A MOST AMUSING ANGLE
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DOUBLE AMUSEMENT
This album title is similar to my website title - "We Are Most Amused" - parodying Victoria's "We Are Not Amused" quote.
It's a double LP featuring a variety of well known UK comedians - Spike, Cleese, Hancock, Atkinson, Sellers etc.
In fact you can see most of them on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, along with a dead parrot!
Date release was 1981.
It's a double LP featuring a variety of well known UK comedians - Spike, Cleese, Hancock, Atkinson, Sellers etc.
In fact you can see most of them on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, along with a dead parrot!
Date release was 1981.
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VICTORIA'S INVITE
Another variant of the Victoria quote cropped up on the Private Eye invite for their V&A exhibition in 2011.
McLachlan opted for "We are amused", as Vic & Bert view the cartoon exhibits.
McLachlan opted for "We are amused", as Vic & Bert view the cartoon exhibits.
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OCH AYE THE 'TOON
Another exhibition postcard, this time drawn by Gerald Scarfe, although it wasn't a Scarfe show, he only did the poster.
It took place in Edinburgh in 1986 and was an exhibition titled "The Enterprising Scot".
Scarfe depicting Scottish inventiveness by having light-bulbs on the bagpipes, symbolizing bright ideas!
It took place in Edinburgh in 1986 and was an exhibition titled "The Enterprising Scot".
Scarfe depicting Scottish inventiveness by having light-bulbs on the bagpipes, symbolizing bright ideas!
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT
I was kinda inspired by the likes of Scarfe and Steadman in the early 80's when I was dabbling in cartoon work from time to time, using the pen nib dipped in ink technique.
Top one was drawn in 1984 when the Ethiopian starvation crisis was in the news, which eventually lead to the Band Aid recording.
The starving kid is holding out an empty bowl resembling the southern hemisphere of a globe, and making sure Africa was the main country on it.
Then around a quarter of a century later, African starvation was headline news again because the dimwits running the planet still hadn't solved the problem, hence another similar themed cartoon.
By this time I had developed my own drawing technique, which is why it's a different style to the '84 example.
This one ended up being donated to a charity cartoon sale.
Not funny lightweight cartoons obviously, but the scornful wit does highlight the plight.
Top one was drawn in 1984 when the Ethiopian starvation crisis was in the news, which eventually lead to the Band Aid recording.
The starving kid is holding out an empty bowl resembling the southern hemisphere of a globe, and making sure Africa was the main country on it.
Then around a quarter of a century later, African starvation was headline news again because the dimwits running the planet still hadn't solved the problem, hence another similar themed cartoon.
By this time I had developed my own drawing technique, which is why it's a different style to the '84 example.
This one ended up being donated to a charity cartoon sale.
Not funny lightweight cartoons obviously, but the scornful wit does highlight the plight.
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CHARITY HILARITY
This zine style comic came out in the late 80's.
It was called "Paris - the Man of Plaster".
The cover of a burglar with a huge swag bag shaped like Africa is announcing "Crime Aid" - a parody of Live Aid.
"Crime Aid" had criminals do crimes around the world on one specific day, all of which were broadcast live on TV - and all done for charity!
It was the work of cartoonists Steve Way and Glenn Dakin, when they were students in Cambridge.
The zine consisted of a mix of comic strips and one-off panel gags.
The main cartoon character was detective "Paris - The Man Of Plaster". He got quite a few pages.
There were also strips such as the adventures of "Anton Path", a post nuke series called "New World" and a couple of other bits & pieces like the one featured here - "Skulls...a kind of romance".
"Paris - the Man of Plaster" had a run of 6 issues - May 1987 > Sept. 1988 - the one here being issue 5.
It was called "Paris - the Man of Plaster".
The cover of a burglar with a huge swag bag shaped like Africa is announcing "Crime Aid" - a parody of Live Aid.
"Crime Aid" had criminals do crimes around the world on one specific day, all of which were broadcast live on TV - and all done for charity!
It was the work of cartoonists Steve Way and Glenn Dakin, when they were students in Cambridge.
The zine consisted of a mix of comic strips and one-off panel gags.
The main cartoon character was detective "Paris - The Man Of Plaster". He got quite a few pages.
There were also strips such as the adventures of "Anton Path", a post nuke series called "New World" and a couple of other bits & pieces like the one featured here - "Skulls...a kind of romance".
"Paris - the Man of Plaster" had a run of 6 issues - May 1987 > Sept. 1988 - the one here being issue 5.
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STARDUST TO DUST
When David Bowie died, I got the idea to do a skull with one eye socket much bigger than the other, the reference being based on David's anisocoria eye condition.
However, I was unsure if it would be understood just as it was, so I had to add the Thin White Duke reference to emphasize it relating to Bowie.
Black humour of course, but done with respect, which is why I have included my gig ticket from when I went to see him live at Glasgow Apollo in 1978.
A pretty sensational show it was too!
However, I was unsure if it would be understood just as it was, so I had to add the Thin White Duke reference to emphasize it relating to Bowie.
Black humour of course, but done with respect, which is why I have included my gig ticket from when I went to see him live at Glasgow Apollo in 1978.
A pretty sensational show it was too!
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NECK OF THE WOODS
When I was out enjoying a nice cycling trip around the Cotswolds one summer, I thought it rather unusual to spot a skeleton of a giraffe!
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CRAZY QUIZ
I reckon the source of where I got my enjoyment of double imagery and optical illusions from, were kids comics in the 1960's.
The Beano used to have a quiz page and would often include strange but simple graphics which were done in such a way that you had to try and figure out what they were.
Once you understood the concept, it was great fun seeing if you could translate a rather abstract illustration into something feasible.
The ones above I recreated off the top of my head, so they obviously had impact when I first encountered them all those decades ago.
And for those of you who can't see what they are, here's the answers...
1. GIRAFFE PASSING A WINDOW
2. SNAKE GOING UPSTAIRS
3. MEXICAN RIDING A BIKE
4. WOMAN BRUSHING A FLOOR
5. DACHSHUND PASSING GAP IN FENCE
The Beano used to have a quiz page and would often include strange but simple graphics which were done in such a way that you had to try and figure out what they were.
Once you understood the concept, it was great fun seeing if you could translate a rather abstract illustration into something feasible.
The ones above I recreated off the top of my head, so they obviously had impact when I first encountered them all those decades ago.
And for those of you who can't see what they are, here's the answers...
1. GIRAFFE PASSING A WINDOW
2. SNAKE GOING UPSTAIRS
3. MEXICAN RIDING A BIKE
4. WOMAN BRUSHING A FLOOR
5. DACHSHUND PASSING GAP IN FENCE
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BEANO BOOK
Mentioning the Beano in the previous item reminded me that I have a massive book called The History Of The Beano.
This came out in 2008 and as you'd expect, it contains everything you need to know about the comic, the issues, the cartoonists, the free gifts, the public's interaction and such like.
Presented in chronological order making it easy to use for research.
I'm mostly in the 1960's zone, the era I can relate to most being a primary school kid at the time.
Yeah, a top quality piece of work.
This came out in 2008 and as you'd expect, it contains everything you need to know about the comic, the issues, the cartoonists, the free gifts, the public's interaction and such like.
Presented in chronological order making it easy to use for research.
I'm mostly in the 1960's zone, the era I can relate to most being a primary school kid at the time.
Yeah, a top quality piece of work.
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BEANO BLUES BREAKERS
Talking about the Beano in the 60's (again), this well known album by John Mayall is now more famous for the cover than for the music itself - and all because Eric Clapton is reading the Beano.!
I have put the front & back cover of the actual issue he's reading alongside the LP cover.
This issue of the Beano was published in May 1966.
I have put the front & back cover of the actual issue he's reading alongside the LP cover.
This issue of the Beano was published in May 1966.
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BAG AMBIGUITY
Not that I'm the habit of checking out female clothing accessories but I was most amused when these bags caught my eye passing the shop's window.
The photo on the left was taken in Birmingham in 2003 and feature designs that are half bag - half high-heeled boot.
Picture on the right was taken in Gloucester in 2017 and has a bag that is a pastiche of the Louis Vuitton iconography with the inclusion of skulls, which makes it look like a collab with Mastermind of Japan.
Imagine how expensive it would be if it was!
The photo on the left was taken in Birmingham in 2003 and feature designs that are half bag - half high-heeled boot.
Picture on the right was taken in Gloucester in 2017 and has a bag that is a pastiche of the Louis Vuitton iconography with the inclusion of skulls, which makes it look like a collab with Mastermind of Japan.
Imagine how expensive it would be if it was!
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DESIGNER TEA BAG
Mastermind of Japan are not the only ones who use a skull as a logo graphic, there's a fashion design range in Korea who use it as well.
They are called "By The R", a cult clothing outlet.
I've bought a few items from them in the past, and along with the the purchases, they always throw in promo cards...and a complimentary tea-bag..!!
I've enjoyed a few cups of their Korean tea up to now, and really like the flavour.
Tea bags are not something you usually get as a clothing accessory mind you..!!
They are called "By The R", a cult clothing outlet.
I've bought a few items from them in the past, and along with the the purchases, they always throw in promo cards...and a complimentary tea-bag..!!
I've enjoyed a few cups of their Korean tea up to now, and really like the flavour.
Tea bags are not something you usually get as a clothing accessory mind you..!!
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HAND GRENADE BAG
I was amused by this accessory I got in 2017.
It's a key holder shaped like a hand grenade.
It was made from a lightweight material, hollow, and had a zip to open it up to put your keys inside.
I hooked it onto an old bag I have, and you can see the grenade dangling from the bag in the photo of myself, with a kinda grunge look.
The thing about the grenade was, it was a neat little key container but it was clashing in a contrary manner with the "Ban The Bomb" patch I had on the bag.
So after a bit of an ethics dilemma, I ended up throwing the grenade in the bin after only about a week.
Although it was good to make fun of such a useless invention as a real grenade, I opted for the Ban The Bomb patch to be kept and got myself a Bape key-ring to go with it instead.
It's a key holder shaped like a hand grenade.
It was made from a lightweight material, hollow, and had a zip to open it up to put your keys inside.
I hooked it onto an old bag I have, and you can see the grenade dangling from the bag in the photo of myself, with a kinda grunge look.
The thing about the grenade was, it was a neat little key container but it was clashing in a contrary manner with the "Ban The Bomb" patch I had on the bag.
So after a bit of an ethics dilemma, I ended up throwing the grenade in the bin after only about a week.
Although it was good to make fun of such a useless invention as a real grenade, I opted for the Ban The Bomb patch to be kept and got myself a Bape key-ring to go with it instead.
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STATING THE OBVIOUSWhen I was looking at my dictionary to see how to spell Brasserie (as in snack-bar), I spotted the word "Braless" at the top of the page.
I had to chuckle when the cross-reference instruction stated "see under BRA" to get the definition from the main word entry. The instruction itself contains the actual definition! |
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I used to wear this t-shirt in 1981/82.
The graphic is the logo for Dread At The Controls - a reggae radio show hosted by Mikey Dread.
I had a sizable collection of reggae/dub albums back then.
I also used to go to reggae discos and go to reggae gigs.
On one occasion in June 1981, I went to Edinburgh to see Aswad (still got my ticket).
This was my first time at this venue - had a great night, a few drinks, a couple of spliffs and mostly danced my way through the gig.
I felt fine at the gig, didn't feel drunk at all, but afterwards when I stepped outside into the fresh air, it seemed to turn into the twilight zone!
Didn't have a clue where I was, no idea which direction the train station was, I just managed to stagger there by fluky instinct.
I had work to go to the next morning which is why I had to get back to Dundee rather than stay in Edinburgh overnight.
First, I jumped on a train - fell asleep and woke up in Glasgow!
Second, I got on another train heading for Aberdeen which stopped off in Dundee - only I conked out again, missed my stop and woke up in Arbroath!
Thirdly, I had to hop on yet another train back to Dundee.
This time I managed to stay awake, but it was a working morning by now and so I didn't have time to go home to freshen up and have breakfast, I just had time to get a bus to work.
Made it in time with a couple of minutes to spare.
I don't recall much work getting done that day though!
The graphic is the logo for Dread At The Controls - a reggae radio show hosted by Mikey Dread.
I had a sizable collection of reggae/dub albums back then.
I also used to go to reggae discos and go to reggae gigs.
On one occasion in June 1981, I went to Edinburgh to see Aswad (still got my ticket).
This was my first time at this venue - had a great night, a few drinks, a couple of spliffs and mostly danced my way through the gig.
I felt fine at the gig, didn't feel drunk at all, but afterwards when I stepped outside into the fresh air, it seemed to turn into the twilight zone!
Didn't have a clue where I was, no idea which direction the train station was, I just managed to stagger there by fluky instinct.
I had work to go to the next morning which is why I had to get back to Dundee rather than stay in Edinburgh overnight.
First, I jumped on a train - fell asleep and woke up in Glasgow!
Second, I got on another train heading for Aberdeen which stopped off in Dundee - only I conked out again, missed my stop and woke up in Arbroath!
Thirdly, I had to hop on yet another train back to Dundee.
This time I managed to stay awake, but it was a working morning by now and so I didn't have time to go home to freshen up and have breakfast, I just had time to get a bus to work.
Made it in time with a couple of minutes to spare.
I don't recall much work getting done that day though!
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RADIO BOOK
One of my favourite radio stations to tune into when online is WFMU in New York.
It's a wonderful freeform presentation where all sorts of amazing records are played.
Although WFMU started up in the 60's, in the 80's they published their own magazine called LCD aka Lowest Common Denominator.
This book came out in 2008 and is a "best of" style compilation of LCD's contents, plus there's also lots of extra WFMU info and ephemera to go with it.
The majority of the book's visuals are cartoon based - comic strips, gags, caricatures and illustrations.
Like the station's record content, the book's graphic content is a mixture of classy, bizarre, comical, unsettling, clever and wacky.
Over 200 pages worth of delightful oddities in fact!
A random example for instance is this strip here "Tales Of Great Reception!", which reminds me of the Mr Bean episode where he was trying to get a reception on his TV.
It's a wonderful freeform presentation where all sorts of amazing records are played.
Although WFMU started up in the 60's, in the 80's they published their own magazine called LCD aka Lowest Common Denominator.
This book came out in 2008 and is a "best of" style compilation of LCD's contents, plus there's also lots of extra WFMU info and ephemera to go with it.
The majority of the book's visuals are cartoon based - comic strips, gags, caricatures and illustrations.
Like the station's record content, the book's graphic content is a mixture of classy, bizarre, comical, unsettling, clever and wacky.
Over 200 pages worth of delightful oddities in fact!
A random example for instance is this strip here "Tales Of Great Reception!", which reminds me of the Mr Bean episode where he was trying to get a reception on his TV.
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RADIO GAG
On the topic of radio, here's an unpublished cartoon I did in 2014.
The length of the punchline is probably why it remains unsold.
However, the wavelengths with corresponding place-name size, is the point of it..!!
The length of the punchline is probably why it remains unsold.
However, the wavelengths with corresponding place-name size, is the point of it..!!
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SAVAGE PENCIL BOOK
This is a fairly new book by cartoonist Savage Pencil that came out in 2020 and is called "Rated SavX"
I've been familiar with his work since the 70's when he used to feature in weekly music publication Sounds, right through to his latter day appearances in Wire magazine.
The book cover is quite mild compared to the content inside, which is filled with all sorts of freaky, nasty, dark, wild, weird and wacky characters, drawn in his instantly recognizable style.
His pen goes where no-one else's goes!
And although the cartoons are trippy and edgy, there is a certain rhythm to his technique, full of thorns, flames, veins, broken bones, spikes, drips, rotten teeth, bulging eyes and general squiggle patterns of decay.
Not all are funny gags as such but it is humorous to view such bizarre artwork.
The 2 panels under the book are actually a the cover of a vinyl LP I have. A gatefold sleeve which Savage Pencil did the artwork for and is called "Nothing Short Of Total War", a Blast First compilation released in 1989 and has the likes of Sonic Youth, Big Black, UT, Dinosaur Jr, Ciccone Youth and a few others of a similar ilk.
Underneath these are 4 postcards that came free with Wire magazine many years ago.
A different side to Savage Pencil's work, these being illustrations rather than cartoon work.
They feature Grateful Dead - Karlheinz Stockhausen - Sun Ra - Captain Beefheart.
Just thought I'd include them as they are quite rare and they don't crop up in the book.
I've been familiar with his work since the 70's when he used to feature in weekly music publication Sounds, right through to his latter day appearances in Wire magazine.
The book cover is quite mild compared to the content inside, which is filled with all sorts of freaky, nasty, dark, wild, weird and wacky characters, drawn in his instantly recognizable style.
His pen goes where no-one else's goes!
And although the cartoons are trippy and edgy, there is a certain rhythm to his technique, full of thorns, flames, veins, broken bones, spikes, drips, rotten teeth, bulging eyes and general squiggle patterns of decay.
Not all are funny gags as such but it is humorous to view such bizarre artwork.
The 2 panels under the book are actually a the cover of a vinyl LP I have. A gatefold sleeve which Savage Pencil did the artwork for and is called "Nothing Short Of Total War", a Blast First compilation released in 1989 and has the likes of Sonic Youth, Big Black, UT, Dinosaur Jr, Ciccone Youth and a few others of a similar ilk.
Underneath these are 4 postcards that came free with Wire magazine many years ago.
A different side to Savage Pencil's work, these being illustrations rather than cartoon work.
They feature Grateful Dead - Karlheinz Stockhausen - Sun Ra - Captain Beefheart.
Just thought I'd include them as they are quite rare and they don't crop up in the book.
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HELP PARODY
Another cartoonist who indulged in illustration work was Barry Fantoni.
The postcard on the left is a poster of The Beatles "Help" movie, and the postcard on the right is Barry's parody of it - both 1965.
The Beatles semaphore message when translated is gibberish - something like RVUJ.
However, the parody version does spell out a word and merges with YOU! just fine - FUCK.
Well it was the age of satire and Barry was a regular contributor to Private Eye!
The postcard on the left is a poster of The Beatles "Help" movie, and the postcard on the right is Barry's parody of it - both 1965.
The Beatles semaphore message when translated is gibberish - something like RVUJ.
However, the parody version does spell out a word and merges with YOU! just fine - FUCK.
Well it was the age of satire and Barry was a regular contributor to Private Eye!
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PICASSO PARODY
I have also conjured up a few parodies myself over the years, and here's such an example - Picasso's weeping woman.
The one on the left is my one which was published in Readers Digest in 2009 - weeping woman cutting an onion.
The one on the right is a postcard I bought around 2012 and is by AOI - weeping woman desperately trying to solve Rubik's Cube.
This one had a bonus of a word-play title - Rubik's Cubism.
The one on the left is my one which was published in Readers Digest in 2009 - weeping woman cutting an onion.
The one on the right is a postcard I bought around 2012 and is by AOI - weeping woman desperately trying to solve Rubik's Cube.
This one had a bonus of a word-play title - Rubik's Cubism.
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CHELSEA PARODY
This is an unpublished parody I did way back in 2003 when Abramovich arrived at Chelsea Football Club.
Pretty basic - replace the lion on the Chelsea badge with a Russian bear, depicting the taking over control of the club.
Pretty basic - replace the lion on the Chelsea badge with a Russian bear, depicting the taking over control of the club.
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GUARD BEARS
It's usually guard dogs that protect private property, but I was amused to see this display when out cycling around Gloucester in 2013.
They were full sized bears, and even although they were sculpted, they were still quite intimidating.
I took a quick snap and scarpered!
They were full sized bears, and even although they were sculpted, they were still quite intimidating.
I took a quick snap and scarpered!
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FLOYD ANIMALS PARODY
In 2013 I got the idea to do a parody of Pink Floyd's "Animals" LP cover, which has become pretty famous because of the inflatable pig.
Mine was a Christmas concept though, the image had to be a night time one, and snowing.
This meant I couldn't just do a straight forward copy of the original cover image which is in daylight, I needed to apply a bit of strategy to recreate the imagined scene.
So I decided the best way to set about it was to go to London on a photo-shoot and do the biz myself from scratch.
It was the middle of July, and one of the hottest days of the year, but one good thing was it was total blue sky, no clouds.
I trekked down to Battersea Power Station only to discover it was all cordoned off because of a huge restoration project.
I couldn't get a good photo of it no matter where I stood.
Then I spotted a truck drive into the site through a temporary doorway in the fence, so I went over to it and noticed a security guard at the makeshift door.
It was my only chance of getting fairly close to the power station for a photo, so before he closed the door after the truck I asked him if I could take a snap of the building.
He sort of looked around him to see if any of his superiors were nearby, there wasn't, and he said "OK but be quick".
I ran up to a decent spot, took a picture and ran back to the door.
Mission complete, and a thumbs up to the doorman.
When the image I took was in my photo editing software, I easily made the blue sky black (clouds would have been a bit time consuming to remove) - then added a layer of snow, and finally added the inflatable Rudolph reindeer.
It turned out exactly as I envisaged it.
All that effort just for a silly gag which still remains unpublished!
Mine was a Christmas concept though, the image had to be a night time one, and snowing.
This meant I couldn't just do a straight forward copy of the original cover image which is in daylight, I needed to apply a bit of strategy to recreate the imagined scene.
So I decided the best way to set about it was to go to London on a photo-shoot and do the biz myself from scratch.
It was the middle of July, and one of the hottest days of the year, but one good thing was it was total blue sky, no clouds.
I trekked down to Battersea Power Station only to discover it was all cordoned off because of a huge restoration project.
I couldn't get a good photo of it no matter where I stood.
Then I spotted a truck drive into the site through a temporary doorway in the fence, so I went over to it and noticed a security guard at the makeshift door.
It was my only chance of getting fairly close to the power station for a photo, so before he closed the door after the truck I asked him if I could take a snap of the building.
He sort of looked around him to see if any of his superiors were nearby, there wasn't, and he said "OK but be quick".
I ran up to a decent spot, took a picture and ran back to the door.
Mission complete, and a thumbs up to the doorman.
When the image I took was in my photo editing software, I easily made the blue sky black (clouds would have been a bit time consuming to remove) - then added a layer of snow, and finally added the inflatable Rudolph reindeer.
It turned out exactly as I envisaged it.
All that effort just for a silly gag which still remains unpublished!
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From flying pigs to revolving pigs...
Oink hit the shelves in 1986, and although the comic was aimed at youngsters, the rebellious humour of it's content soon had it become a favourite read of student types and the like.
It's not surprising Oink grabbed the attention of an older crowd because it was put together by a team of UK's top comedy writers.
Some of those who contributed material were cartoonists, Banx, Clive Collins (Phil Collins brother), Tony Husband and Haldane.
Another contributor was well known BBC DJ and ex member of The Fall, Marc Riley.
TV satirist, Charlie Brooker also had a stint on the comic.
I'll refrain from mentioning them all.
As you can see above, the first issue of the comic had a free flexi-disc - 2 tracks, "The Oink Song" by The Oinklettes and "Oink Rap" by Uncle Pigg.
I remember John Peel was a fan of Oink and used to name-drop it on his radio show, although I don't think he played the flexi.
Issue 1 actually has a colour poster of Bacon Stevens (Shakin' Stevens) accompanied by an interview by a character called John Potatopeel..!
Another amusing music item inside is a sexy sketch of blond bombshell, Hamantha Fox (Samantha Fox)..!
You get the gist of it?!
Oink hit the shelves in 1986, and although the comic was aimed at youngsters, the rebellious humour of it's content soon had it become a favourite read of student types and the like.
It's not surprising Oink grabbed the attention of an older crowd because it was put together by a team of UK's top comedy writers.
Some of those who contributed material were cartoonists, Banx, Clive Collins (Phil Collins brother), Tony Husband and Haldane.
Another contributor was well known BBC DJ and ex member of The Fall, Marc Riley.
TV satirist, Charlie Brooker also had a stint on the comic.
I'll refrain from mentioning them all.
As you can see above, the first issue of the comic had a free flexi-disc - 2 tracks, "The Oink Song" by The Oinklettes and "Oink Rap" by Uncle Pigg.
I remember John Peel was a fan of Oink and used to name-drop it on his radio show, although I don't think he played the flexi.
Issue 1 actually has a colour poster of Bacon Stevens (Shakin' Stevens) accompanied by an interview by a character called John Potatopeel..!
Another amusing music item inside is a sexy sketch of blond bombshell, Hamantha Fox (Samantha Fox)..!
You get the gist of it?!
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PRIVATE EYE FLEXI
This pink issue of Private Eye is dated October 1964 and it too came with a free flexi-disc.
The thing is, I've not heard it yet because it's still stuck onto the front cover the way it was presented on the shop shelves.
I like it the way it is visually speaking, the flexi surrounded by Gerald Scarfe's caricatures.
There is a description of the record inside the mag and apparently it is a mock Party Political Broadcast type of skit featuring Peter Cook, Willie Rushton, Richard Ingrams and co.
I may get round to digitizing it one day, but for now I'm gonna keep it as it is.
The thing is, I've not heard it yet because it's still stuck onto the front cover the way it was presented on the shop shelves.
I like it the way it is visually speaking, the flexi surrounded by Gerald Scarfe's caricatures.
There is a description of the record inside the mag and apparently it is a mock Party Political Broadcast type of skit featuring Peter Cook, Willie Rushton, Richard Ingrams and co.
I may get round to digitizing it one day, but for now I'm gonna keep it as it is.
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SPIN DOCTOR
I went to the Saatchi Gallery in 2003 to see the BritArt exhibition.
Much of it made me chuckle, rather than be awestruck by it.
Anyway, some of Damien Hirst's spin paintings were up on display, which I liked.
However, it also reminded me that, me being older than Damien, I had beat him to spin painting by a few decades!
Around 1968/69 when I was still in primary school, I got a toy for Christmas called Spiro-Matic.
I still have it too, and as you can see by the box images, this self contained gizmo was able to produce spin paintings on blank postcards.
Needless to say, I ended up churning out loads of these psychedelic treats.
My Spiro-Matic still works perfectly, and so one day a few years ago I decided to bring it out of storage and give it a few spins using more modern colours such as neon paint, gold & silver.
While I was at it, I knocked out 3 postcards all of which had a portrait of Damien in the centre which I drew in felt pen. Then the fun began, splattering and dripping the paint onto the card when the machine was rotating.
The results are the 3 cards above.
The round card on top is a postcard I bought at the Saatchi Gallery show - one of Damien's works done using ordinary domestic gloss paint.
The Spiro-Matic images now look quite contemporary, but there is a 4 decade gap in the concept.
Much of it made me chuckle, rather than be awestruck by it.
Anyway, some of Damien Hirst's spin paintings were up on display, which I liked.
However, it also reminded me that, me being older than Damien, I had beat him to spin painting by a few decades!
Around 1968/69 when I was still in primary school, I got a toy for Christmas called Spiro-Matic.
I still have it too, and as you can see by the box images, this self contained gizmo was able to produce spin paintings on blank postcards.
Needless to say, I ended up churning out loads of these psychedelic treats.
My Spiro-Matic still works perfectly, and so one day a few years ago I decided to bring it out of storage and give it a few spins using more modern colours such as neon paint, gold & silver.
While I was at it, I knocked out 3 postcards all of which had a portrait of Damien in the centre which I drew in felt pen. Then the fun began, splattering and dripping the paint onto the card when the machine was rotating.
The results are the 3 cards above.
The round card on top is a postcard I bought at the Saatchi Gallery show - one of Damien's works done using ordinary domestic gloss paint.
The Spiro-Matic images now look quite contemporary, but there is a 4 decade gap in the concept.
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FOR "F" SAKE
Before I took up cartooning full on, I used to do art stuff at home just for my own creative enjoyment.
One of the areas I dipped into was collages made from scrap bits of paper, sometimes ripped sometimes cut with scissors.
Most were kinda semi-abstract and I ended doing hundreds!
A sporadic theme I used when constructing the images was my travels around Europe, as in the example here.
I was in Italy in 1983, and one of the cities I visited was Venice.
One of the places I went to was Caffe Florian in St. Marks Square, a famous cafe that had been there for a couple of centuries.
I had some grub and a beer, then found out it was about 4 times more expensive than the nearby cafes!
That's what fame does I suppose.
It didn't trouble me however, as I enjoyed the pleasant ambience of the location, accompanied by the cafe's string quartet.
Lots of famous writers, poets, actors, musician and artists have visited Florian's - Monet, Cocteau, Andy Warhol, Stravinsky, Dickens, Hemingway, Byron etc - so it was nice to soak up a bit of history while I was there.
In fact, all this inspired me to design the cafe name into the artwork - using a gondola detail for the Letter "F".
The other bits & pieces depict the canals, cafe canopies, bridges and so on.
The artwork itself was done in 1986.
One of the areas I dipped into was collages made from scrap bits of paper, sometimes ripped sometimes cut with scissors.
Most were kinda semi-abstract and I ended doing hundreds!
A sporadic theme I used when constructing the images was my travels around Europe, as in the example here.
I was in Italy in 1983, and one of the cities I visited was Venice.
One of the places I went to was Caffe Florian in St. Marks Square, a famous cafe that had been there for a couple of centuries.
I had some grub and a beer, then found out it was about 4 times more expensive than the nearby cafes!
That's what fame does I suppose.
It didn't trouble me however, as I enjoyed the pleasant ambience of the location, accompanied by the cafe's string quartet.
Lots of famous writers, poets, actors, musician and artists have visited Florian's - Monet, Cocteau, Andy Warhol, Stravinsky, Dickens, Hemingway, Byron etc - so it was nice to soak up a bit of history while I was there.
In fact, all this inspired me to design the cafe name into the artwork - using a gondola detail for the Letter "F".
The other bits & pieces depict the canals, cafe canopies, bridges and so on.
The artwork itself was done in 1986.
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AFRO JUKEBOX
When I was touring France in 1982, I stopped off in Toulon for a couple of days.
I arrived there around midday and so decided to go for a snack before looking for digs.
I popped into a nearby cafe, but upon entering, the place went silent and it seemed the entire cafe had their eyes on me.
Although I noticed that it was all black people who were in, this didn't intimidate me at all, and I opted to go over to an empty table, put my back-pack on the seat, then go straight over to the jukebox which wasn't playing any music at the time.
Much to my delight, I spotted the brilliant record selection - a mostly African choice with a few reggae tracks in with them.
I was quite knowledgeable of both genres at that time, but instead of choosing records I was familiar with, I picked around half a dozen African acts I had never heard of before.
Next up was to get a drink and some grub.
Me putting some music on seemed to break the ice and the cafe sparked back into life again.
I was finishing off my snack, when a couple of guys approached me, curious to find out who I was.
After they discovered I was just a Scot touring around France on holiday, and not an "undercover cop" as one of them suggested, everything was fine.
It turned out that the cafe was frequented by exiled Africans only, and so the sight of me appearing in their den, was a touch unusual for them.
We got on fine after that, especially when I surprised them with my awareness African music.
The image is a side view of a jukebox, the polka dots representing records.
The black area is the sound of the African records I picked, blasting out in the colours of Africa.
I arrived there around midday and so decided to go for a snack before looking for digs.
I popped into a nearby cafe, but upon entering, the place went silent and it seemed the entire cafe had their eyes on me.
Although I noticed that it was all black people who were in, this didn't intimidate me at all, and I opted to go over to an empty table, put my back-pack on the seat, then go straight over to the jukebox which wasn't playing any music at the time.
Much to my delight, I spotted the brilliant record selection - a mostly African choice with a few reggae tracks in with them.
I was quite knowledgeable of both genres at that time, but instead of choosing records I was familiar with, I picked around half a dozen African acts I had never heard of before.
Next up was to get a drink and some grub.
Me putting some music on seemed to break the ice and the cafe sparked back into life again.
I was finishing off my snack, when a couple of guys approached me, curious to find out who I was.
After they discovered I was just a Scot touring around France on holiday, and not an "undercover cop" as one of them suggested, everything was fine.
It turned out that the cafe was frequented by exiled Africans only, and so the sight of me appearing in their den, was a touch unusual for them.
We got on fine after that, especially when I surprised them with my awareness African music.
The image is a side view of a jukebox, the polka dots representing records.
The black area is the sound of the African records I picked, blasting out in the colours of Africa.
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MONA MASK
There was a local pub I used to go to in Dundee in the 80's, and on their walls they had a variety of framed prints featuring various characters from the Commedia dell'Arte.
So possibly inspired by that, I did this cut-out in 1986.
It's the Mona Lisa with a mask!
Yes Lisa decided to join all the fun at a Venice masquerade ball.
She had a Colombina style mask with her as she mingled with the other party goers.
So possibly inspired by that, I did this cut-out in 1986.
It's the Mona Lisa with a mask!
Yes Lisa decided to join all the fun at a Venice masquerade ball.
She had a Colombina style mask with her as she mingled with the other party goers.
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