A to Z of British Newspaper Strips

By Paul Hudson

Published by Book Palace Books

ISBN: 9781913548247

Price £55

The newly-published A to Z of British Newspaper Strips, written and compiled by Paul Hudson, is a must for any cartoonist’s bookshelves.

The 320 page-book is a two-year labour of love for the author, former owner of the London comic shop Comic Showcase. Paul’s meticulous research has resulted in a comprehensive listing of almost 700 strips and cartoon features covering everything from familiar titles such as Andy Capp, Bristow, Flook, Fred Basset, The Gambols, Garth, Modesty Blaise and The Perishers to lesser known, forgotten or ‘lost’ strips such as The Adventures of Nit and Wit, Jimpy, Lord Upstairs and Downe, Perkins and Shop Acts.

Each entry includes dates published, creator details, a description, and in almost all cases an image of the strip (there are over 650 illustrations, many in full colour). The A to Z of British Newspaper Strips is a rich archive of British strip cartoons over the past 100 or so years (the earliest strip featured is from 1914) and a valuable resource for anyone interested in cartooning history. Every time you pick the book up and turn a page you will come across another strip you have never heard of, as well as those you have grown up with and in many cases still read today.

The book is dedicated to the late, great Denis Gifford, whose own volume, Stap Me! The History of the British Newspaper Strip, published in 1971, was a major inspiration for this new project.

Paul Hudson is to be congratulated on a superb volume, which is a worthy successor to Denis Gifford’s book, and fills a significant gap in the written history of British cartoons.

Published by Book Palace Books, The A to Z of British Newspaper Strips is a large format (7″ x 11″) hard cover, printed on high quality glossy paper.

Review by Mark Warby