Jeff Hawke's Cosmos

The latest issue of Jeff Hawke's Cosmos, Vol 4 Number 2, is now available. Bill Rudling's 72 page A4 fanzine continues to provide full length reprinted Jeff Hawke stories from the Daily Express newspaper.

The cover comes from The Helping Hand a story from 1964/65 concerning motor racing, a theme which runs through the issue with Hawke creator Sydney Jordan's article on artist and driver Nick Faure. However the Hawke strip's normal association with alien planets and spacecraft are not forgotten with On The Run from 1973, while then modern aircraft are the subject of Wildcat from 1966.

Hawke's Notes, written by Duncan Lunan, continue to detail the minutiae of the stories in a DVD commentary style, and the issue is rounded off with Andrew Darlington's article on Captain "Space" Kingley, a series of annuals from the early 1950s painted by RW Jobson.

Cosmos is only available by subscription from :

The Jeff Hawke Club, 6 The Close, Alwoodley, Leeds, LS17 7RD

E-Mail: jeffhawkeATbillybee.plus.com

UK rates are £16.50 for three issues, overseas rates are £26.

Billy's Birthday

A belated tribute to the first Doctor of Doctor Who, William Hartnell. Had he lived, this fine actor would would have been 100 on Tuesday, 8th January.

Born in London on 8th January 1908, Hartnell began acting professionally in 1924 in the theatre. Invalided out of the Tank Corps during the Second World War after 18 months suffering a nervous breakdown, he returned to acting, playing perhaps his first memorable role, Sergeant Ned Fletcher, in the film The Way Ahead in 1944. His move from comic to serious roles proved a success, with Hartnell playing mainly policemen, soldiers and thugs in his career (earning high praise for his role as the complex Dallow in Brighton Rock).

He topped the bill in the first Carry On film in 1958, Carry On Sergeant, playing Sergeant Grimshaw, also playing another army character, Sergeant Major Percy Bullimore, in his first TV role in The Army Game from 1957–1961 (replacing Bill Fraser, who played Sergeant Major Snudge in earlier episodes of the series).

But it is of course his work as the first Doctor Who for which he is best remembered, making the irascible grandfather figure his own between the show's debut in 1963 in An Unearthly Child and his final regular appearance in The Tenth Planet, pitted against the Cybermen, in 1966.

(Sadly, the fourth episode of this first appearance by the cybernetic nasties remains missing believed wiped but is available in full on audio. Other victims of this short sighted practice by the BBC back then include live commentary by Patrick Moore and James Burke in the BBC studio on the historic day of the first Moon landing).

Hartnell, already ill when he reprised his First Doctor role for The Three Doctors in the 1970s, died 23 April 1975, just a couple of years before organised fandom began to pay tribute to the contributors to the Doctor Who show. It would be his wife and grandson who would represent him at the first Doctor Who fan convention at Imperial College London, delighted by tributes to the actor.

• There's a "nexus" of William Hartnell links at www.williamhartnell.com

MamTor Music

Not content with publishing some pretty cutting edge comics in the past few years, UK Publisher MamTor, run by my old mucker artist Liam McCormack Sharp (you'll remmber him as now has its own music divsion via amazingtunes.com.

"Mamtor" is decribed as a musical project that blurs genres and utilizes the skills of both accomplished musicianship and modern technology to create intimate and epic music for those of eclectic taste. I just enjoyed listening to "Tribal Memories" and will be stopping back for more later...

Get Wasted!

Comics writer Alan Grant (Batman, Judge Dredd) wants you to get Wasted!

Grant is one of the big names behind Wasted, a new independent comic. It's Earth's new comic-book for today's Youth gone wild!*

Wasted features a cracking cover from Frank Quitely (All-Star Superman) and contributions from Grant and comic artist Jon Haward, among others, who has previously worked on comic strips for 2000AD, The Eagle and for Marvel UK.

Those of faint heart take note, the comic comes with the following warning:

“Should you suffer from narrow mindedness or are politically correct then sorry, you’re just not allowed to read this magazine… Log off now and report yourself to someone in authority. However, if you enjoy a good laugh then enjoy our twisted tales, astounding artwork and maliciously whimsical sexy babes. If you’re a female reader please substitute ’sexy hunks’ for ’sexy babes’.”

• You can buy the comic online for £2 and preview Wasted here. . A print version will hit the stands in February.

*according to its Website, anyway.