Brown Thing

Been a while since I've posted any Horrible Histories illustrations, so here's one from the vaults which I don't actually remember drawing. I rather like the penwork on this one, although in hindsight I don't think I quite captured the Martin Brown look as much as I probably thought I had at the time.


Counting down the days now until the Web and Mini-Comix Thing. And indeed until Muppet Show #1, which will be within a couple of days of one another. Currently drawing issue #3, writing issue #5 and wondering what the world outside looks like...

Tanks for the Memories

Another Horrible Histories spread. I remember having to redraw the tank quite a few times, so that it looked (to me) like one that was exactly the same. They had some boffin there who did it to everyone on that issue, apparently. People kept drawing the tank tracks a quarter of an inch too far apart or something...

In the interests of balance...

... since the last Horrible Histories picture I posted was a New Zealand-themed one (probably), this is an Australian one. Don't want the poor dears to start a war or anything.

The Old Country (Any Old Country)

I'm trying to remember what this is. I know it was for Horrible Histories, and part of my brain is telling me it was the Maoris discovering New Zealand, but the tattoos are wrong. Unless that's what they looked like back then. Otherwise it's a more generic South Pacific scene. Or it's a bunch of out-of-work movie extras looking for Merian C. Cooper.

Horrible Hadrian

When I'm feeling low, I like to take some Hadrian's Wall. It gives you a lift! Hadrian's Wall. At selected pharmacies.

("Mmm. Hadrian's Wall.")

The Return of Horrible

I haven't posted any Horrible Histories stuff in a while. Here are some illustrations I did for... was it the 'Orrible Ottomans or something? ... I'm drawing a blank, I'm afraid. Anyway, here you go.

Trying to knock the Art d'Ecco book into shape. The new story is finished; now I'm trying to get the old stuff up to scratch -- fixing corrupted Letratone on the computer, getting the dimensions right, all that. And redrawing a page or two if I have time. And figuring out what order to put it all in. And culling a bit of stuff to bring the page count down to 160 pages. I thought I'd be pushing it to get 160 pages together, but there are a couple of dozen I'll have to leave out in the end. (Just as well, they're shite...)

And they did comic strips, too

Here's a three-page strip I did for Horrible Histories (sans text - I encourage you to invent your own, with hilarious results no doubt). They had strips in every issue, but I only ever got to do this one.




Some actual strip work, with words and everything, is up at the Smithson site this week if you feel like checking it out. Words, plot and characters by the fabulous Shaenon Garrity. Nice to have something out there while I'm working on the d'Ecco book so people don't think I'm dead.

Speaking of funny women, I was really shocked and surprised to find out yesterday that Britain's funniest woman, Linda Smith, had died. I'm a fan of Radio 4's News Quiz, where she did a lot of her best work (at least in broadcast media). You could do a lot worse than tune in to Radio 4 at 6.30pm GMT on Friday (live streaming here) to hear a tribute special.

Crucible Schmucible

Here's a Horrible Histories illustration of a witch trial. I love witch trials. They never go out of style.



Worked on Art d'Ecco today. Aimed for two pages, did a page and a half. Tomorrow I shall endeavour to break the two-page barrier (or the Craig Thompson Barrier, as it's known -- the four-page barrier, or Kirby Barrier, while theoretically possible according to latest scientific research, is far, far out of reach without several more years' worth of intensive training. It involves actually bending the laws of physics to stretch time to twice its normal length, as I understand it).

Anyway - onward and upward, and all that.

They're crazy, these Romans...

Here's the first ever Horrible Histories job I did, of Ancient Rome. Rather wonderfully, the reference materials I was sent for this job were photocopied directly from the Asterix books.

I'm going to start mentioning what I'm working on at the bottom of each post, because the "news" aspect of the old website isn't really being served by my Memory Lane posts at the moment. So, to start the ball rolling, today I was lettering the latest Doctor Who comic strip for Doctor Who Magazine.

Yes, I can tell you're excited. Don't worry, it will get better. I don't want to peak too early.

The Dog Ate My Homework

My daughter's been home sick with a cold today; consequently I've got no work done all day and thus today's perfunctory post, randomly plucked from the Horrible Histories folder, so I can get a few hours in before bed. Sorry, but console yourself with the thought that it's all free.

Oo Arr

Everybody loves pirates. These ones were for an issue of Horrible Histories.

Apparently one of my ancestors had a duel, a real old-fashioned pistols-at-dawn affair, with a character called "Digby the Pirate", according to family legend. Nobody ever heard from Digby again, but his duelling pistols are now owned by some cousins of mine, I believe. And we call that "murder" nowadays. Crazy!

Abbey Normal

I had to draw Westminster Abbey for an issue of Horrible Histories a while back. The brief was to draw the inside of the cathedral in its full length, so you could see both ends at the same time, and to draw the ghosts of a whole lot of dead kings and queens and so forth walking around inside, big enough to be recognisable. Short of changing the laws of physics, this couldn't be done (unless you have a talent for recognising ants), so there was a bit of argy-bargy and this elegant compromise was reached.

I'm quite pleased with the ghosts.

Horribly Historical

For a good long while, I was doing illustrations for a magazine called Horrible Histories, an educational rag based on the bestselling line of children's books. The remit was to bury your own style in favour of that of the books' illustrator, Martin Brown, which wasn't as much fun as it sounds a lot of the time. Anyway, here's the Battle of Waterloo a la Brown.