Cheeky-related characters in the Whoopee Annuals and Specials - Part 6 - 1985

By the mid 1980s, readers of British comics had become well acquainted with the inexorable destiny of new titles, which would see a comic launched then, after an existence of variable duration, the newcomer would be cancelled and 'merged' into a more successful funny paper. Such was the case with Cheeky Weekly which, having logged a respectable 117 issues, was subsumed into Whoopee! as of February 1980. However, it was the custom that Annuals and Specials relating to a cancelled title would continue to be published after the demise of the weekly from which they sprang. Inevitably though, as new titles embarked on the 'launch/flourish/decline/cancel/merge/post-merge-Annuals & Specials' pathway, it was necessary to eventually bring those posthumous Annuals and Specials based on older cancelled titles to a halt, in order to avoid flooding newsagents with publications relating to comics of which younger readers would have no knowledge.

The final Cheeky Special was published in 1982, although the Cheeky Annuals continued beyond that date.

As 1985 dawned, Whoopee found itself, due to the diminishing market for comics, entering its own terminal phase, and was amalgamated with Whizzer and Chips as of April that year. Sadly, Cheeky as a solo star failed to make the transition into W&C, although he was already making weekly appearances there in the ensemble piece known as The Krazy Gang, but his former Cheeky Weekly colleagues Calculator Kid and Mustapha Million were among the Whoopee survivors welcomed aboard by chief Chip-ite Shiner (the Stage School kids evidently found their transfer onto the Whizzer and Chips payroll traumatic in the extreme, expiring as they did after just 2 appearances under the sporadic  'School Rounds' rotating roster of scholastically-focused features).

Fans of Cheeky would have been anxiously scanning the autumn 1985 issues of Whizzer and Chips for adverts containing news of a Cheeky Annual, but no such announcement was to be found, and it transpired that the Cheeky Annual published in 1984 (cover-dated 1985) was in fact the final one.

So by this point in comics history, the situation which pertained in the years examined in earlier parts of this series of posts had changed - the Cheeky Annuals and Specials had ceased, and the weekly Whoopee had been terminated.  Under these circumstances would IPC's policy of not featuring any Cheeky-related material in the Whoopee Annuals and Specials (aside from one cameo) be revised?

As usual with this series, I'll start by listing the ads for Annuals and Specials to appear during the year in question. Due to the aforementioned demise of Whoopee, the data below is extracted from Whizzer and Chips which, in honour of its April absorption, styled itself 'Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee' until the issue dated 12 October 1985. Actually my database query also encompasses the final issues of Whoopee published in the first quarter of 1985 and there were of course no Annual ads in those editions, but neither were there any ads for Specials.

TITLE	COVER_DATE	ADVERTISER	PRODUCT
Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee	13-Apr-1985	IPC	Whoopee Holiday Special
Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee	20-Apr-1985	IPC	Whoopee Holiday Special
Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee	11-May-1985	IPC	Tammy Holiday Special
Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee	18-May-1985	IPC	Tammy Holiday Special
Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee	15-Jun-1985	IPC	Whizzer and Chips Holiday Special
Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee	22-Jun-1985	IPC	Whizzer and Chips Holiday Special
Whizzer and Chips now including Whoopee	12-Oct-1985	IPC	Whizzer and Chips Annual
Whizzer and Chips	19-Oct-1985	IPC	Annuals
Whizzer and Chips	26-Oct-1985	IPC	Whizzer and Chips Annual
Whizzer and Chips	02-Nov-1985	IPC	Annuals
Whizzer and Chips	09-Nov-1985	IPC	Whizzer and Chips Annual
Whizzer and Chips	16-Nov-1985	IPC	Annuals
Whizzer and Chips	23-Nov-1985	IPC	Whizzer and Chips Annual
Whizzer and Chips	30-Nov-1985	IPC	Whizzer and Chips Annual
Whizzer and Chips	07-Dec-1985	IPC	Annuals
Whizzer and Chips	14-Dec-1985	IPC	Annuals
Whizzer and Chips	21-Dec-1985	IPC	Annuals

Total Annual and Special Ads by Year

Figures from Whoopee Feb '80 - Apr '85, Whizzer and Chips thereafter

Year	Annual	Special	Total Ads
1980	13	18	31
1981	16	22	38
1982	17	9	26
1983	9	8	17
1984	16	3	19
1985	11	6	17

 

Whoopee Holiday Special 1985

 

The toddler terror torments trapped tubsters on this cover by Mike Lacey. I am a little uneasy with the inconsistent eyelines of some of the hungry horde, who seem to be looking past Sweeny. I wonder whether the image of the demon baby was originally smaller (or maybe... there was another character originally in the scene?), and the editor had it enlarged, thus disrupting the gaze of the dieters. The final popularity poll result to be published before Whoopee ceased to have a weekly presence on newsagents' shelves was printed in the issue dated 09 March 1985, and revealed that Sweeny had garnered most reader votes, thus it's not surprising that he was chosen to front the Special.

There are no appearances by any Cheeky-related characters in this Special. Among the obligatory reprints with which IPC would pad out Specials and Annuals are 2 episodes of a feature which has always bothered me. Why, if it's 'Orrible, is the titular supernatural aperture not described as an 'Ole? To call the strip 'Orrible Hole is annoyingly inconsistent.

 

Art: Reg Parlett, with alterations
by an unknown 'Orrible 'And

Whoopee Annual 1986

Mike Lacey is on hand again to illustrate this cover, whereon the terrifying tyke subjects poor old Santa to a spot of watery (I'm hoping the antagonist hasn't resorted to his potty as a source of ammunition) blackmail. Fortunately all the gazes, including those of Sweeny's parents, observing the grim grotto goings-on from a safe distance, are directed as they should be so I can relax and focus on the contents of the Annual.

And, my friends, we've hit the (if you don't mind me mixing my comic metaphors) jackpot with this Annual as there most definitely, IS some Cheeky-related (and not just related) material nestling within.

It's a delight to turn to pages 66 and 67 and be reacquainted with our toothy chum, although it's actually Snail who gets top billing. Great to see that Frank McDiarmid is the artist, too. This strip follows the template of Snail of the Century, Cheeky's mollusc mate's starring vehicle from Cheeky Weekly.

 

 

Calculator Kid who, as mentioned above, had relocated into Whizzer and Chips following the termination of Whoopee, also appears in this Annual. The young owner of the sentient mathematical aid has a cameo role, along with his electronic associate, in Jack Oliver's It's Puzzle Time, on page 95. Also appearing during the quiz are Sir and Jo-Jo the trainee clown from Stage School, whose second and final appearance in Whizzer and Chips occurred in the issue dated 13 July 1985.

 

But that's not all, we're lucky enough to get a second segment of slithering silliness as Snail (and grinning pal) return on pages 98 and 99 for a (literal) flight of fancy...IN COLOUR!

 

 

Lovely to see more work by Frank McDiarmid, which includes a glimpse of Cheeky's mum and dad. It's a little sad that Cheeky isn't actually the star of these strips, and that he doesn't get to deliver any of his trademark corny jokes, but we know that the toothy funster was never a favourite of Whoopee readers. The editor of this Annual was canny in commissioning these new strips based on the Snail of the Century format in which Cheeky appeared at the beginning and end of each episode, thus allowing long-time fans of the grinning gagster to spend some time with their punning pal.

Will there be more Cheeky appearances in the 1986 Whoopee Special and Annual? Join me soon to find out.