The first issue in 1937
Some of the newspaper coverage
Kids looking like they are eating shit
A sad git who will miss it (I hasten to add this picture is not me).
So, it looks as though The Dandy, the UKs longest running childrens comic, is to cease publication in September. This could be a ruse to increase readership, but its circulation has dropped from about 2 million a week in its heyday, to about 8,ooo now. They have tried various rebranding exercises (Dandy 'Xtreme' anybody?), but the market has changed a lot in the last 10 or 20 years. The Beano should survive for a bit longer, as that has circulation of about 30,000, but you can easily envisage that going down the pan in the future as well. It's a shame, as these were essential reading to millions of UK kids, with some great storytelling and characters. To me, what ruins them, is when they try to make them too modern, glossy, TV orientated and tacky, such as the fart and poo article above, which makes it look as though the young kid is going to eat the poo (I'd buy it if they made him). If you are going to put TV stars or celebrities on the cover, it takes away it's identity, and there are lots of other magazines out there that look similar and cater for that. Once kids get out of the habit of buying it every week, they often don't go back to doing so. Also, kids want funny, interesting or adventurous stories, and at a cheap price. Sadly those days have gone, and their entertainment can now be found elsewhere (Hello Mr Computer!). Lots of views are here, plus Lew Stringer's site is worth checking out.
toodle pip
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