Kids love a joke. There must have been more one-liners packed into an issue of Cheeky than in any other comic. The title was based on the central figure, gag-master-in-chief Cheeky, and a large cast of supporting regulars – some of whom sat on this Joke Box Jury.

I’m not sure at what age of reader Starlord was targeted. The adverts within suggest perhaps 8-11 years old? If that’s right, it’s remarkable that it carried such mind-bending cover artwork as this (by Bob Wakelin). Little wonder it’s so fondly-remembered. Watch the stars!

This Misty cover positively purrs with dark mystery and peril. The artist was Mario Capaldi, a regular on the cult supernatural thriller comic intended for girls, and which ran for two years between 1978 and 1980.

It’s transfer deadline day in England, and a suitable opportunity to look back at an audacious attempt by the fictional Middle-Eastern nation of Basran to lure Roy Race away from Melchester Rovers at the start of the 1978-79 season. David Sque was the artist.

Sid Burgon drew this eye-catching cover of Whizzer and Chips (with Krazy) to promote a Louis Marx toy competition in early September 1978. Curiously, one of a tiny number of W&C covers from the comic’s first 16 years not to include an image of Sid’s pet snake Slippy.

Ever dream of travelling back in time just to pop into a newsagent and see what comics were on display? Here’s a selection of some of the titles on sale in early September 1978 (off-sale date Saturday 9th). I’ll post some of the covers and contents over the next few days.

One of history's most important comics was Charley's War, published initially in Battle and written by the great Pat Mills. Now Pat's sequel is on the way! Please back Ragtime Soldier here, and share as widely as possible. t.co/zuByo5Ga2B

Doctor Who Weekly, cover date 12 December 1979.   One of telly’s greatest monster designs in close-up on the front of one of history’s greatest comics makes for a superb cover. Aged 9, I loved Doctor Who, I loved DWW, and Zygons scared the Y-fronts off me. A true classic.

The Beano, cover date 8 December 1973. Shameless promotion of its own wares by DC Thomson here. Biffo the Bear's strip is just an extended advert. But who cares? It’s good-looking art by David Sutherland, and it's always fun to see in-strip references to newsagents and printers.

Eagle and Tiger, cover date 7 December 1985. Here’s a rather age-stained Eagle from my collection (art by Carlos Cruz). It had merged with the longer running Tiger comic earlier in the year as IPC’s roster of boys’ comic titles reduced in line with a gradually declining market.

Build high for happiness, dig deep for confusion. Here are some thoughts on an unlikely pairing of #DoctorWho stories broadcast 34 years apart: Paradise Towers & The Vanquishers. Urban neglect, community strength, mindfulness and chocolate. www.dwrandomised.com/post/home-is-where-the-hurt-is

Buster, cover date 6 December 1975.   The jokes in Snooper were based as much on the character having an enormous hooter as on the nosiness it denoted. Making fun of physical characteristics was common in 70s comics, certainly more than in kids’ comics books and cartoons today.

Who’s writing your story? A dwrandomised take on The Mind Robber and The Runaway Bride. Thoughts on each story, and connections between the two. #DoctorWho New blog post: www.dwrandomised.com/post/walk-into-my-parlour

After Saka’s penalty the commentator (Darren Fletcher?) once again rolled out the story of the pen he missed against Italy. Again. ‘Resolute’ … ‘Fine young man’ … ‘Starboy’ etc. Couple of thoughts: … #Arsenal

‘2 Comics in 1 … Double the Fun!’ was quite the grift in the 1970s. The value wasn’t much greater than a single-title comic, but it created an extra little bit of interest and Whizzer and Chips, Score n’ Roar, Shiver and Shake all tried it on. Here’s a Mike Lacey cover for S&S dated 17 Nov 1973.

I created a @2000ad.bsky.social creators starter pack. Who am I missing? go.bsky.app/BG2jVJ4

2000AD, cover date 5 September 1981.   Here’s another legendary cover from British comics history, as artist Dave Gibbons introduces us to genetic infantryman Rogue Trooper.

Whoopee!, cover date 4 September 1976. Whoopee! is the comic I most wish I’d read regularly as a kid. It had so many great characters who still make me SNORT! SNIGGER! CHUCKLE! today, at the grand old age of CREAK! GROAN! Including Bumpkin Billionaires, drawn here by Jimmy Hansen.

Spellbound, cover date 3 September 1977. 
Spellbound ran for just 15 months in the mid-1970s, offering tales of magic and wonder for girls. Normal Lee’s cover for #50 features some of the most popular strips: Marina, Supercats, Damian Darke and Miss Hatherleigh of Cremond Castle.

Tiger and Jag, cover date 2 September 1972. Yvonne Hutton’s Roy of the Rovers covers rank alongside the very best examples of British comic art. She had a gift for capturing the athleticism, excitement and atmosphere of a top football game.

Sparky, cover date 1 September 1973. 
Here’s a fun Barney Bulldog cover by Bill Ritchie. Barney is actually the dog whose paw is seen exiting stage right, not the angry pooch. It’s a great design: that block-type Sparky title gives the cover the look of a bill poster.

Nikki, cover date 31 August 1985. Was this the most progressive children’s comic cover of 1985?

Speed, cover date 30 August 1980.   Topps on Two Wheels seems to have been created as a sort of Evel Knievel meets The Dukes of Hazzard mash-up. Eddie Topps was a stunt rider with a huge ego and a motorbike called The Beast.   I’m not sure about the artist for this one.

Look-in, 29 August 1981   Here’s Kim Wilde, Look-in out a dirty old window (full credit/blame to Fats Harvis on Facebook’s Look-in Magazine Appreciation Group for that one).   Art by John Geary.

The Beezer, cover date 28 August 1976. Here’s an eye-catching cover, with some nice panel layouts by Ginger artist Bob McGrath: not a ‘story’ as such, just two kids enjoying themselves with some unusual visuals. It's the design that sells it, not the narrative.

Judy, cover date 27 August 1988. Norman Lee was an outstanding artist whose distinctive style graced the covers and pages of many girls’ comics and magazines in the DC Thomson range throughout the 1970s and 1980s. This one’s another great design.

Starlord, cover date 26 August 1978. Ro-Busters cover by Kevin O’Neill. I had a couple of copies of Starlord when I was 8. I was a little young for it, my regular comics were still the funny ones – but I knew even then that it was something special: larger, sophisticated, classy.

Most weeks the likes of M@sk propose some technological "innovation" which previously featured as a disaster that Ro-Busters had to clean up .

Starlord, cover date 26 August 1978. Ro-Busters cover by Kevin O’Neill. I had a couple of copies of Starlord when I was 8. I was a little young for it, my regular comics were still the funny ones – but I knew even then that it was something special: larger, sophisticated, classy.

Buster, cover date 25 August 1984. It’s a bank holiday weekend at the end of a British summer. Buster – in time-honoured British comics tradition – is off to the beach. Reg Parlett was the Buster’s Diary artist.

Roy of the Rovers, cover date 24 August 1985. Emlyn Hughes and Bob Wilson join Melchester Rovers. Art by David Sque. This legendary comic had an astonishing ability to fuse reality and fiction in a way that seems ridiculous at one level … but at another level perfectly valid.

Jinty, cover date 23 August 1975. Katie Jinx was Jinty’s regular cover star – a mischievous but well-meaning heroine who got into physical tumbles and scrapes. In ’74 she spent her summer hols trying to save her cousin from stuck-up chaperone Clarence. Art by Mario Capaldi.

70s Brit comics went no harder than Action.

The Dandy, cover date 22 August 1970. Korky the Cat makes a splosh for The Dandy’s 1500th issue. Charlie Grigg was the artist.

Action, cover date 21 August 1976. Action was approaching a day of reckoning in the autumn of ’76. Covers like this probably contributed to the outcry that led to it being withdrawn from distribution in October. But what an exciting time to be a reader! Art by Carlos Ezquerra?

Bunty, cover date 20 August 1983. It’s good to see a bit of dadsplaining called out. Bunty’s father was often the front cover fall guy, and here he’s deserving of mockery dished out after fancying himself as a camera buff. As Bunty observes, ‘What a stunt!’ Art by Doris Kinnear.

Cheeky and Plug, cover dated 19 August 1978. Feeling old and creaky? I am, it’s my birthday – halfway to 108 years old! I’m treating myself with a look at two comics from the same week, and the Ivory Rivaly between Cheeky and Plug. Cover art: Frank McDiarmid (C), Vic Neill (P).

Eagle, cover dated 18 August 1984. The Eagle comic had various different formats, styles and content in across the years, but a lovely Dan Dare spaceship cover never seemed to be more than a few issues away. The artist this time round was Carlos Cruz.

Tammy and June, cover date 17 June 1974. Foul play at the Tammytown Sports Day! John Richardson was the regular cover artist for Tammy, usually featuring the two girls in the foreground here generally thought to be named ‘Tammy’ and ‘June’.

Monster Fun, cover date 16 August 1975. There bain’t no such thing as a better word to have on the front cover of your comic than ‘bain’t’. Cover art by Robert Nixon.

GNFAR's daily 'cover date' threads can now be sent direct to your email inbox by subscribing to my Substack feed. A comic delivered to you every morning* just like the good ol' days! Please follow this link greatnewsforallreaders.substack.com *NB. probably not *every* morning.

Victor, 15 August 1981. Artist unknown. It’s hard not to suspect that comics like Victor, with weekly dramatisations of British military heroics - such as this True Story of Men at War - had a formative influence on the over-inflated patriotism of the country we live in today.

Good morning, it’s Wednesday August 14th. Hurrah! May its hours be kind. (Released on this very day in 1971, a mere 53 years ago, TV21 #99, with its take on Mr Spock that strongly suggests the writer had never actually seen Star Trek.)

Jackie, cover date 14 August 1976. They don’t make ice creams like that any more. And neither do they make girls’ magazines (containing beautiful comics) like Jackie. Its average weekly sale in 1976 was 605,947 copies.

It's hello from me... and it's hello from them!

Nutty, cover date 13 August 1983. This is roughly mid-run for Nutty, a great little 80s comic designed to be that little bit more unhinged than the likes of The Beano, The Dandy, The Beezer and The Topper in DC Thomson’s esteemed humour range. Bananaman drawn by John Geering.

TV Action + Countdown, cover dated 12 August 1972. In this issue was the final instalment of long-running Dr. Who serial The Enemy from Nowhere (script Dennis Hooper, art Gerry Haylock). The Doctor prevents the reverse-matter Zerons from nuking Earth.

Roughly a year since I had some fun making this: Misty, 12 August 1978: Part 1 youtu.be/1i_LH5AoRbE?si… via @YouTube

Misty, cover dated 11 August 1979. Art by Mario Capaldi.