Commando - Wall Of Death

The Commando website is continuing their on-line adaptation of Commando issue 221 Wall of Death. This was first published on 26 July 1966 and was then priced at one shilling. The electronic version is free and is currently up to Part Five. The story, which had a working title of Danger Their Companion, was written by Redbridge and illustrated by Cortez.

Part One of Wall Of Death begins here and each part links to the next one.

The site also now has twelve Commando covers available to download as wallpapers including this excellent World War One Albatros D biplane by Jose Maria Jorge which was used as the cover for issue 3538, Rogue Ace, in 2002. The wallpapers are available here.

D C Thomson continue to publish eight issues of Commando a month, four on the second Wednesday of the month and four on the last Wednesday. Four of the titles are reprints and four are brand new and all now feature credits for the writer, interior and cover artists and, if a reprint, when the original version was published. Each issue costs £1.25 and they should be stocked by WH Smith, Easons, McColls and Spar.

Edinburgh Is Reading Jekyll And Hyde

Previously mentioned here on Down The Tubes, the 2008 One Book - One Edinburgh citywide reading campaign is now in full swing. After the success of Kidnapped in 2007, this year's book is Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

The original novel was re-released in a new version with an introduction by author Ian Rankin, Book Group reading notes by Prof Ian Campbell and including sketch illustrations by Cam Kennedy. These sketch illustrations were from the graphic novel version of the title adapted from Stevenson's original by Alan Grant, illustrated by Cam Kennedy, and coloured and lettered by Jamie Grant.

10,000 copies of the text novel were given away free throughout the city as well as the novel and graphic novel being heavily promoted in the cities bookshops. Various talks and workshops took place throughout the city with Grant and Kennedy attending signings for the graphic novel version, many of which are illustrated here.

The City Of Literature website has many activities associated with the release of the book and these include Creating A Comic. The two sections in this allow you to see if you could adapt Stevenson's original prose better than Alan Grant in Turning A Book Into A Graphic Novel, while From Inks To A Full Colour Comic lets you see if you could do the colouring and lettering better than Jamie Grant. It is worth remembering that Jamie Grant had four different versions of the text - English, modern English, Scots and Gaelic - to fit into those text boxes and speech balloons.

The campaign has been well covered in the media, with the Metro having their own PDF version of the book free to download with full text and colour illustrations by Cam Kennedy.

The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is available from Amazon as a text novel and as four different graphic novels in English, modern English, Lowland Scots and Scots Gaelic. Down The Tubes suggests that if you are not sure which version of the graphic to choose to try the English version rather than the modern English version.

TV21 Dalek Art Up For Sale

Among the many British comics-related lots on offer in the current Comic Book Auction, which ends next week, is a real gem for Doctor Who and artist Ron Turner fans alike -- a page of artwork from The Daleks, which ran in 1960s comic TV Century 21.

Not just any page, either - the page up for auction is from Issue 50, Ron Turner's first Daleks artwork for the comic, in which those other 1960s metal meanies, the Mechanoids, attack the Daleks.

This page has of course been reprinted several times, and the board indicates the changes made for its appearance in either The Amazing World of Doctor Who, published in 1976, or an even later Marvel UK Doctor Who Weekly appearance in 1980.

Comic Book Auctions believe the art will probably sell for between £1,500 and £2000.

Another item sure to catch the eye of collectors is Frank Bellamy's superb signed front cover of The Daily Mirror Book Of Garth published in 1975.

Other British comic lots in the auction include a number of early Beanos and a near complete Dan Dare Spaceship Builder Construction Set, as well as Frankie Stein art published in Wham issue 157 (shark-surfing..?), and much more, including key pages starring The Galloping Glory Boys, Young Drake, Rupert the Bear, Leo Baxendale's Clever Dick from an issue of Buster, Kelly's Eye, The Steel Claw, Robot Archie and The Spider.

• Bids will be accepted until Tuesday 4 March at 8 PM UK time. To go directly to the main page for the catalogue of the London-based auction house, click here

Let's Do the Timewarp...

Now it can be told... Attendees at the UK indie comic press event Caption 2007: Dreams & Nightmares were given a prophetic dream of the theme for Caption 2008. And the dream came true. Caption 2008 is Caption Timewarp.

It will be taking place again at the East Oxford Community Centre on 9th - 10th August, in the year that celebrates Deadline's 20th anniversary, Escape's 25th anniversary, Luther Arkwright's 30th anniversary and The Beano's 80th...

Caption are now accepting illustrations and comic strips on the Timewarp theme for inclusion in the convention programme, exhibition, and auction. Contact Jay Eales for more info at: jay.eales AT googlemail.com.

• More info: http://caption.org/2008/