Rogue Trooper history for sale

Hello, I'm the Emperor, one of the first three people to receive a physical Krill Tro Thargo from the Mighty Tharg himself "for services to thrill-power". So the downthetubes team have drafted me in to provide some context to developments at the Galaxy's Greatest Comic, as well as monitoring projects the droids may get up to elsewhere, the small press activity that spins off from the 2000AD forums and pretty much anything else of interest that catches my eye.

The current big blip on the thrill-radar is the fact that a seller on eBay has put up some impressive pieces of Rogue Trooper history for sale. The image above is an early concept design by Dave Gibbons that has the seeds of the eventual design present, just under a thick layer of armour. Below we see another one which retains a slightly Neanderthal look to the features but frees him from all that extra weight:

These aren't totally unknown, having being revealed in a feature on the series' creation in the 1983 2000AD Annual:

However, the seller does have another intriguing document, the original pitch, which they have redacted as an incentive for fans to get bidding:

So we'll go over to them for a description of the contents:

This is the original typed submission page sent to 2000AD to 'sell' the "FUTURE WAR" story called "Hero", no, it's "Sergeant Sig...", "The Killin...", I mean "Rogue Trooper". Actually, lots of names for the series were suggested on this page, and most long since forgotten (really, check the Rogue Trooper volumes - they've no idea!), as well as secrets about his background that were either abandoned, or never explored.
In order to possibly keep these secrets secret for another 30 years, never to be revealed in any 2000AD history book, the details on this page have been redacted in that way popular with Governments, and will only be revealed to the bidder when they recieve [sic] it ...

All of which adds up to a nice slice of 2000AD history, but buying the lot could prove expensive. Hopefully, a fan will pick it up and preserve it for posterity, but with Dave Gibbons' name attached to it and a Rogue Trooper film in development it could easily disappear into an anonymous collectors hoard (it may even get split up, which would be a pity). We will keep an eye on this and see if we can find out what happens to it.

V for Vendetta Original Art on eBay

The artwork for V for Vendetta
offered on eBay

I'm selling an original piece of art from Alan Moore and David Lloyd's classic story V for Vendetta on eBay.

With the byline "We shouldn't have to live like this" - a line from the page - the art was first first published in Warrior Issue 19 (June 1984) and forms part of Book 2, Chapter 6: Variety.

The art came to me via David after I helped him with some pre-production work for another of his wonderful comics, Espers, back in the 1980s.

Initially appearing in Dez Skinn's Warrior, V for Vendetta was ultimately completed as a ten-issue dystopian comic book series published by Vertigo. It's a story set in a dystopian future United Kingdom imagined from the 1980s to about the 1990s in which a mysterious revolutionary calling himself "V" works to destroy the totalitarian government, profoundly affecting the people he encounters.

The page as it appeared
in print in Warrior

The series depicts a near-future Britain after a nuclear war, which has left much of the world destroyed, though most of the damage to Britain is indirect, via floods and crop failures. In this future, a fascist party called "Norsefire" has exterminated its opponents in concentration camps and now rules the country as a police state.

"V", an anarchist revolutionary dressed in a Guy Fawkes mask, begins an elaborate, violent, and intentionally theatrical campaign to murder his former captors, bring down the government, and convince the people to rule themselves.

On the page being auctioned, after watching another gangster get beaten to death for the crime of speaking the truth, Evey asks her companion, Gordon, "We shouldn't have to live like this.  Should we?"

Gordon's answer:  "No, kid, we shouldn't.  What are you going to do about it?"

"In one of the best word-image juxtapositions in a comic that's loaded with them, V watches over this exchange," notes fan Marc Singer on his blog, "departing silently after hearing Gordon's complacent, defeatist answer."

Detail from the page for sale from V for Vendetta

This is original art by David Lloyd in very good condition. Be warned: I set a high reserve on this, which it has already met, given the amounts past pieces have sold for - and I will be making a donation to from the hoped-for sale to "Cartoon Classroom", a project I know is dear to David's heart.

The ambition of the Classroom is to provide a means of centralising all information available on the study of cartooning and sequential art in the UK and Ireland, and to facilitate easy access to tutors in these subjects for all recognised educational institutions.

• View the item here on eBay


• More about V for Vendetta on 'The Shadow Gallery'

Peter Davison Doctor Who Comic Art for sale: The Moderator

I'm reluctantly selling, via eBay, an original page from Episode Three of the Peter Davison story 'The Moderator', published in Doctor Who Magazine Issue 87, cover dated April 1984, drawn by Steve Dillon.

The story, written by Steve Parkhouse, sees the Doctor and his new friend Gus arrive on Celeste. a world populated by intelligent soldiers. But all is not what it seems. The soldiers are under the control of the sinister Moderator who is using the gift of Celeste to create a link to Earth. Can The Doctor stop him inhabiting another planet?

The page offered shows the amphibious Josiah Dogbolter trying to cut a deal with the Doctor for his TARDIS, which gets short shrift.

The final frame of the page is a classic of the DWM comics, in my opinion.

The The Tides of Time graphic album. The story also inspired events in The Incomplete Death's Head series, which also involved The Doctor.

The art is in good condition with no speech bubbles missing, although they have coloured with age.

Hopefully this is a page that will appeal to both Davison and Dillon fans.

• View the item on eBay


• More about 'The Moderator' on the TARDIS Index File

Tube Surfing: Kapow Comic convention, War Comix and Mag, Scientist

Kapow! Comic Con Trailer from kapowcomiccon on Vimeo

• Mark Millar has announced a new London-based comics convention, Kapow (9-10th April 2011) which will host the first Stan Lee Awards ceremony (see Newsarama and Bleeding Cool for more news). The guest line up includes John Romita Jr., Andy Diggle, Jock, Steve Dillon, Duncan Fegredo, David Hine, Simon Furman, John McCrea and Kieron Gillen, plus Frank Quitely, Lenil Francis Yu and Dave Gibbons.
If you buy your ticket before 31st December 2010 you'll be entered into a prize draw for your name and likeness to appear in an issue of Kick-Ass 2. More information at: www.kapowcomiccon.com

• Along with titles such as Luke Pearson's beautiful-looking story Hildafolk, London-based publishers NoBrow recently released A Graphic Cosmogony for sale online, and it's now on sale in all good book shops. Paul Gravett, organiser of Comica festival describes it as "their most ambitious publication yet, the story of creation retold by 24 international artists."
Contributing artists include Brecht Vandenbroucke, Ben Newman, Jon McNaught, Stuart Kolakovic, Mike Bertino, Mikkel Sommers, Jack Teagle, Andrew Rae and many others. More info here

•  As part of ongoing promotion for his War Comix project, Sean Duffield sent us this fun Rom Spaceknight cartoon. We suspect there's a tip of the hats to the latest Wikileaks revelations, too...

• Ace artist Rian Hughes has been interviewed by Comic Book Resources about the US edition of Yesterday's Tomorrows, which is being published by Image Comics in December. The collection includes his and Grant Morrision's take on Dan Dare, published in Revolver and Crisis in the 1980s.
"Grant plays on this nostalgia for a simpler, less politically complicated age," Hughes says of the story he and Morrison strove to tell with Dare, "while mirroring the fate of his original creator, Frank Hampson, who lost control of the copyright and made very little money from the merchandising success of the property, living in reduced circumstances in later life. A sad story."

• Lancaster comics artist David Hughes (no relation to the above) has written a computer game for the Sinclair Spectrum (no, really, the Sinclair Spectrum - I had no idea it was still being used!) based around his Norman character on his blog, details can be found at www.stonechatproductions.blogspot.com on how to play.  "It's linked to comics in that there is a prize for the first person to complete it before Christmas will get a selection of my comics," says David. Reader will recall David's book Thomas Wogan is Dead has been released for iPad by Tabella so he's no stranger to eComics.

• A unique Ron Embleton painting of actor David McCallum as Man from U.N.C.L.E. agent Illya Kuryakin has been relisted on eBay after it failed to meet its £250 reserve on first offering. As we previously reported, the painting was a prize offered in Lady Penelope comic in the 1960s. View the auction here

• Ace cartoonist Malcolm Kirk recently launched a new web comic, Mag, Scientist, which he tells us he hopes to update at least once a week on his blog. Check out the first episode here

• Fans of free gifts given away with British comics are sure to enjoy Lew Stringer's three-part series of articles about such items on his blog (Part 1 here). Lew traces the giveaways back to the 1930s, noting that many were more refined than the cheap plastic toys given away today.

• And finally... the winner of our recent Grandville Mon Amour competition is Michael Charlton from Lancaster, England. We asked you who was the right wing French Prime Minister in Bryan Talbot's Grandville? The answer is Jean-Marie Lapin. Congratulations to Michael - the book is on its way. Read our review of Grandville Mon Amour here

Unique Ron Embleton Man from U.N.C.L.E. art offered on eBay

Illya in Oils by Ron Embleton

A one off oil painting by much-admired TV Century 21 and Wulf the Briton comics artist Ron Embleton of David McCallum as Man from U.N.C.L.E.'s Illya Kuryakin is currently being offered on eBay.

The Complete Gerry Anderson Comics history site, sourcing information from a 1966 issue of Retail Newsagent, notes the art was specially commissioned for a competition for TV Century 21's sister comic Lady Penelope, and was won by 10-year-old Lynda Barlow of Woolton, Liverpool (below).

Competition winner
Lynda Barlow

The competition, which ran in Issue 7 of the best-selling comic in March 1966, challenged readers to match the mood of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. star with six photographs of him from the smash hit spy show.

Ron Embleton, who died in 1988, was not the regular artist on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. strip in the comic and is perhaps better known for strips such as Stingray (for TV Century 21) and Wicked Wanda (for Penthouse). His much-admired strip work also featured in titles such as Express Weekly,  Princess, Boy's World and Look and Learn.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. strip was drawn by Juan González Alacreu, an artist now better known for his fine art, who Bear Alley notes also worked on The Avengers for the girls comic Diana and many war library titles.

The Lady Penelope comic itself was a hugely successful title, less reliant on stories set in the future with lead character Lady Penelope more of an "action person" than she had been in her TV Century 21 strips, according to editor Gillian Allan, to make the stories more geared to her, and more interesting. "She was the heroine of the magazine, after all."

Other strips in the comic during its run included The Monkees, Daktari, Marina, Girl from the Sea and Bewitched.

The competition was part of ongoing promotions by publisher City Magazines to promote the comic, along with the publisher's other titles, and serves to illustrates how much effort was put into ensuring continued high sales. That hard work paid off: even in 1968, two years after the title launch, records show the comic was selling 315,662 copies a week.

• The auction closes on 22nd November 2010.

• View the item on eBay (£250 reserve)

• The story Lady Penelope comic on the Complete Gerry Anderson Comic History

• Lady Penelope comic: Wikipedia Entry


• The Man from U.N.C.L.E. art by Juan González Alacreu on Peter Rice's Art Gallery

• Art by Juan González Alacreu

Vintage British Star Trek pages sold on eBay

Two pages of vintage Star Trek art by veteran British comic artist John Stokes created for British publication have just been sold on eBay.

Published in August 1972 in Valiant and TV21, John Stokes was one of several artists to work on the property, which first featured in the weekly comic Joe 90: Top Secret in January 1969, six months before the TV show itself began to air in the UK on BBC1, coinciding with the first moon landing.

Star Trek transferred to TV21 when the two titles merged in September 1969, becoming TV21 and Joe 90.

TV21, a pale shadow of its former 1960s self, was eventually merged with Valiant in late 1971, with Star Trek one of the strips that survived the merger.

Artists who worked on the strip - which proved an instant hit from its first appearance in Joe 90 - included Harry Lindfield, Mike Noble, Ron Turner, Harold Johns, Carlos Pino and Vicente Alcazar and, finally, John Stokes, who drew 13 untitled stories in total.

The strip appeared in colour, his art often falling prey to the vagaries of Valiant's letterpress printing, running until 29 December 1973.

This artwork was part of a huge deal between IPC and collector Peter Hansen and Blase Books, run by Phil Clark, regularly offer items via eBay, sold as from the Peter Hansen Five Star IPC Archive Collection.

While the British Star Trek comic is riddled with continuity errors, especially in early stories where the artists and writers had no idea of the show's format or how its vehicles looked, aside from what we can only assume would have been a few reference photographs, there is still plenty of interest in this curious spin-off from the hit SF franchise, which included one of the first attempts to visualize the Romulan homeworld and a story set on Earth - a setting never realized on the original TV series itself.

Perhaps there may yet be interest in a print collection of the material at some point.

• Written by pop-culture historian Alan J. Porter, author of the bestselling James Bond: The History of the Illustrated 007, Star Trek: A Comic Book History, published last year, should be of interest to people interested in the story above, offering a complete history of the Star Trek universe in comic books and newspaper strips all over the world.

It features nine information-packed chapters detailing the history of Star Trek in comic books and newspaper strips from the first Gold Key comic book, the British Star Trek strips to Marvel and DC's titles, and up to the present day. Covering all publications of the entire Star Trek universe it includes creator interviews, unpublished artwork, and a detailed checklist.

Rare Skull Badge From Scream For Sale

downthetubes contributor Ian Wheeler is delving into his personal collection of Doctor Who and comics memorabilia to offer some unique items on ebay.

Says Ian: 'Like everyone else, I am feeling the pinch at the moment. I am therefore reluctantly selling a very treasured item in the form of the free 'glow in the dark' skull badge which was given way with Scream! comic issue 3 in the early 80s. It's rarer than most of the comics.' The badge is ebay item 230487466350.

Also on sale is the very first issue of the Dark Horse UK Star Wars comic from 1992 with free gift still attached (230487460943), the very rare David Tennant Radio Times special which was only available by mail order (230486634841) and rare Doctor Who production office paperwork from the 80s which was sent out to enquirers (230487392718.).

More items should be added soon.

Update 15 June - the badge is proving quite a talking point on the forum of the excellent Scream! website Back from the Depths!!

Update 16 June - turns out the skull badge is not from Scream! after all! A number of contributors to back from the depths seemed to have a sort of collective folk memory that the badge had indeed been given away with Scream! Then I remembered - it was in fact from Spike comic issue 4!! In the interests of fairplay, I've withdrawn the item from sale for the time being.

John Watkiss' Sherlock Holmes Art on Sale

Dez Skinn's Quality Communications is offering a limited edition collection of movie concept art by comics creator John Watkiss he did for a proposed Sherlock Holmes movie via eBay.

"One member of our funnybook community whose quality of work far exceeds his profile is John Watkiss," says Dez. "I first knew his classical linework in Acme's old Ring of Roses, written by Das Petrou and reprinted by Dark Horse (and now in pre-production as a Hollywood movie).

"No stranger to film, John spent 15 years working in tinseltown for Disney (and has a some seriously scary stories about such). He's back in Blighty now, and working on a Robert E Howard production. But his last major work was as concept artist for fellow Brit Lionel Wigram, a film producer who had the hots on for making a young Sherlock movie. John produced 18 pieces of concept art which Wigram used to sell the idea."

Dez is offering a unique behind-the-scenes limited edition of the art, offered exclusively on eBay, revealing how the movie would look long before Ritchie, Law or Robert Downey Jr were involved.

On offer are limited edition prints of 18 pen and ink drawings which made the movie happen. Each plate is reproduced on high quality 240gsm glossy card, measuring 11.75 x 8.25", and suitable for framing. This portfolio comes with an annotations page, detailing both the history of the film and descriptions of each print, written by Dez.

Produced by Quality Communications, this is a strictly limited edition of 500 sets, with each top plate signed by the artist and numbered.

• Check the portfolio out here on eBay

• Check out the Quality Communications store on eBay - lots of British Comics goodies!

Signed Star Trek Klingons Art on eBay

One of my 'day' jobs is reviewing Star Trek comics for Titan's Star Trek Magazine - and I was recently thrilled to see US artist JK Woodward's work grace the latest IDW-published Star Trek: Klingons title.

I first came across his stunning art via the independent title Crazy Mary, written by Michael Colbert, which I adapted for mobile and is distributed on ROK Comics: but most people reading this will be more familiar with his work on X-Men and other US titles.

Anyway, if you enjoy his work as much as me, there's now a chance to owning a piece of very cool Star Trek art from the new book. Michael Colbert's wife - who sadly lost her grandmother to cancer very recently - is involved with the American Cancer Society's ”Relay for Life” project, dedicated to raising money for cancer research.

JK has donated an original page from the Klingons book for auction on E-Bay. "This thing has Klingon war ships, the Enterprise B, Kang and all done by JK’s brilliant hand," Michael enthuses. "The page will be signed by JK and every dime will go to the charity goal."

"This is a win win for everybody and it would be great if folk bid on it."

While we're mainly about British comics here on downthetubes I'm more than happy to help a friend promote and support a very good cause.

• The e-bay link is: ebay KLINGONS!

Thunderbirds, Project SWORD and More on eBay

I'm having another spate of clearing boxes at downthetubes, and the following items are currently being offered on ebay... Sales help keep us going, especially at present. Pictures of all offered items can be found here on Flickr

• 1967 Lady Penelope Annual
Featuring comic strips as follows: Lady Penelope ("Adventure in Bereznik" - the fictional Iron Curtain country that was the nemesis of heroes in both TV21 and Lady Penelope comics - "The Million Pound Lipstick" and "Lady Penelope versus The Fox"); The Girl from U.N.C.L.E ("Academy of Thrush Agents"); Marina ("Menace in the Weed"); The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ("Caribbean Caper"); Perils of Parker; Creighton-Ward ("Night of Suspense"); Daktari; and What Did That Dog Say?. Plus some text stories
Features: Biographies of Lady Penelope Creightion-Ward and 'Nosey' Parker; the secrets of Creighton-Ward Mansion; Graphology feature interpreting the personalities of the Thunderbirds team (you didn't know puppets could hold a pen, did you?); fashion and horoscope pages; pin ups of Davy Jones, Mike Nesmith (from the Monkees)

• 1968 Lady Penelope Annual
Featuring comic strips as follows: Lady Penelope in "Symphony of Death", "Duel in the Jungle" and "Sabotage Session"; Captain Scarlet's Angels in "Apres Ski"; The Monkees ("Once Upon A Time"); Perils of Parker"; Bewitched; What Did That Dog Say; The Spectrum, the band that sand the Captain Scarlet outro song;) and some text stories, including an Angels story with Captain Scarlet pictures, "Deadly Decoy"
Features: "Changing Gear", featuring photos of various models of the time charting fashion across the years; an interview with The Tremeloes; a Beatles diary, charting highlights of the band's success from 1964 to 1968; "Odd Jobs" reporting on women such as Janet Rice, racing driver, Jean Lincoln, pop star manager and stunt girl Connie Tilton; "Pop Goes the Alphabet", noting top acts of the year; "Behind the Scenes" reporting on music recording in London's famous music mecca, Denmark Street;
plus pin up pages of the Beach Boys, Bee Gees, Dave, Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Titch; plus recipe, fashion tip and quiz pages ("How Do You Rate as a Friend?")

• 1968 Project SWORD Annual
Based on a Century 21 merchandise range that spawned its own comic strip material in TV Century 21, it's my understanding this annual is considered something of a rarity among Gerry Anderson fans. The setting of the story is 3031, at a point in Earth's history when major natural disaster had ravaged the planet. Whether there was ever any intention to bring make this toy range the basis for a TV show by Gerry Anderson, creator of Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet, remains a matter of speculation. It has some echoes with his later projects such as Space:1999, for example.
The annual comprises a mix of comic strip and text stories plus background features on the origin of Project S.W.O.R.D., utlising stills from 2001: A Space Odyssey and blueprints of S.W.O.R.D. vehicles - The Scramble Bug, the Booster Rocket, Moon Prospector, Moon Bus, Hovertank and Survey Vehicle.
There are also mini features on contemporary space travel including an item on the Apollo rocket. One feature of note is a "bio" section of the SWORD team featuring photographs of the characters - presumably members of Century 21's editorial staff and friends since there was never a show based on the toy range?

• 1966 Thunderbirds Television Story Book
Comprising largely of text stories and some comic strips, plus one fab feature - make a working model of Thunderbird Four. Something of an oddity but the art is competent throughout in a style on a par with the quality of strips in the comic TV21.

• Thunderbirds Annual 1966
Cover by Frank Bellamy comprising comic strip, text stories, puzzlesand "real world" emergency features. Plenty of Thunderbirds pictures. Features include profiles of the Tracy brothers and father Jeff, Kyrano, Tin Tin, Lady Penelope, Parker and The Hood; cutaways of Thunderbird 1, 3 and 5, an item on the Thunderbird launch sequences (some scribbling on these)

• Thunderbirds Annual 1968
Comprising comic strip, text stories, games and "real world" emergency features. Strips feature art by Ron Turner and other TV21 regulars. One feature recaps the TV adventures of Thunderbirds as well as comic strip stories from Century 21's weekly titles such as one featuring an abominable snowman. There's plenty of Thunderbirds photographs throughout the book.

• Stingray Annual 1966
featuring a cover by Ron Embleton and a variety of comic strips (including "The Collector", drawn by Ron Turner) and text stories. The annual also features a number of background features on the technology featured in the show including items on Marineville's "Hydromic Missiles" (made of new alloy, Prexfreos - try saying that three times quickly), Marineville (sadly one page of this feature is missing), sea prison Aquatraz, Titan's Terror Fish but not, strangely, Stingray itself. This particular annual is not the best from my small collection, having suffered at the hads of its original owner with all puzzle pages completed and scribbling on some pages. Pages 33-34 (part of a Marineville feature) are missing.

• British War Comics (War and Battle Picture Library and More
A selection British "pocket digest" war comics from various publishers. Commando was first published in the early 1960s and continues to this day, but the other titles are long gone, their lurid covers, some great pieces of art in themselves no longer part of Britain's newsagent stands. Many of the issues in the lot are first publication but some are reprints of earlier titles.
• Commando comics published by DC Thomson comprising Issues 1015 ("Forgotten Sergeant", reprint of issue first published in 1968), 1024 ("Battle-Squad", published in 1976), 1049 ("Pacific Pirates, cover by Ian Kennedy), 1052 ("No Way But Down", published in 1976), 1536 ("Defend to the Last", published in 1981) and 1538 ("Devil Fish", published in 1981). The stories cover all three British forces in a mix of conflicts from World War Two.
• Combat Picture Library (Issue 770, "Total Death", pubished by Micron in 1970)
• Pocket War Library (Issue 123, "Terrible Task"), published by Top Sellers
• Battle Picture Library published by IPC Magazines in the 1970s and early 1980s: Issue 997 ("Clipped Wings"); 1008 ("Wolf Patrol"); 1018 ("Zone of Conflict"); 1027 ("These Men Are Dangerous"); 1028 ("Blockade Runner"); 1031 ("Stand Up and Fight"); 1209 ("Dead Heat"); 1212 ("Total War"); 1389 ("The Stronghold"); 1412 ("Men Without Mercy"); 1418 ("War of Nerves"); 1438 ("Battle Call"); 1508 ("Relic of the Sands").
• War Picture Library Titles published by IPC Magazines in the 1970s and early 1980s: 1195 ("Certain Death"); 1202 ("Second Sight"); 1206 ("No Hiding Place"); 1245 ("Commandos Die Hard"); 1247 ("Desert Patrol"); 1249 ("The Hero"); 1255 ("Fire Trap", published 1976); 1254 ("Run For Your Life"); 1258 ("Battle Drop"), Issue 1264 ("The Dark Jungle"); 1275 ("Ground Support")

• Signed "Commander Ivanova" Babyon 5 CCG Game Card and more
Over 100 individual Babylon 5 Customisable Card Game Cards including an "Ivanova" card signed by actress Claudia Christian (given away with the game's "Deluxe Edition"). Plus some 40 or so duplicates.

Jeff Hawke Art for Sale

Offered from downthetubes via ebay is a piece of Jeff Hawke newspaper strip original art, signed by creator and artist Sydney Jordan.

The art from the Daily Express strip "Jeff Hawke" is identified as strip H3387 featuring mysterious aliens from the story "A Helping Hand". This story was first published between 12 December 1964 and 3 March 1965 in the British newspaper The Daily Express. (The full run is identified as H3328 - H3395 in a note on the back of the art by Syd Jordan). In the strip a racing driver, Cordway, is given an artifical arm by an alien race, but his experience does not go unnoticed...

This is an opportunity to own a piece of art from one of the most highly regarded science fiction newspaper strips ever published in Britain. Jeff Hawke still has a loyal following worldwide.

Art measures 43 cm by 14 cm on stiff white art board. Signed on the front by Syd Jordan with notes by Syd, also signed, on the back.

Starblazer Sale and Game News

One downthetubes reader has been in touch to tell us he's offering a number of Starblazers via eBay, including the first three issues of this collectable SF comic published by DC Thomson. He tells us all of the comics are in excellent condition with no rips or tears.

Given interest in the title from our readers we've offered to plug the sale here. (Please note, downthetubes has no connection with the seller).

Talking of Starblazer, a new official blog about the comic is in development and we'll have more information on this soon.

We're also pleased to report that new content, free downloads and previews of the Starblazer Adventures game are now available over at Cubicle 7.

Published by DC Thomson, Starblazer was the home to some of the best British science fiction space opera first published in April 1979 with its last issue released in January 1991. Featuring some stunning art and classic space opera stories, comic creators such as Grant Morrison and John Smith, artists Enrique Alcatena, Mike McMahon, Cam Kennedy, John Ridgway, Alan Rogers, Jaime Oritz, Ian Kennedy, Colin MacNeil and Casanovas Junior helped bring the fantastic 'spacefiction adventure in pictures' to life.

The Starblazer licence was picked up by British games publisher Cubicle 7 Entertainment, who also publish SLA Industries and Victoriana and the core release utilining the FATE rule system will include three detailed settings from the very best of Starblazer, detailing recurring characters, organisations, empires and aliens such as the Fi-Sci (the Fighting Scientists of Galac Squad), The Star Patrol, The Suicide Squad, The Planet Tamer, Cinnibar the barbarian warrior of Babalon and galactic cop Frank Carter to name just a few.

As well as the FATE rules system, you’ll find maps, galactic histories, stories of civilizations spanning thousands of years, technology from across time and space, details of the equipment and starships of the human civilisations and their alien neighbours. Cubicle 7 has also created some big picture gaming rules that will allow you to lead an armada or Star Empire, plan a network of secret bases, thwart a galaxy wide conspiracy, invoke ancient treaties and inspire politicians from across the universe or hold off hordes of terrifying creatures with hundreds of marines.

The official Starblazer Adevntures website features updates on the action, and releases, backstories, development news, comments from previous writers, excerpts from original scripts and will also feature exclusive interviews revealing some of the hidden treasures of the Starblazer stories.

Planned for the site are downloadable accessories, excerpts of comic strips, rules supplements, adventures, a fan community and much more bringing the Starblazer universe to life and giving you the tools to extend the gaming experience.

Starblazer Adventures will be released later this year. Join the RPG.Net discussion to follow the development process or find them at Live Journal. They also have a MySpace page

downthetubes Starblazer Features:

• Blazing through the secrecy
Jeremy Briggs ponders DC Thomson's secretive nature about its creators diown the years, and explores the secrets of its science fiction title Starblazer, whose creators included a young Grant Morrison and artist Ian Kennedy...
• A checklist of every issue, including known creator credits
• Starblazer Abroad
A checklist of known foreign language reprints of the title
• Behind the Lines
Writer Ray Aspden reveals his approach to writing Starblazer

How Much Is A Fanzine Worth?

Just how much is a fanzine worth? For the buyer, in theory, it is worth the amount of money that he has just paid for it. If it wasn't that good and the buyer believes that it is worth less than what he paid for it then he probably won't be buying any more. On the other hand, if he liked it he will be happy to pay the money for the next issue.

How much are old fanzines worth? Since there are never that many copies of a given issue of a fanzine printed they are, by definition, rare. Of course just because they are rare it doesn't necessarily follow that they are valuable. The amount that you are willing to pay rather depends on how badly you want a copy and how many other people also want it.

So how much for a copy of a British fanzine called Seminar from 1970? Issue 2 has articles on Batman, Doc Savage and Stan Lee. It has artwork by Paul Neary and Trev Goring and a pencil sketch of Captain America by Gene Colan. It has just sold on eBay for £325.00 plus postage.

Why £325? Of course there has to be a very good reason - the issue also has a two page article by a teenage writer about the character The Shadow. The teenager would dabble in artwork as well as non-fiction before moving on to write fiction. His name? Alan Moore.

Doctor Who Silly Season Continues

(with thanks to Matthew Badham): The Wiltshire Times recently reported a Trowbridge Christian has renounced the 'evil' of Doctor Who in favour of his religion is selling his collection on internet auction website eBay.

The paper reports that having discovered Christianity after a life of Doctor Who collecting, Mr Smith, who had to retire early from his job as a nurse at the Royal United Hospital in Bath in 1998 because he was suffering from bipolar disorder, has renounced his old life and is putting the whole collection up for sale in local trade magazines and on eBay.

"God delivered me from the evil that is Doctor Who, materialism and alcoholism," he told the paper.

"Through my relationship with Jesus I saw that none of this was making me happy and I was born again like Lazarus."

There's no information on what Mr Smith planned to do with the £7000 he expected to make from his collection, which includes a life-size TARDIS.

TV21 #4

With a little while to go before my initial sale of several issues of the iconic 1960s comic TV Century 21 and other issues ends, I've just put #4 of this great 1960s iconic comic up for auction on ebay.

In addition to the usual mix of strips - Fireball XL5, Stingray, The Daleks and more - the issue also features a rather nice half page black and white cutaway of Stingray.

There's still time to bid on #2 (with the free sticker badge given away with the issue), #79 with a Thunderbirds cover and #84 with a Stingray-related cover, and three Dalek cover issues: #28 (which includes several features on the Amicus Doctor Who and the Daleks film starring Peter Cushing) #36 and #50.

TV21s for Sale on ebay

I have begun selling my copies of TV Century 21 on ebay. The first issues are #2 (with the free sticker badge given away with the issue), #79 with a Thunderbirds cover and #84 with a Stingray-related cover.

Also on offer are three Dalek cover issues of the classic 1960s comic: #28 (which includes several features on the Amicus Doctor Who and the Daleks film starring Peter Cushing) #36 and #50.

Early Captain Britain appearances for sale

Another eBay auction, this time Marvel Super-Heroes issues from way back in 1981 in 1982, when Paul Neary was editor in chief at Marvel UK the first time around.

The issues include one issue of Captain Britain written by Alan Moore. Several feature Night Raven text stories which, I suspect, are unlikely to ever be collected.

Details as follows, which I'm posting here in case any archivists want the detail for various comic reference sites:

# 377 Cover date September 1981: Captain Britain cover plus first new story by Dave Thorpe, art by Alan Davis. Avengers and X-Men reprints plus first part of a David Lloyd interview. Fair condition, no cover damage or missing pages.

#378 Cover date October 1981: Avengers cover. Captain Britain by Dave Thorpe, art by Alan Davis. Avengers reprints plus second part of a David Lloyd interview. Fair condition, no cover damage or missing pages.

#379 Cover date November 1981: Avengers cover. Captain Britain by Dave Thorpe, art by Alan Davis. Avengers reprint plus a feature on a new comic strip, Timesmasher, which appeared in Rampage. Fair condition, no cover damage or missing pages.

#381 Cover date January 1982: Avengers cover. Captain Britain by Dave Thorpe, art by Alan Davis. Avengers reprint plus interview with artist John Stokes. Fair condition, very minor cover damag, no missing pages.

#382 Cover date February 1982: Captain Britain cover plus Captain Britain by Dave Thorpe, art by Alan Davis. Night Raven text story written and illustrated by Paul Neary. Avengers and Dominic Fortune reprints plus feature on how Marvel Comics covers are created. Fair condition, no cover damage or missing pages.

#383 Cover date March 1982: Avengers cover. Captain Britain by Dave Thorpe, art by Alan Davis. Night Raven text story by Paul Neary illustrated by Mick Austin. Avengers reprint and a guide to the Marvel UK Bullpen personnel. Fair condition, no cover damage or missing pages.

#384 Cover date April 1982: Avengers cover. Captain Britain by Dave Thorpe, art by Alan Davis. Night Raven text story written and illustrated by Paul Neary. Avengers reprint. Fair condition, very
minor cover damage on edges, no missing pages.

#388 Cover date August 1982: Avengers cover. Captain Britain by Alan Moore and Alan Davis - Moore's third outing writing the character. Avengers and Doctor Strange reprint. Fair condition, minor cover damage, no missing pages.

#389 Cover date September 1982: Avengers cover. Night Raven text story by Maxwell Stockbridge illustrated by Steve Dillon plus a feature on Captain Britain by Alan Moore. Avengers reprint. Fair condition, no cover damage or missing pages.

Simpsons Comics on eBay

I've just added a small selection of UK Simpsons Comics to eBay. The lot includes #1, complete with poster.

Talking of eBay, a lot of comics artwork recently sold by IPC is now being offered by former Nostalgia and Comics owner Phil Clarke, the same dealer selling boards at various UK marts. Boards being offered include Robot Archie, Adam Eterno and the Steel Claw. Board prices seem to be around the £100 mark, by a variety of artists.