Disaster Des is singled
out for a front-page mention this week, and the ever-reliable
Cheeky/Manhole Man double act gets this issue off to a cracking start
with a helping of cereal-based humour. Surprisingly, Uncle Hamish is
not to be found among the Caledonian consumers of porridge who adorn this cover. As always, the fertile mind of Frank McDiarmid generates several additional gags around the page.
On Sunday the breakfast
banter continues as Cheeky has another doorstep encounter with Bump-Bump Bernie.
 |
| Art: Frank McDiarmid pencils |
Calculator Kid has
a further grimy adventure (see the 16 June 1979 'Disco Special' issue), but with a
happier outcome this time thanks to his electronic mate and a packet of Ker-Splat,
the 'bionic' washing powder (as if it's not bad enough having 6
Million Dollar Gran repeatedly described as bionic despite her
robotic nature, now the inappropriate adjective is being applied to
laundry products).
 |
| Art: Terry Bave |
Speaking of the mechanical marvel, this week's Gran story centres on Professor Potts'
workplace (presumably he's still employed at the World Authority for
Scientific Projects where he unveiled the aged automaton way back in
Cheeky Weekly's first issue). Even the Prof himself is now describing
the synthetic senior citizen as being bionic. Good to see Ian Knox
drawing the traditional British comics' sausage-and-mash image, as
well as the standard foreign spy.
 |
| Art: Ian Knox |
I wonder why the third
panel of the Monday page has been composed of Mike Lacey's drawing of
Mr Mutton from the previous issue and what looks like a pasted-in
Cheeky.
 |
| Art: Frank McDiarmid pencils and Mike Lacey |
Coastal calamities abound as front-cover-boosted Des enjoys a day at the seaside.
 |
| Art: Mike Lacey |
Elephant is still on the run in another agreeably bonkers escapade.
 |
| Art: Robert Nixon |
On the Chit-Chat page,
reader Ian Walding of Bury St. Edmunds claims his 'regular order' of
Cheeky Weekly is delivered by the postman. This seems unlikely since
the small print at the foot of the same page informs us that
'subscription facilities (inland and overseas) are not now
available'. A regular order with the local newsagent would most
likely be delivered by a kid (not unlike Cheeky himself, except maybe
for the profusion of teeth) on a bike, rather than the employee of
Royal Mail to which Ian refers. Since our young chum admits his copy
of the toothy funster's comic is usually delivered while he's still in bed,
I suspect he has never actually witnessed his favourite funny paper's
arrival on the doormat, and thus may be unfairly attributing the
partly-masticated nature of his reading material to feline activity.
I suggest that the paperboy/girl, aggrieved at not being recognised as the
true source of young Master Walding's weekly dose of Cheeky chuckles,
may quite possibly be indulging in a surreptitious nibble of
frustration.
The Wednesday page sees
the artwork duties handed over from what I have designated as Frank McDiarmid pencils (i.e. someone other than Frank inking his artwork)
to another artist who I'm not able to identify.
 | |
| Artist unknown (to me).
The first panel of the
bottom row is based on
the distinctive Cheeky/Snail pose that
Frank
McDiarmid drew in the 21 April 1979 issue,
and Dick Millington copied
in the 28 July 1979 edition.
|
Page 29 contains Cheeky Weekly's first advert for the Cheeky Annual 1980, the ad's design
leaning heavily on the previous year's promotional announcement.
There is no particular
theme to Cheeky's Saturday this week - it's just a continuation of
the usual daily gagfest. Snail of the Century is absent from the
comic for the second time since it began in the 14 July 1979 edition,
and its usual back page haunt is host to a colour episode of Why,Dad, Why?
The front cover is the
only pure Frank McDiarmid art this week. The Cheeky's Week artwork
duties on this issue are shared between Frank McDiarmid pencils (the
last time this collaboration will provide art for the comic) and the
unknown artist who I have designated as Not Known. This is the only
issue to which this artist contributed.
Cheeky's Week Artists Cover Date 22-Sep-1979
| Artist | Elements |
| Not known | 5 |
| Frank McDiarmid pencils | 3 |
| Cheeky Weekly | Cover Date: 22-Sep-1979, Issue 98 of 117 |
| Page | Details |
| 1 | Cover Feature 'Manhole Man' 4 of 7 - Art Frank McDiarmid |
| 2 | Sunday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils (final art on feature) |
| 3 | Calculator Kid - Art Terry Bave |
| 4 | 6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox |
| 5 | 6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox |
| 6 | 6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox |
| 7 | Monday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils (final art on feature) |
| 8 | Ad: Mr Bellamy's |
| 9 | Joke-Box Jury |
| 10 | Joke-Box Jury |
| 11 | Tuesday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils (final art on feature) |
| 12 | The Gang reprint from Whizzer and Chips - Art Robert MacGillivray |
| 13 | The Gang reprint from Whizzer and Chips - Art Robert MacGillivray |
| 14 | Disaster Des - Art Mike Lacey |
| 15 | Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon |
| 16 | Stage School - Art Robert Nixon |
| 17 | Stage School - Art Robert Nixon |
| 18 | Mustapha Million - Art Joe McCaffrey |
| 19 | Mustapha Million - Art Joe McCaffrey |
| 20 | Chit-Chat |
| 21 | Chit-Chat\Ad: IPC 'Puzzle Time' 5 of 6 |
| 22 | Wednesday - Art Not known (single art on feature) |
| 23 | Speed Squad - Art Jimmy Hansen |
| 24 | Thursday - Art Not known (single art on feature) |
| 25 | Ad: Barratt (final appearance) 'Oran-gee-tang' 2 of 2 |
| 26 | Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips - Art John Richardson |
| 27 | Friday - Art Not known (single art on feature) |
| 28 | Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton |
| 29 | Ad: IPC 'Cheeky Annual' 4 of 6 Ad: 'Top Soccer' 1 of 3 |
| 30 | Saturday - Art Not known (single art on feature) |
| 31 | Saturday - Art Not known (single art on feature) |
| 32 | Why, Dad, Why? - Art John K. Geering |
