Christopher Wickham
LightNews LightNews
banner
cwickham.bsky.social
Christopher Wickham
@cwickham.bsky.social
300 followers 700 following 680 posts
Quite a fast reader. cwickham.blogspot.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
cwickham.bsky.social
Christopher Wickham @cwickham.bsky.social · Dec 23
A look back at all the least terrible things written by me in 2024. cwickham.blogspot.com/2024/12/best...
Original 1982 cover of "The Warlock of Firetop Mountain", depicting an old warlock and a dragon Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar, as seen on a "Wayne's World" sketch from Saturday Night Live Richard E. Grant throttles David Mitchell Desperate Dan exclaims "Wh-what's going on? It's either an earthquake or the Dandy's under attack!" as the masthead of the Dandy falls on him
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
dirtyfeed.org
Brand new on Dirty Feed: just how reliable are Bob Monkhouse's memories of The Golden Shot?

www.dirtyfeed.org/2025/11/poor...
The Golden Shot title card from 1967 TV Times cover for The Golden Shot, showing a hostess holding a bow and arrow, and text next to it: THE GOLDEN SHOT Saturday at 8.15 p.m.
November 24, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
cwickham.bsky.social
Also an at-a-glance guide to girls' comics I couldn't seem to make work somehow, but definitely want to pick up again at some point...
Bunty D. C. Thomson, 1958 - 2001. Primarily aimed at working-class readers. Most famous for The Four Marys, a strip about four girls called Mary who attend a public boarding school, who were ever-present throughout the comic’s run. Outlasted all other British girls’ comics by showing a greater ability to move with the times. The last five issues were published on a monthly schedule; Christmas annuals continued to be published until 2008. Jinty Fleetway, 1974 - 1981. Featured science-fiction stories. Merged into Tammy. Christmas annuals continued to be published until 1985. Mandy & Judy D. C. Thomson, 1991 - 1997. Formed from the mergers of the separate Mandy and Judy. Ultimately merged into Bunty; Mandy annuals would continue to be published until 2006. Misty Fleetway, 1978 - 1980. Featured horror stories, and was accordingly far more popular with boys than any other title here. Merged into Tammy. Made a huge impact despite its short run; Christmas annuals continued to be published until 1985. Nikki D. C. Thomson, 1985 - 1989; the last new girls’ comic to be launched by D. C. Merged into Bunty upon its closure. Best known for The Comp, a serialised story set in a co-ed school.
November 23, 2025 at 11:50 AM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
cwickham.bsky.social
Some excerpts from a timeline of Fleetway comic mergers I started writing, but had to put on the backburner because it was making my brain hurt.
2 February 1980: Final issue of Cheeky is published; it merges with Whoopee!, where it initially appears as a pull-out section in the middle pages. The front cover oscillates between referring to the publication as Whoopee! and Cheeky and simply promoting the presence of the pull-out section until circa July 1981 30 January 1982: Final issue of Jackpot is published; it merges with Buster, which is branded as Buster and Jackpot until March 1983 5 June 1982: First issue of Wow! is published 25 June 1983: Final issue of Wow! is published; it merges with Whoopee!, which is branded as Whoopee! and Wow! until around April 1984 15 October 1983: First issue of School Fun is published 26 May 1984: Final issue of School Fun is published; it merges with Buster, which is branded as Buster and School Fun until March 1985 (although School Fun was included as a pull-out section, so some issues just carried a header denoting the presence of this) 30 March 1985: Final issue of Whoopee! is published; it merges with Whizzer and Chips, which is branded as Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee until October 1985 3 May 1986: First issue of Oink! is published 31 January 1987: First issue of Nipper is published 29 August 1987: Final issue of Nipper is published; it was released fortnightly, so only 16 issues were printed! It merged with Buster, which was branded as Buster and Nipper until January 1988 – there were 19 issues of Buster and Nipper, three more than Nipper itself! In spite of this, several of the Nipper strips Buster inherited, such as Double Trouble and Ricky Rainbow, proved to be very popular and ran until Buster’s final issue. 22 October 1988: Final issue of Oink! is published. Technically it merges with Buster, but some sources describe this as a “half-hearted” merger or don’t even consider it a proper merger at all: only three strips transferred over, and although the front covers of the first four issues promoted the addition of “characters from Oink!”’, the publication was never branded as Buster and Oink!. Two of the characters (Pete and his Pimple and Weedy Willy) were gone within a matter of months, although Tom Thug proved to be far more successful and stayed in its new home until its final issue.
November 23, 2025 at 11:43 AM
cwickham.bsky.social
Some excerpts from a timeline of Fleetway comic mergers I started writing, but had to put on the backburner because it was making my brain hurt.
2 February 1980: Final issue of Cheeky is published; it merges with Whoopee!, where it initially appears as a pull-out section in the middle pages. The front cover oscillates between referring to the publication as Whoopee! and Cheeky and simply promoting the presence of the pull-out section until circa July 1981 30 January 1982: Final issue of Jackpot is published; it merges with Buster, which is branded as Buster and Jackpot until March 1983 5 June 1982: First issue of Wow! is published 25 June 1983: Final issue of Wow! is published; it merges with Whoopee!, which is branded as Whoopee! and Wow! until around April 1984 15 October 1983: First issue of School Fun is published 26 May 1984: Final issue of School Fun is published; it merges with Buster, which is branded as Buster and School Fun until March 1985 (although School Fun was included as a pull-out section, so some issues just carried a header denoting the presence of this) 30 March 1985: Final issue of Whoopee! is published; it merges with Whizzer and Chips, which is branded as Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee until October 1985 3 May 1986: First issue of Oink! is published 31 January 1987: First issue of Nipper is published 29 August 1987: Final issue of Nipper is published; it was released fortnightly, so only 16 issues were printed! It merged with Buster, which was branded as Buster and Nipper until January 1988 – there were 19 issues of Buster and Nipper, three more than Nipper itself! In spite of this, several of the Nipper strips Buster inherited, such as Double Trouble and Ricky Rainbow, proved to be very popular and ran until Buster’s final issue. 22 October 1988: Final issue of Oink! is published. Technically it merges with Buster, but some sources describe this as a “half-hearted” merger or don’t even consider it a proper merger at all: only three strips transferred over, and although the front covers of the first four issues promoted the addition of “characters from Oink!”’, the publication was never branded as Buster and Oink!. Two of the characters (Pete and his Pimple and Weedy Willy) were gone within a matter of months, although Tom Thug proved to be far more successful and stayed in its new home until its final issue.
November 23, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
edmorrish.bsky.social
happy doctor who day
"The man who makes the noise of the TARDIS" - John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme
YouTube video by knifedog
youtu.be
November 23, 2025 at 11:34 AM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
garybrannan.bsky.social
HERE WE GO, LADS!

The Terrance Dicks Archive. Oh so many stories to tell! What a pleasure! What an honour!

HAPPY #DoctorWhoDay TO ALL OF YOU AT HOME!

#doctorwho #doctorwhoday #drwho
uoyborthwick.bsky.social Borthwick Institute for Archives @uoyborthwick.bsky.social · 2d
It’s a very happy #DoctorWhoDay from us - we’re delighted to announce we’ve successfully acquired the archive of Whoniverse legend Terrance Dicks 😲 Read more at the link:
www.york.ac.uk/borthwick/ne...
Page of the script of An Unearthly Child, written by Anthony Coburn and C.E. Webber and later novelised by Terrance Dicks.
November 23, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
paul-hayes.bsky.social
It was 62 years ago #OnThisDay in 1963 that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

Here's a piece I wrote for the History of the BBC website a couple of years ago about how the BBC covered the news.

I'm quite pleased with this one...

www.bbc.com/historyofthe...
Breaking news - November 1963
BBC History recalls one of the first truly global news stories of the modern multi-media age
www.bbc.com
November 22, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
cwickham.bsky.social
On Doctor Who Day here is, once again, the best thing ever to appear in Doctor Who Magazine
Competition question in Doctor Who Magazine: "Apart from The Idiot's Lantern, which other story features 'faceless ones'? a) The Faceless Ones b) The Faceless Ones c) Look, just send us your entry, okay?"
November 23, 2024 at 8:25 AM
cwickham.bsky.social
RIP Gavin Petrie, who was amongst many, many other things Fleetway artist J. Edward Oliver's editor early in his career.
Have you ever wondered why the initials "JEO" appear somewhere in every episode of CLIFF HANGER? (See first picture, above). Here's the reason: When the Cliff Hanger artist, J. Edward Oliver, started his career, he signed his work with just his initials. However, his editor at that time advised him that he would never become famous unless he signed his WHOLE name, so now he does BOTH! (See full signature in the final picture). That editor, Gavin Petrie, went on to become famous himself, as the co-writer of TV sitcoms such as "Faith in the Future"!
November 19, 2025 at 7:46 AM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
gralefrit.bsky.social
Happy 40th birthday to Bill Waterson’s ‘Calvin and Hobbes’. A work of consummate, stubborn, human, and more-than-human art.
November 18, 2025 at 10:38 AM
cwickham.bsky.social
To the latest person who has just DMed me, I have no way of verifying my age so I have no idea who you are or what you're trying to tell me
November 17, 2025 at 8:57 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
Somebody unexpectedly entered the office this morning and a colleague looked up from their monitor and said in a high-pitched voice "I'm doing my work!!"
November 17, 2025 at 4:35 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
@docwallace.bsky.social Can I have your email address for something?

(Probably quickest to email me, address is on my Blogger profile)
November 16, 2025 at 12:37 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
L: Chief Vitalstatistix holds a press conference to announce the plot of "Asterix and the Big Fight", in a 1964 page from Pilote homaging the press conferences of Charles de Gaulle.

R: In an advert in this week's Beano, Asterix and Obelix do an Instagram Live to promote "Asterix in Lusitania".
A page of Asterix where Chief Vitalstatistix holds a press conference to announce the plot of "Asterix and the Big Fight". (This is from its reproduction in the short story collection "Asterix and the Class Act", which has changed the text to act as an introduction to the book.) Full-page advert where Asterix and Obelix participate in an Instagram Live to discuss the plot of "Asterix in Lusitania".
November 11, 2025 at 7:06 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
Dad died this evening, will probably be offline for a while, much love to you all x
November 5, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
bsrg1.bsky.social
Anyway, we need some joy, so here's the Egyptian foreign minister being given a Lego Pyramid by the Danish foreign minister.
November 3, 2025 at 2:35 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
Sunday evening replug for this week's writing #2
cwickham.bsky.social Christopher Wickham @cwickham.bsky.social · 23d
A scintillating piece of writing on statistics in solo adventure gamebooks. cwickham.blogspot.com/2025/11/stat...
The Adventure Sheet from Fighting Fantasy #9 Caverns of the Snow Witch
November 2, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
Sunday evening replug for this week's writing #1
cwickham.bsky.social Christopher Wickham @cwickham.bsky.social · 27d
A piece of a fascinating, if somewhat morbid, comics-related puzzle falls into place. cwickham.blogspot.com/2025/10/ghos...
Boris, a preteen vampire, sits down on a coffin with a copy of the Beano.
November 2, 2025 at 7:21 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
A scintillating piece of writing on statistics in solo adventure gamebooks. cwickham.blogspot.com/2025/11/stat...
The Adventure Sheet from Fighting Fantasy #9 Caverns of the Snow Witch
November 2, 2025 at 9:44 AM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
depthsofwikipedia.bsky.social
If you're in need of positive and rather wholesome news, there's a high school teacher named Bryan who took a ton of freely licensed celebrity headshots at the New York Film Festival last month for Wikipedia, and I truly can't believe how drastic the upgrade is for some articles (thread)
November 1, 2025 at 1:21 PM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
levparikian.bsky.social
two vast and trunkless legs
The remote controlled trousers from Wallace and Gromit’s The Wrong Trousers.
October 31, 2025 at 12:58 PM
cwickham.bsky.social
For some reason I published a piece of writing ideally suited to Halloween in early September, so here's another link to it now.
cwickham.bsky.social Christopher Wickham @cwickham.bsky.social · Sep 14
With Halloween a mere 46 days away, here is a look at the British comics equivalent of The Munsters and The Addams Family. cwickham.blogspot.com/2025/09/the-...
Splash title panel for Number 13, featuring all the main characters around a large stone carved into the shape of the strip's title. Clockwise from the top: Fiendish, a bat; Frankie, a Frankenstein's monster-esque butler; Granny, a witch; The Screaming Skull; Boris, a preteen vampire; Uncle Wolfie; a sentient broomstick; Boris' mum and dad, who are also vampires.
October 31, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
waltydunlop.bsky.social
God, some days Mitchell and Webb's "send us your reckons" sketch rings out so loudly. www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQnd...
That Mitchell and Webb Look - Send us your reckons
YouTube video by iotaman5
www.youtube.com
October 31, 2025 at 10:59 AM
cwickham.bsky.social
Thought Bugonia was going to be even more surreal than I imagined, then an usher explained the projectionist needed to adjust the film
October 30, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Christopher Wickham
sunlightafterdark.com
I challenge you to open this in your browser and not be impressed and sucked in messenger.abeto.co
Messenger
It's a small planet, but someone's gotta make the deliveries.
messenger.abeto.co
October 30, 2025 at 8:39 AM