Heroes! The British invasion of American comics - part 14

Recently (ish!) finished at the Cartoon Museum (here) was their exhibition 'Heroes! The British invasion of American comics'. 

For anyone who couldn't make it here's part 14 of my look at what you missed...

Part 1 was here

Part 2 was here

Part 3 was here

Part 4 was here

Part 5 was here

Part 6 was here

Part 7 was here

Part 8 was here

Part 9 was here

Part 10 was here

Part 11 was here

Part 12 was here

Part 13 was here

Alan Stranks - John Bull magazine, 1952

Care of friend of the blog Norman Boyd here's a couple of pages from John Bull magazine (dated 17 May 1952) all about scriptwriter Alan Stranks. Stranks worked as a scriptwriter for PC49 and Dan Dare in Eagle. His daughter was TV presenter Susan Stranks. 

UPDATED: SSI journal - 1985

I've looked before at all things to do with the SSI (Society of Strip Illustration) here and I like the newsletters they produced BUT these were produced in very low quantities so you stand virtually no chance of collecting a set. 

I've looked at some examples of the SSI journal for 

1992 here 

1981 here

1982 here

1983 here

and for other years I'm just going to collect images for the covers as and when they come up for sale on ebay. Over time we might end up with a full (??) set. So here's the start of a covers gallery for SSI journal for 1985...

UPDATE (24th July 2026); now with cover for the August 1985 issue added

SSI newsletter, June 1985

SSI newsletter, August 1985

originally for sale c/o here

SSI newsletter, October 1985

originally for sale c/o here

SSI newsletter, November 1985

c/o friend of the blog Andrew Wolf

Excalibur auctions - part 2

Some images from the recent auction of original comic art from Peter Hansen's amazing collection. This art was sold on Saturday 9th May 2026 by Excalibur auctions.

Part 1 was here

Just some more images from the auction - including this fantastic Dan Dare handkerchief

SSI journal - 1985

I've looked before at all things to do with the SSI (Society of Strip Illustration) here and I like the newsletters they produced BUT these were produced in very low quantities so you stand virtually no chance of collecting a set. 

I've looked at some examples of the SSI journal for 

1992 here 

1981 here

1982 here

1983 here

and for other years I'm just going to collect images for the covers as and when they come up for sale on ebay. Over time we might end up with a full (??) set. So here's the start of a covers gallery for SSI journal for 1985...

SSI journal, June 1985

SSI journal, October 1985

originally for sale c/o here

SSI journal, November 1985

c/o friend of the blog Andrew Wolf

Dan Dare tie

I'm always happy to feature unusual bits of Eagle merchandise on the blog. 

There were...

Dan Dare roller skates here

Dan Dare hairbrush here

Dan Dare tie clip here

Eagle stationery here

Eagle club notebook here

With the compliments of the Eagle club here

Eagle / Girl table tennis medals here

Eagle club cycle pennant here

Dan Dare gyro jeep here

Dan Dare space shooting here

Dan Dare rocket ball here

Dan Dare beach ball here

Dan Dare bagatelle here

Eagle report to members (1951) here

Dan Dare field glasses here

Dan Dare interplanetary dominoes here

Dan Dare space-ship construction game here

Dan Dare draughts here

Dan Dare transfers (1) here

Dan Dare transfers (2) here

Riders of the Range painting book here

Dan Dare models here

Silver Eagler here

Space-cup here

Dan Dare stationery here

Eagle cricket bat here

Dan Dare secret ink here

Dan Dare mask here

and now it's the turn of the Dan Dare tie (currently up for sale here)

Excalibur auction - part 1

Some images from the recent auction of original comic art from Peter Hansen's amazing collection. This art was sold on Saturday 9th May 2026 by Excalibur auctions.

Dan Dare art by Ian Kennedy (from the cover of the 1988 Eagle holiday special)

Ron Turner art

Robert Nixon art

David Lloyd art from V for Vendetta

John M Burns art

Brian Bolland art

Dudley D Watkins art

Dan Dare - operation fireball

It's hard (after all these years) to find new Dan Dare / Eagle publications out there...but I came across this reprint recently... 

A4 sized, colour cover (and colour first 3 pages) with the actual reprint of the (Keith Watson illustrated Dan Dare story) Operation Fireball story in 20 pages (10 episodes) in black & white. 

Operation Fireball ran in Eagle from August-October 1962 (volume 13 issue 33 to issue 42). The story wasn't reprinted in the original Hawk Books series. This slim volume, published anonymously, sought to redress this balance. 

I'd welcome any information on who produced this.

Dan Dare in Northampton?

Well that was the dream back in the early 1980s for the bakers of "Wonderworld - Themepark and Related Industries Development, Corby" who went as far as producing this A4 sized full colour 68 page guide to their plans.

I recently acquired a copy of the guide having:

a). been intrigued by the image of Dan Dare on the cover; and

b). never having seen a copy of this before

The brochure outlines the developers plans for their early 1980s version of what sounds to me very much like a millennium dome style project.

"What is it? Imagine a place that has as its reason for existence, entertainment and education. A unique resort set in beautifully landscaped surroundings that blends in in perfectly with the neighbouring countryside. That takes into account the British climate and so includes a vast weather-protected centre in the tradition of the Great Exhibition Hall of 1851. A centre where the widest variety of attractions can be housed, each based on a particular theme such as the technology of the day or social or environmental matters. Themes that not only look at our prospects for the future but also at our national heritage of history, folklore and fairytale. An ambitious project, but one that' well under way. Its name is WonderWorld."

So, it's an indoor theme park. It has a number of zones - including land, safety, rhyme, sport, the world, energy, sea and communication.

It's the communication zone/area that interests me the most. Officially entitled "Communication - sailing messages across the airwaves" this zone has 4 pages (all shown below) in the brochure.

The zone contains the following areas...

Commercial radio station

DIY recording studio

Razzamatazz territory

Film showcase

Special effects studio

Print works

DIY TV studio

Professional TV studio

Monorail

Dan Dare restaurant

Radio fun food

Dan Dare emporium: books, cards, souvenirs, space kits, action toys

Wonderworld Post Office

Service facilities

  

The brochure notes:

"When planning the Communications Centre much thought was given to ensuring it does not become dated. Even Disney's 'Tomorrowland' today looks distinctly yesteryear. So the space city architecture of Frank Hampson, creator of Dan Dare, was chosen. Conceived in the late 1940s, his work still has the same futuristic appeal protected from the aging process by the special wrap of fantasy". 

the image at the bottom of this page featured in 'The man who drew tomorrow' - Alastair Crompton's biography of Frank Hampson - on page 198 (but without any context or mention of WonderWorld)

This looks like the Dan Dare restaurant that I highlighted above

the large image of this page featured in 'The man who drew tomorrow' - Alastair Crompton's biography of Frank Hampson - on page 199 (but without any context or mention of WonderWorld).

If you have more details on the whole WonderWorld project then I'd be delighted to hear them.

Glasgow Comic Art Convention - 1991

I've looked before (here) at the 1990s incarnation of the Glasgow Comic Art Convention (GCAC) that ran from 1990-5. I've been collecting the convention programmes for a long time and this was the final one I needed! I was very pleased to pick this up recently and I'm highlighting just some of the interior art. Good luck tracking down your own copy

Glasgow comic art convention 1991, Judge Dredd by Colin MacNeil

Glasgow comic art convention 1991, Dan Dare (& Digby) by David Pugh

Glasgow comic art convention 1991, DR & Quinch by Alan Davis

Glasgow comic art convention 1991, Judge Dredd by Will Simpson

Glasgow comic art convention 1991, Judge Dredd by Steve Yeowell

Glasgow comic art convention 1991, Wonderwoman by Brian Bolland

and here's a complete list of artists who created art for the souvenir programme