Andy Diggle, Ian Rankin line up for prestigious LitFest appearance

Marvel writer Andy Diggle

The Losers and Daredevil writer Andy Diggle will be wowing his hometown fans alongside author Ian Rankin next month as part of the Lancaster Literature Festival - Britain's oldest annual literature event.

Ian Rankin is Britain’s number one best-selling crime author, creator of the phenomenally successful Edinburghian sleuth Inspector Rebus, and described by the LitFest's blog as "a serial award winner whose bristling mantel-piece is home to the prestigious CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger for lifetime achievement in crime writing, and for the imperialists in the audience he is also an Officer of the Order of the British Empire."

Former 2000AD editor Andy, despite being well known to readers of downthetubes, is, it seems, a harder sell for the LitFest - but they don't pull any punches when it comes to promoting him and his work, dismissing the concerns of those who happily describe comics as "a genre that is packed to the gills with adolescent nonsense.

"Comics doesn’t mean the Dandy or Beano," a spokesperson for LitFest argues in an enthusiastic blogpost. "Doesn’t just mean Superman and Spiderman (sic) either. And 'adult comics' doesn’t imply dodgy hand-drawn porno.

"There are plenty of comics out on the market that are smart and grown-up. Andy Diggle is a great example of how much you can do with the comics medium once you get over all the muscle-bound weirdos in leotards. And so, for that matter, is Ian Rankin."

"...Dark Entries is tight, a real little doozie," they continue. "...The noir sentiments of the story are supported by a scratchy, minimal black-and-white art style from Werther Dell’Edera, who picks the characters out with nasty grins and sharp lines. You’ll polish off Dark Entries in about the time it’d take you to watch a decent crime movie.


"The main story [of The Losers] is a conspiracy – who betrayed the Losers, and why?" they note of Andy's work, "but the action unfolds as a spate of high-profile heists in the best tradition of Mission: Impossible, Where Eagles Dare and The Italian Job, as the Losers fight to get the information and the leverage they need to win their lives back. Throw in a villain who makes James Bond’s worst nemeses look like short-termist, visionless wimps and you’ve got a winning combo.


"I should mention the artist, Jock, who’s done a great job creating the story’s many sets and differentiating the key characters. Best of all is the sense of motion and energy in every panel of the story. His action scenes are frenetic. You can hear his explosions go 'Boom'."

Cleraly impressed by their catch from the comic world for the Festival, whose line up also includes Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and author Sarah Fine, Andy and Ian's talk is described as "a discussion between the two of their different contributions to the comics field and the experience of having their work adapted for the screen.

"I’ve also been informed by Andy Diggle that together they can 'talk the leg off a dead donkey', so perhaps we’ll find ourselves regailed with some entirely tangential stories. The only way to find out is to come, of course."

While comics are increasingly getting onto the literary agenda, it's always gratifying to see so much enthusiasm for some of its proponents from such a well-regarded literature organisation.

• Ian Rankin and Andy Diggle, 7.30pm, Thursday 21st October, The Storey, Lancaster £8.50 (£7 concs) – £1 off if you order in advance.  Call the LitFest Box Office on 01524 582394 or book online

Will The Beano go digital?

Nestling among recent trade reports about Beano and Commando publishers DC Thomson is news that more changes are in the offing for its comics output, including, perhaps, digital editions.

DC Thomson is one of hundreds of companies that will be exhibiting at the Brand Licensing Europe event in London at the end of this month, and a company profile reports the company will be making a concerted effort to promote its various comic brands at the gathering, working with its UK licensing agent, Start Licensing, which highlights The Beano, Dandy's Bananaman and the recently-launch Jacqueline Wilson magazine on its web site.

"At the show we will debut our plans for The Broons – best known amongst Scots - but arguably one of the biggest character brands never to have been licensed," says Tim Collins, who heads up the company's commercial development for children's entertainment.

Collins joined DC Thomson late last year and handles the management of their licensing, TV, syndication and digital project teams. Joining him soon is John Paul Murphy,  a former marketing chief for Edinburgh’s Winter Festival, who has been appointed the company's brands marketing manager, and who has been tasked with developing the company's brands across all available 'channels', including traditional publishing, digital, events, sponsorship, promotions, advertising and licensing where appropriate.

Of major interest to comic fans are the company's plans for possible digital publication, which
Collins describes as "One of our big opportunities.

"We have access to five million pages of comic book material from the 1930s to current publications,"  he notes.

Could this mean DC Thomson is finally looking to develop digital editions of its titles such as The Beano and Commando? It certainly seems to be ramping up to take on the challenges of the online world, with a new direct-to-consumer sales department, a new telephony system and a new e-commerce website, which HoldtheFrontPage recently reported would complement its established relationships with suppliers to assist with subscription services and orders.

New licensing plans for The Beano, both kids and adult themed products, will be revealed at the show, Licensing.biz reported last month, along with a new vision for Commando, which celebrates its 50th anniversary next year. DC Thomson says it is looking to licence the brand into a wide range of adult gifts and stationery.

With longtime staff members such as Editorial Manager Ian Lamb about to retire, it seems big changes are set to follow the 'changing of the guard'. But DC Thomson has not given up on print, despite the announced cancellation of Classics from the Comics (see earlier story).

"We are expanding our children’s magazine publishing business," says Tim Collins, "so are on the look-out for new properties as well."

• DC Thomson Official web site: www.dcthomson.co.uk

• Start Licensing: www.startlicensing.co.uk

In Review: Classics from the Comics 174

The latest issue of Classics from the Comics offers the usual fine selection of both humour and adventure comics from the DC Thomson archive, this month spotlighting longtime Minnie the Minx artist Jim Petrie and bringing fans an episode of King Cobra, a superhero drawn by Ron Smith.

Alongside the mix of strips from The Beano, Dandy, Topper and Sparky - to name but a few - there's also the chance to win a Gnasher picture box and a Bash Street Kids-inspired Plug and Sally fugurine.

There's plenty to enjoy this issue - so it's very sad to learn that the title, in its fourteenth year of publication, is destined for cancellation due to low sales, especially after all hard work editor Garry Fraser has been putting into recent issues (the last issue will be Number 175, on sale on 13th October). Sadly, Classics from the Comics has been poorly distributed and behind-the-scenes production changes at DC Thomson mean it's no longer viable for them to publish this wonderful assemblage of comics from yesteryear.

It's a darn shame, too, because I'm sure there is a market for this kind of title, albeit one that's fairly 'niche'.

Favourite strips this issue for me are Beryl the Peril (whose magic tricks land her in hot water); a superhero skit from Sparky's Puss an' Boots; a bizarre strip from Nutty titled Dick Turban, pitting a desert thief against the Foreign Legion; a fab Mickey the Monkey from Topper; and the ever-brilliant Spoofer McGraw from Sparky, this issue explaining that Moby Dick, the great white whale, was actually a great white polar bear that ate too much honey. Priceless!

King Cobra, drawn by Ron Smith

The continuing adventures of The Space Kids, and appearance of King Cobra, who featured in The Hotspur, and a text adventure, Dixon Hawke, from 1938 (presumably from an early Beano) make up the adventure content of the issue. Cobra is a bizarre British superhero with little originality - a reporter by day, crime fighter by night - but Ron Smith's art is great, and this snake-inspired adventurer is far less violent than Indian publisher Raj Comics Nagraj, who is the only reptilian-powered hero I can think of at this time of the morning.

Classics from the Comics has much to recommend it for any fan of British comics of yesteryear; it's just a shame its distribution is so patchy (which must surely be another reason for its demise). If you can find a copy in your local newsagents, check it out, and revel in a bit of welcome nostalgia...

• Classics from the Comics, published by DC Thomson, is on sale now in all good UK newsagents, price £2 (a bargain!)

• More about King Cobra on the International Hero web site

• Lew Stringer ponders the demise of CfrC here on his blog and reviews Issue 174 here

Cover image © 2010 DC Thomson, published with full permission

Scramble for the new Commandos!

The first three Commando books now on sale in all good newsagents complete DC Thomson's series of six books saluting the heroes of the Battle Of Britain, called "Aces High".

"We’ve dug back into the archives to give some of the older books an airing," says editor Calum Laird. "Very few Commando readers will have seen these, I hope, and will appreciate them."

Inside the front covers of them all are individual aircraft illustrations by Ian Kennedy.

If you like these stories, Carlton’s jumbo Commando collection of 10 stories from the Battle Of Britain – appropriately called Scramble! – is available from all good bookshops (ISBN 978-1-84732-421-4).  It includes stories like "Ace Without Honour", "Island of Heroes" and "Brigand Squadron" as well as "Blind Courage", "Fly Fast-Shoot Fast" or "Spitfire Spirit" and there's one of our usual amazon links at the end of this news item

Commando 4327: Black Ace
Story: Alan Parlett Art: Medrano Cover: Ken Barr
Originally No 124 from 1964

A survivor… alone on a cold, dark sea…this was the best that any RAF pilot could hope for if he ran up against Von Stein of the Luftwaffe. The German flew a jet-black Focke-Wulf 190, and his emblem was the ace of spades, the card of death.They called young Jack Collins a coward until the day he and his Hurricane took off to meet the Black Ace in mortal combat…

Commando No 4328: Lone Ace
Story: David Bingley Art: Gordon Livingstone Cover: Buccheri
Originally No 275 from 1967

“Stand by for a crash — young Danny Price has just taken off!” What a reputation for a young pilot to get. Too bad that every word of it was true.
From recklessness and bad judgement, or maybe just through bad luck, Dan finished up pranging every aircraft he ever flew. Spitfires, Hurricanes, Grumman Wildcats – they were all the same to Dan. In the sea, in the fields, on the decks of carriers he dumped them with amazing regularity, totally beyond repair.
Not until he crashed one with cold courage right on to an attacking U-Boat did anyone start believing in Dan — even Dan himself!

Commando No 4329: Divided Aces
Story: Ferg Handley Art: José Maria Jorge Cover: José Maria Jorge

Squadron Leader Jack Pearson was beginning to wonder if his first command might be his last. English-born Jack was determined to make the most of his posting to a base outside Edinburgh — even if the locals were less than friendly about his, and his fellow countrymen’s, presence.
As if that wasn’t enough, added to the mix were some veteran Polish fliers who didn’t like the way their new skipper was running things… Jack would have his work cut out for him if he was going to unite these divided aces? 

Commando No 4330: Sniper Hunt
Story: Alan Hebden Art: Morahin Cover: Keith Page

Lance-Corporal Matt Horne always wanted to be a sniper. So when the chance came to join an established sniper team as a flanker — to watch the backs of the sniper and his spotter — Matt grabbed it.
However, with a mysterious rival marksman causing carefully-calculated mayhem, Matt soon found out that sniping was a bitter, deadly game — one where there were no rules and the hunter very easily became the hunted…

• Official Commando web site: www.commandomag.com

• Click here for subscription information or write to: D.C. Thomson & Co Ltd, The Subscribers Department, Commando Library, 80 Kingsway East, Dundee DD4 8SL or Freephone (UK only) 0800 318846

• You can read interviews with former Commando editor George Low, current editor Calum Laird and writer Ferg Handley on the downthetubes main site.