan'', a reprint title, was another. Girl's titles which launched in the "slick" format in the 1960's, continued in that format, but others changed such as ''Diana'' and ''Judy'' continued into the 1970's as slicks but found themselves competing with titles such as ''Boyfriend'' and ''Blue Jeans'', which had changed content and now featured mainly product related articles and photo-strips. '', 26 February 1977]] The 1970s also saw comics became more action oriented. The first such title to launch was ''Warlord'', in 1974. Published by DC Thomson, it proved to be a success, and led to its then rival comics publisher IPC Magazines Ltd producing '' Battle Picture Weekly '', a comic noted to be grimmer in style than its competitor. ''Battle's'' success led to IPC launching another, similarly styled title, '' Action ''. ''Action'' became a success, but also became controversial due to its content. Complaints about the comics tone eventually led to questions being asked in the House Of Commons . Whilst an extremely popular title, its publishers IPC decided nonetheless to change the content, neutering the books appeal, and the title was eventually merged with ''Battle''. ''Action's'' position of popularity was eventually taken over by ''2000 AD'', launched in 1977. Created as a comic for older boys and girls, it also held appeal for teenage or even grown-up readers, and was again published by IPC. It was at this time that comics began to source artists from Spain, mainly for financial considerations. This trend was initially confined to the slicks, but continued through to the launch of '' 2000AD ''. Carlos Ezquerra is the most notable Spanish artist to have worked in British comics, having worked on both ''Battle'' and ''2000 AD'', and credited with the creation of the look of Judge Dredd . ''Judge Dredd'' and other ''2000 AD'' titles have been published in a Tabloid form known as a "programme", or "prog" for short. 1972 saw Marvel set up a publishing arm in the UK, which mixed reprinted strips with new material. '' The Daredevils '' and '' Captain Britain '' are the two most notable names, although the licensed material proved to be the more successful, with the '' Star Wars '' magazine lasting into the late 1980s, although changing its name in line with the latest movie release. In 1982 ''The Eagle'' was relaunched, this time including photo-strips, but still with Dan Dare as the lead story, although the comic moved him from the front page to the centre pages to allow a more magazine styled cover. Dez Skinn also launched '' Warrior '', possibly the most notable comic of the period, as it contained both the '' Marvelman '' and '' V For Vendetta '' strips, by Alan Moore . ''Warrior'' was a sort of British equivalent of '' Heavy Metal '' magazine. Marvelman was a Captain Marvel clone that Skinn acquired, although the legality of that acquisition has been questioned. In Moore's hands the strip became an "adult" style Superhero , and was later reprinted, with the story continued, in an American full-colour comic, with the name changed from "Marvelman" to "Miracleman" to avoid any lawsuits which Marvel Comics may have considered. ]]Adult comics also witnessed a slight resurgence first with ''psst!'', an attempt to market a French style monthly Bande Dessinée , and then with '' Escape Magazine '', published by Paul Gravett , former ''psst!'' promotions man. ''Escape'' is the other notable comic from this period, featuring early work from Eddie Campbell and Paul Grist , amongst others. Sadly, neither comic managed to survive the vagaries of the comics market, ''Warrior'' beset by copyright issues and Escape by lack of publisher interest. Most titles were eventually merged into each other through the late 1980s and early 1990s, as the popularity of comics waned, and although new titles were launched in this period, none seemed to find any sustainable audience. Notable comics from this period include '' Viz '', '' Deadline '', '' Toxic! '', '' Crisis '' and '' Revolver ''. '' issue number 57]]Viz began life in 1979 as a Fanzine style publication, before, in 1989, becoming the biggest selling magazine in the country. Based upon crude parodying of strips from The Dandy , amongst them '' Black Bag - The Fearless Border Collie Bin Liner '', a parody of ''The Dandy's'' '' Black Bob '' text story series about a Border Collie , Viz's popularity inspired similar themed titles, amongst them '' Oink! '', '' Smut '' and '' Zit '', although they failed to achieve ''Viz's'' longevity and have subsequently folded. Whilst ''Viz'' no longer sells as well as it did at the height of its popularity, it is still one of the United Kingdom's top selling magazines. ''Deadline'' was conceived by Steve Dillon and Brett Ewins , and mixed original strips with reprints of U.S. strips, notably '' Love & Rockets '' and articles and interviews on the British independent music scene of the time. Tank Girl was the most notable strip. ''Crisis'' was published by Fleetway Publications , the company formed from IPC's comics holdings, and then owned by Robert Maxwell . The comic was aimed at readers who had outgrown ''2000 AD''. It featured first works by Garth Ennis and Sean Phillips amongst others. 21st century Since the year 2000, the British market appears to have arrested its slow decline. However, there is no sign of any great growth in circulation for the few remaining titles, and certainly no sign of any new launches from mainstream publishers into the comics arena (see Life on the Island , Ninth Art article). An ever-increasing number of Small Press and Fanzine titles are being produced, such as '' Solar Wind '' or '' FutureQuake '', aided by the cheapness and increasingly professional appearance of Desk Top Publishing programs. It is from this scene that the UK's new talents now tend to emerge (e.g. Al Ewing , Henry Flint or Simon Spurrier ). THE REPRINT MARKET The comics reading public in Britain were not always able to get reliable supplies of American Comic Book s and yet have always enjoyed the different approach to comics writing from the other side of the Atlantic . So the lack of reliable supplies was supplemented by a variety of black and white reprints of Marvel 's 1950s monster comics, Fawcett's Captain Marvel , and some other characters such as Sheena , Mandrake The Magician , The Phantom etc. Several reprint companies were involved in repackaging American material for the British market, notably the importer and distributor Thorpe & Porter. Thorpe & Porter published similar formatted titles under various names. They were also re-publishing Dell's ''Four Color'' series and '' Classics Illustrated '' in the UK. Their material also included some work never before published in the US. They were eventually purchased by DC Comics , via their distributing arm, then known as IND., in 1964, going on to publish an official Superman/Batman reprint book, ''DC Special''. Alan Class is another notable name in this market, his company Alan Class & Co. Ltd purchasing L. Miller & Son's holdings in the early 1960s and continuing to produce black & white reprints until the late 1980s. When Captain Marvel ceased publication in the United States because of a Lawsuit the British reprint company, L. Miller & Son , just copied the entire Captain Marvel idea in every detail and began publishing their own knock-off under the names Marvelman and Young Marvelman , taking advantage of different copyright laws. These Clone versions continued for a few years and, as seen above, were revived years later ''Warrior''. An oddity of the trans-atlantic comics trade is '' Sheena, Queen Of The Jungle ''. This female version of Tarzan (with an element of H. Rider Haggard 's ''"She who must be obeyed"'' - She... Na!) was licensed from Will Eisner 's Eisner-Iger studio for a British and Australasian Tabloid , Wags in 1937. The success of this character led to the WAGS artwork being repackaged for publication by Fiction House magazines in the United States , thus exporting the character back to her country of origin. Currently ). LIST OF BRITISH COMICS There have been hundreds of comics in Britain over the years, including:
''See also: List Of DC Thomson Publications , List Of Comic Creators '' REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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