Welcome to the Cheeky Weekly blog!


Welcome to the Cheeky Weekly blog!
Cheeky Weekly ™ REBELLION PUBLISHING LTD, COPYRIGHT ©  REBELLION PUBLISHING LTD, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED was a British children's comic with cover dates spanning 22 October 1977 to 02 February 1980.

Quick links...
Basic Stats
Cheeky Weekly Index - Cheeky Annuals and Specials Index
Cheeky Weekly Artist Index
Features by Number of Appearances
Cheeky Weekly Timeline
Major Characters from the Cheeky pages
Features Ordered by Date of Commencement

*** ALL IMAGES COPYRIGHT ©  REBELLION PUBLISHING LTD, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Used with permission. ***
*** CHEEKY WEEKLY, KRAZY, WHOOPEE!, WHOOPEE, WOW!, WHIZZER AND CHIPS and BUSTER ARE ™ REBELLION PUBLISHING LTD, COPYRIGHT ©  REBELLION PUBLISHING LTD, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ***
Thanks for reading the blog.

Monday 30 October 2017

Profile – Square Eyes

The phrase, coined in the early years of TV, “You'll get square eyes if you stare at that telly much longer...”, was uttered by parents in vain attempts to dislodge their cathode-ray tube-obsessed offspring from the sofa where they sat entranced by Tiswas, Doctor Who, the test card and just about anything that emerged from the flickering 405-or-625 lined box in the corner.

Square-Eyes' first appearance.
Cheeky Weekly 09 September 1978
Art: Frank McDiarmid


Thus was named Square-Eyes, Cheeky Weekly's box-goggler, who made his debut in issue number 47. So enamoured was he of the small screen that a portable telly was in his grasp at all times. Such an item was, in the late 1970s when most houses had only a single TV around which the whole family would gather at peak viewing times, something that most Cheeky Weekly readers could only dream of possessing.


Square-Eyes made it to Cheeky Weekly's cover in the second week of the Friends of Cheeky Snap Game (13 January 1979). The juvenile TV addict was one of the characters featured on the cut-out cards, and one such card was included on the front page to promote the game. The same image of  Cheeky's TV-loving chum featured on the Pin-Up Pal poster included in the 17 February 1979 issue.

Art: Mike Lacey


In the comic dated 27 January 1979 we learned that Square-Eyes had a family connection to the TV industry...
  
Mike again

The avid small-screen viewer was the subject of The Burpo Special in the 17 March 1979 comic...

Frank McDiarmid
 
..and a page later Square-Eyes was the source of that week's edition of The Mystery Comic...

 
Mike
 
Square-Eyes' final Cheeky Weekly appearance was in the issue dated 19 January 1980, the 34th issue in which Krazy Town's telly addict had appeared, and just 2 issues short of the final edition. 

Square-Eyes' final
CheekyWeekly appearance
18 January 1980
Frank McDiarmid

As time went on, Frank McDiarmid's renditions of Square-Eyes emphasised the telly-watcher's front teeth, and facially he came to resemble Krazy Town's feeble fitness fanatic, Jogging Jeremy (aside from Jeremy's lolling tongue).

Jogging Jeremy from the same issue as above.
Frank

Square-Eyes was created for Cheeky Weekly and never appeared in Krazy.


Character Total Issues First Appearance Final Appearance
Square-Eyes3409-Sep-197819-Jan-1980

Count of elements by artist




Character Artist Total Elements
Square-EyesFrank McDiarmid19
Square-EyesMike Lacey9
Square-EyesFrank McDiarmid pencils8
Square-EyesDick Millington2
Square-EyesBarrie Appleby1

Monday 23 October 2017

The Cut-Out Features - Top Ten Poster


The above announcement was printed in Cheeky Weekly dated 18 November 1978, but there was no further mention of the popularity poll until the 27 January 1979 edition, in which the toothy funster updated us on the current state of voting...


Front-runner John Travolta was at the time cresting a wave of UK popularity following his Saturday Night Fever (1977) and Grease (1978) film roles, as well as featuring with his Grease co-star, the third-placed Olivia Newton-John, on the hit single from the latter movie, You're the One That I Want, which topped the UK singles chart for 9 weeks in summer 1978. Second-placed Roger Moore (later Sir Roger) was of course the then-current James Bond, his most recent suave outing as 007 at that time being 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me. In fourth place was Henry Winkler, who portrayed Arthur Fonzarelli in American nostalgia-com TV show, Happy Days, an import that was very popular with UK viewers. The above announcement appeared again in the 10 and 17 February editions of Cheeky Weekly, and either the votes received in the intervening period maintained the relative positions of the 4 celebrities or else no further counts had been undertaken, as the placings remained the same as they had been when the announcement first appeared.


Cheeky Weekly dated 31 March 1979 included the above ad, trailing the commencement of a promotion the following week that would encompass companion titles Whoopee! and Whizzer and Chips as well as the toothy funster's own comic. In terms of the characters featured, this ad is somewhat Whoopee!-centric, depicting as it does Sweeny Toddler and Daisy and Billy Bumpkin, all of whom were appearing in that title at the time. Why no representatives from Whizzer and Chips and Cheeky Weekly?

The constituent parts of Cheeky Weekly's Top Ten Poster appeared in the issues dated 7, 14, 21 and 28 April 1979, with the centre pages of each issue devoted to the poster. The parts were published in ascending order of popularity except in the case of the 7th position (Blondie) who were omitted from week 1 but included in the following edition.

Week 1 10 The Boomtown Rats
Week 1 9 The Two Ronnies
Week 1 8 Kenny Dalglish
Week 2 7 Blondie
Week 1 6 Elvis Presley
Week 1 5 Lewis Collins
Week 2 4 Cheryl Ladd
Week 3 3 Henry Winkler
Week 3 2 Olivia Newton-John
Week 4 1 John Travolta

Accompanying each instalment of the poster, but safely located towards the rear of each issue so that they would survive the extraction of the poster elements, were instructions on assembly, given by the toothy funster himself (along with Snail). Each of these instructions were slightly different to the others, beyond the expected adjustments relating to the part numbers. The 21 April 1979 instructions refer to the 'colour poster' which, although the pages featured coloured borders and text boxes, is not really an accurate description of the contents.



Cheeky Weekly 21 April 1979 - To describe it as a colour poster is pushing things a bit. In addition to providing the instructions, this page announces the launch of another
multi-comic promotion the following week, this time including Buster and Monster Fun.



Here's what the poster looked like once the assembly instructions had been followed...


With the final part, the poster now styles itself The Cheeky Weekly Personality Poster despite the previous references to the Top Ten Poster. Sadly, due to the limitations of the somewhat basic printing process and the poor quality paper, all the celebrities, with the exception of John Travolta for some reason, seem to be peering out through a thick fog (I'm surprised Kenny Dalglish's match wasn't postponed, and The Two Ronnie's TV studio wasn't evacuated on the instructions of the fire marshal). I doubt whether this dull, depressing poster stayed on many bedroom walls for long.

But the big question is what happened to Roger Moore? From being placed at number 2 in the 27 January 1979 comic, he has completely disappeared from the rankings.

Also lost to posterity - comics that were cannibalised in order to assemble the poster would be depriving future comic historians of...

  • 07 April 1979 - Tease Break puzzle filler and another appearance of the above 'Comics Go Pop' ad, & First page of Mustapha Million's 2-page adventure.
  • 14 April 1979 - Ads for Tornado, and Buster and Monster Fun Spring Special, & Disaster Des.
  • 21 April 1979 - Ads for Tornado, and Cor!! Holiday Special, & Why, Dad, Why?
  • 28 April 1979 - Ads for Jackpot (first issue) and Buster and Monster Fun Spring Special, & full-page ad for the Milkshake promotion shown above.

Tuesday 17 October 2017

The Pages - Page 29

The cinema-based shenanigans of Interval occupied page 29 in Cheeky Weekly's first issue, but the following week the main feature of the Saturday morning picture show, the sci-fi thriller Space Family Robinson, began a 9 week run in the subject location, at the end of which Interval moved back in, that particular issue being the 1977 Christmas edition.

After the festivities, the Robinsons resumed occupation of page 29 for a marathon 25 week run, which brought them to the conclusion of their story and saw them (spoiler alert) return to Earth after a hazardous sojourn on an distant planet. The space family appeared on page 29 a total of 34 times, making them the most regular visitors to that location.

Interval then enjoyed a 2 week page 29 run, after which the big-screen adventures of James Bold on The Island of Fear moved in as from the serial's 3rd episode and ran to the conclusion of that particular adventure, which also brought to an end Bold's Cheeky Weekly appearances, 3 weeks later.

Taking over from Bold as the adventure serial element of Cheeky's cinema visits as of the 12 August 1978 comic was Archie's Angels, a tale of fearless flying reprinted from Whizzer and Chips. Page 29 hosted the entire 6-week Angels adventure (or at least page 2 of their debut 3-page instalment, and page 1 of each of the subsequent 2-pagers).

Following the Angels as the thrill-providing segment of the cinema show, and occupying page 29 a week later, was another reprint, this time resurrected from the pages of Cor!!, the punningly-named Sonny Storm who appeared in only one issue of the toothy funster's title.

Interval then returned to page 29 for what was to be a 9-issue run that concluded its appearances in the location under review and making it the third most regular occupant of page 29 with a total of 13 visits.

In the 2 subsequent issues, dated 02 and 09 December 1978, there was no page 29, as industrial action led to the page count being reduced from the usual 32 to 28. The industrial troubles then evidently worsened, as Cheeky Weekly failed to appear for 3 weeks.

It seems the dispute was resolved by mid-to-late December, as publication resumed with the issue dated 06 January 1979, in which The Burpo Special came to rest on page 29, initiating a run in that location which would last for 7 weeks.

Cheeky Weekly's letters page, Chit-Chat, then took over page 29 for 2 weeks, being ousted in the 10 March 1979 edition by a returning Burpo Special, that week focusing on Krazy Town's risible rozzer, Constable Chuckle. A week later however, Burpo was again displaced, this time by a rather scrappily- constructed page consisting of the answers to the Disaster Des spot-the-difference puzzle that appeared on page 14, 2 stamp collecting ads (“please tell your parents”), an ad for IPC's Mickey Mouse comic which was running a competition to win a holiday at Walt Disney World in Florida, plus a reminder to readers that successful contributors to the Chit-Chat feature would bag £2 and a Friend of Cheeky badge.

In the following issue the subject location listed the 50 the lucky winners of a Smurfs LP from the competition which had appeared in the 09 December 1978 comic, and below that list of kids who would soon be tormenting their parents with the warblings of the shrill-voiced blue elves, was an ad alerting readers to the presence of a knitting pattern for Cheeky's jersey in the following edition.

Chit-Chat came to rest on page 29 in that special jersey issue, but in the 07 April 1979 comic it was Cheeky's Saturday doings that were related there. 7 days later the subject location contained instructions for assembling the Top Ten poster, the second part of which was included in that issue, plus an ad for that year's Cor!! Holiday Special (despite the weekly title having ceased publication in 1974). The poster instructions were repeated on page 29 in the next issue, but sharing the page this time was an ad announcing that packets of Kellogg's milkshake mix were to be given free with upcoming editions of Buster, Whoopee!, Whizzer and Chips, Cheeky Weekly and Mickey Mouse.

Cheeky guided readers through the complexities of assembling the Top Ten poster yet again a week later, which was the issue containing the final section of the (less-than-scintillating) wall adornment. Below the instructions were 2 stamp collecting ads, a reminder that cash was to be won by contributing to the Joke-Box Jury, Paddywack and Chit-Chat pages, a coupon enabling readers to order their Cheeky Weekly from the newsagent and, to fill an empty space, a drawing of Snail with associated thought balloon, placed in such a way that he was depicted as thinking, in his own molluscy fashion, the 'cash prizes' reminder.

In the 05 May 1979 comic, with the holiday season looming, page 29 was the site of ads for 2 more IPC Specials – that year's Krazy (another posthumous special, Krazy - the title which spawned our toothy pal - having bit the dust a year earlier) and Frankie Stein summer collections.

Chit-Chat then returned for 2 weeks, being usurped by Joke-Box Jury, after which page 29 was again given over to ads for IPC product, this time promoting the company's newest humour title Jackpot and long-running educational mag Look and Learn. More IPC ads were to follow in the next issue when the Buster Holiday Special was allocated a half-page slot prominently featuring that comic's humorous take on Jaws, Gums, below which Cheeky turned up to announce the following week's special Disco issue of Cheeky Weekly, and helpfully providing another coupon with which to order the comic from your local newsagent.

The lively letters of Chit-Chat then enjoyed another 2 week page 29 outing (on the second occasion sharing the page with an ad for IPC's piscatorial publication Angler's Mail), after which an ad for model aircraft from the North Pacific Flyers range shared the page with yet another announcement by Cheeky, this time informing readers that as of next week, the Mystery Comic was to be incorporated into Cheeky Weekly, ending its run as a comic-within-a-comic (although all the Mystery Comic features would continue). Our grinning pal was so excited by this development, together with the news that two new stories would join his comic, that on this occasion he forgot to provide a newsagent's coupon.

Erstwhile Mystery Comic cover star, the rotund rascal Tub, finding himself freed from the constraints of the centre pages of the comic, then made his sole visit to the subject location, sharing the site with an ad for Dunlop's Playsport line of outdoor game equipment. It was then the turn of Stage School to make a single appearance on page 29, after which another pair of IPC ads turned up, this time the first Jackpot Summer Special was promoted alongside Walt Disney's Puzzle Time.

Paddywack made his debut page 29 appearance a week later, and the 2 subsequent editions carried in the subject location the same ad for retailer WH Smith, who were offering free posters (although little detail was given about the content) with purchases of Corgi, Dinky and Matchbox toys.

The following week an ad for the first merged issue of 2000AD and Tornado shared the location under review with an ad for Freshen-Up chewing gum and more poster assemblage instructions, this time relating to the Giant Cheeky Poster, the first part of which, featuring our toothy pal's feet, was included that week.

7 days later another ad appeared, this time placed by confectioners Trebor, who were running a promotion whereby consumers of their Double Agents boiled sweets could obtain a Double Glow Seven kit, consisting of an iron-on transfer and sheet of stickers, both of which would glow in the dark (“tee shirt not included in offer”).

In the 01 September 1979 comic, page 29 was the location of another ad for IPC's Walt Disney's Puzzle Time, together with an ad for Whizz-Kids – nothing to do with IPC's Chips-encapsulating title, but rather a line of instructional paperback books published by MacDonald Educational on topics such as ponies, bikes and birdwatching (not to be carried out simultaneously, I hasten to add).

Mustapha Million then brought his brand of affluent adventures to the subject location for a single time, and a week later the whole page was given over to an ad publicising the debut issue of IPC's new footie mag, Top Soccer, which included a free autograph album (blank, presumably).

Top Soccer was advertised again on page 29 in the following issue, but this time the ad was reduced to a half page which shared the site with a promotional boost for the 1980 Cheeky Annual, the first time that year's hardback collection of Cheekiness had been advertised in Cheeky Weekly.

The perplexing prattlings of Paddywack then returned to the subject location for one week, after which our mayhem-generating mate Disaster Des moved in for his single, catastrophic visit. Paddywack then returned, but a week later was deposed by the gagsters of Joke-Box Jury. Paddywack then fetched up for a 3 week run that was to conclude his visits to page 29.

Chit-Chat then moved in for the 12 weeks that remained before the toothy funster's comic was cancelled, bringing the number of times that this reader participation feature appeared in the subject location to 19, making it the second most regular occupant.

Count of Elements (or distinct combinations thereof) appearing on Page 29
Elements Total
Space Family Robinson 1/221
Chit-Chat13
Interval13
Space Family Robinson 2/213
The Burpo Special8
Advertisement: IPC\Advertisement: IPC5
Archie's Angels 1/25
Chit-Chat 2/25
James Bold 1/24
Paddywack4
Advertisement: IPC3
Advertisement: WH Smith2
Paddywack 2/22
Page 29 not present2
Advertisement: IPC\Advertisement: Whiz Kids1
Advertisement: North Pacific Flyers\Advertisement: IPC1
Advertisement: Trebor1
Archie's Angels 2/31
Chit-Chat 2/2\Advertisement: IPC1
Disaster Des1
Joke-Box Jury1
Joke-Box Jury 2/21
Mustapha Million 2/21
Poster instructions\Advertisement: IPC1
Saturday 2/21
Smurfs competition results\Advertisement: IPC1
Sonny Storm 1/21
Stage School 2/21
Top Ten Poster instructions1
Top Ten Poster instructions\Advertisement: IPC1
Tub\Advertisement: Dunlop Playsport1

Monday 16 October 2017

Bruce's Birthday Bash

Bruce is presenting a series of posts marking the fortieth (yes, it really is forty years) anniversary of the first issue of Cheeky Weekly. It's a good thing he's doing it because I'm not organised enough to have planned any celebrations - maybe I'll do something for the fiftieth (makes note in diary).

Monday 9 October 2017

Cheeky Weekly cover date 24 November 1979

Art: Frank McDiarmid
In a cover that's reminiscent of Cheeky's erstwhile Sunday paper deliveries to the creepy house (the last of which featured in the 12 August 1978 edition) our toothy pal engages in a ghostly gag with Spook on this week's cover. Cheeky hasn't been this scared since he read his final Creepy Sleepy Tale way back in the 26 August 1978 issue. Frank McDiarmid delivers another cracking cover, the second time this month that he has furnished skeletal sketches, the previous occasion being the issue closest to Halloween. This week's eerily atmospheric front page image would maybe have been more suited to that earlier slot.

The above-title banner is another instance of the reference to '6 Mi££ion Dollar Gran' which, as I discussed here, isn't appropriate for a variety of reasons. Neither is she bionic but I've groused about that so many times that I'm not going to mention it.












There's further phantom fun on Monday when Spook materialises from Mr Mutton's mincemeat...


Art: Frank again

A few pages later, Stage School's Teacher demonstrates that, despite professing to despise all things show-biz, he's not without a few skills himself in that direction...

Art: Robert Nixon


This week's Cut-Out Comedy Catalogue consists of a selection of gags pertaining to drain-dwelling wit Manhole Man.

There are further misrepresentations of Gran's attributes in her story, this week concerning a missing bridegroom, where she is described as performing a 'supersonic squint' (eh?) and a 'bionic bound'.

Art: Ian Knox
 
On the Chit-Chat page, Cheeky's column continues to furnish us with background info on the creative team behind his comic. This week it's Ian Knox who comes under scrutiny. Previous Chit-Chat columns have omitted artists' surnames so Ian is honoured to get a full namecheck. The image of Cheeky below Gillian Payne's letter is a redrawn (by whom? - an art assistant probably) version of one of Jimmy Hansen's Cheeky Hustle illustrations from the 16 June 1979 Disco Special.


Cheeky's feeling chilly on Saturday so lines up some low-temperature laughs.

Frank

The toothy funster's back in the warm by the commencement of Snail of The Century, wherein his mollusc mate, having concluded his customary slimy tour of the back garden, resolves the crossword dilemma, thus rounding off another issue.

Yet more Frank

This week's comic contains an all-Frank McDiarmid Cheeky's week, as did the previous issue.


Cheeky Weekly Cover Date: 24-Nov-1979, Issue 107 of 117
PageDetails
1Cover Feature 'Spook' - Art Frank McDiarmid
2Sunday - Art Frank McDiarmid
3Calculator Kid - Art Terry Bave
4Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton
5Monday - Art Frank McDiarmid
6Stage School - Art Robert Nixon
7Stage School - Art Robert Nixon
8Joke-Box Jury
9Tub - Art Nigel Edwards
10Tuesday - Art Frank McDiarmid
11Soggy the Sea Monster reprint from Shiver and Shake - Art Robert Nixon (first art on feature)
12Disaster Des - Art Mike Lacey
13Cheeky's Cut-Out Comedy Catalogue 'Manhole Man Jokes'
14Cheeky's Cut-Out Comedy Catalogue 'Manhole Man Jokes'
15Wednesday - Art Frank McDiarmid
16Mustapha Million - Art Joe McCaffrey
17Mustapha Million - Art Joe McCaffrey
18The Gang reprint from Whizzer and Chips - Art Robert MacGillivray
19The Gang reprint from Whizzer and Chips - Art Robert MacGillivray
20Thursday - Art Frank McDiarmid
21Why, Dad, Why? - Art John K. Geering
22Ad: Peter Pan Playthings
23Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
246 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox
256 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox
26Friday - Art Frank McDiarmid
27Ad: IPC 'Krazy Annual' 4 of 4 \Ad: Palitoy 'Star Wars Collection' 3 of 3
28Speed Squad - Art Jimmy Hansen
29Chit-Chat
30Saturday - Art Frank McDiarmid
31Saturday - Art Frank McDiarmid
32Snail of the Century - Art Frank McDiarmid




Monday 2 October 2017

Whizzer and Chips - The Cheeky Raids part 27

New readers start here... After Cheeky Weekly folded and was incorporated into Whoopee as of February 1980 six strips that had originated in the toothy funster's title survived the merge and continued to appear in the amalgamated comic. Whoopee itself foundered in March 1985 and was merged into Whizzer and Chips. Three of the surviving Cheeky Weekly strips successfully negotiated this second merge and went on to appear in the newly combined publication, rather inelegantly titled 'Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee'. The survivors were Mustapha Million, Calculator Kid and (appearing only twice) Stage School. Cheeky continued to appear, but as a member of The Krazy Gang, who had moved into W&C when Krazy, the comic in which the Gang originated, expired in April 1978. However, the Krazy Gang's Whizzer and Chips run ended in the issue dated 08 February 1986. Calculator Kid survived a little longer, his run of reprints coming to an end in the 26 July 1986 edition and leaving Mustapha Million as the sole Cheeky Weekly survivor.

A week after raiding Joker, Mustapha Million himself fell victim to a retaliatory strike by one of the prankster's Whizz-Kid compatriots. Can you spot the intruder? Answer below.

Whizzer and Chips 23 August 1986
Art: Barry Glennard
















Yes, it's Sweet Tooth.  But did the sweet-scoffing scoundrel, clearly heading towards the nearest confectioner to satisfy his sugar addiction, nick some moolah off our middle eastern chum?

This is the ninth time that Mustapha has been raided, and the second occasion on which Sweet Tooth has been the interloper in our ex-Cheeky Weekly chum's pages (see here for the earlier incident).

The score at this point is; raids into Whizzer by our ex-Cheeky Weekly chums =  11, raids suffered by our pals = 21.

More raiding fun soon!

Whizzer and Chips Cover Date Raider Raided
06 April 1985Mustapha MillionSuper Steve
04 May 1985Bloggs (Store Wars)Mustapha Million
11 May 1985JokerThe Krazy Gang (Cheeky)
18 May 1985Calculator Kid & CalcOdd-Ball
01 June 1985
Animalad
Mustapha Million
The Krazy Gang (Cheeky)
Boy Boss
08 June 1985Odd-BallCalculator Kid
06 July 1985Toy BoyCalculator Kid
13 July 1985Pa BumpkinThe Krazy Gang (Cheeky)
27 July 1985JokerMustapha Million
24 August 1985CheekySid's Snake
14 September 1985
Odd-Ball
Calculator Kid
Calculator Kid
Store Wars
05 October 1985Mustapha MillionAnimalad
19 October 1985Odd-BallMustapha Million
23 November 1985
Sweeny Toddler
Sweeny Toddler
Sweeny Toddler
Calculator Kid
The Krazy Gang (Cheeky)
Mustapha Million
18 January 1986Mustapha MillionSuper Steve
25 January 1986
Odd-Ball
Cheeky
Mustapha Million
Odd-Ball
08 February 1986
The Krazy Gang ends this issue
AnimaladMustapha Million
15 February 1986Lazy BonesCalculator Kid
15 March 1986Odd-BallCalculator Kid
29 March 1986Calculator KidMaster P Brain
05 April 1986Bumpkin BillionairesMustapha Million
12 April 1986AnimaladCalculator Kid
31 May 1986Lazy BonesCalculator Kid
07 June 1986Mustapha MillionJoker
28 June 1986Sweet ToothMustapha Million
26 July 1986
Calculator Kid ends this issue
No Cheeky-related raid this issueNo Cheeky-related raid this issue
16 August 1986Mustapha MillionJoker
23 August 1986Sweet ToothMustapha Million