Cheeky Weekly cover date 28 October 1978

Brett Mason and his young nephew and niece confront their terrifying spectral nemesis in this issue's main cover pic, as The Terrible Trail to Taggart's Treasure is given a boost. The artwork used on the cover to promote the feature is based on a panel from the story inside. Meanwhile, Cheeky indulges in banter with Spiv and Manhole Man in the cover strip.

Nigel Edwards stands in for usual artist Ian Knox on the 6 Million Dollar Gran strip, for the second week running. This week Gran meets Uncle Hamish. No, not Cheeky's Uncle Hamish, this is Major Hamish McPotts from the Scots branch of the family. Gran replaces Hamish in the parade after she accidentally concusses him with the ceremonial baton.

Snail and Cheeky's bucolic buddy Farmer Giles make guest appearances in this week's Skateboard Squad story.

Frank McDiarmid does some cracking work in this issue.
In this page, Margaret Thatcher (leader of the Conservatives)
makes reference to Labour Prime Minister James Callaghan.

The mighty Reg Parlett is back doing the artwork on Mustapha Million this week. Joe McCaffrey drew the strip in the last 3 issues.

On Friday, Flash Harry has an encounter with Scots actress Molly Weir.
At the time Molly was appearing in a series of TV advertisements for Flash floor cleaner

The Paddywack strip is reduced to a single row of panels this week, as it was in the last issue.  Those readers who fancy their skills on spot the difference competitions will eagerly scan the remainder of the page on which Paddywack's strip appears; it contains lists of winners of the Skateboard and Tennis competitions, which appeared in the 17 June 1978 and 24 June 1978 issues respectively. Of course, not a little luck is also required to secure one of the prizes on offer, as winners are selected from the correct entries, although entrants in the skateboard competition were also required to contribute an amusing caption for the spot the difference pic.

On Saturday, the cinema commissionaire wishes every week could be an anniversary issue like last week's, when he didn't get trampled. In fact, he didn't appear at all in last week's issue. Could he be the person inside Presto's rabbit suit?

I like the Cheeky silhouette
and the way his teeth extend over the edge of the frame.

 

All the Cheeky's Week features this week are pure Frank McDiarmid art, and Frank's on top form.

Cheeky Weekly	Cover Date: 28-Oct-1978, Issue 54 of 117
Page	Details
1	Cover Feature 'The Terrible Trail to Taggart's Treasure' - Art Eric Bradbury (first art on feature)\Cheeky's Week - Art Frank McDiarmid
2	Sunday - Art Frank McDiarmid
3	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Nigel Edwards
4	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Nigel Edwards
5	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Nigel Edwards
6	Ad: IPC 'Cor Annual' 2 of 5 Ad: 'Look and Learn' 12 of 16
7	Monday - Art Frank McDiarmid
8	Joke-Box Jury
9	Ad: Trebor 'Chews Music Centre Competition & Free Jeans Badges' 3 of 3
10	Tuesday - Art Frank McDiarmid
11	Skateboard Squad - Art Jimmy Hansen
12	Wednesday - Art Frank McDiarmid
13	Tub 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 34 - Art Nigel Edwards
14	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 37 - Art John Richardson
15	Ad: IPC 'Shiver and Shake Annual' 1 of 2 Ad: 'Whoopee Guy Fawkes mask' 1 of 3
16	Elephant On The Run 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
17	Elephant On The Run 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
18	Mustapha Million 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 34 - Art Reg Parlett
19	Mustapha Million 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 34 - Art Reg Parlett
20	Disaster Des 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 30 - Art Mike Lacey
21	Thursday - Art Frank McDiarmid
22	Calculator Kid - Art Terry Bave
23	Friday - Art Frank McDiarmid
24	Ad: Pirelli (first appearance) 'Hanna-Barbera slippers' 1 of 2
25	Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton\Winners of Skateboard and Tennis competitions (single appearance)
26	Saturday - Art Frank McDiarmid
27	Tweety and Sylvester 'Surprise Package'
28	Tweety and Sylvester 'Surprise Package'
29	Interval - Art Frank McDiarmid
30	The Terrible Trail to Taggart's Treasure reprint from Shiver and Shake - Art Eric Bradbury
31	The Terrible Trail to Taggart's Treasure reprint from Shiver and Shake - Art Eric Bradbury
32	Saturday - Art Frank McDiarmid\Cheeky's Pal Puzzle 'Baby Burpo' 1 of 2 - Art Frank McDiarmid

Please note that Cheeky's Pal Puzzle, although shown above as a feature, was actually part of the Saturday feature, so is not counted as a separate Cheeky's Week element below.

Cheeky's Week Artists Cover Date 28-Oct-1978

Artist	Elements
Frank McDiarmid	10

The One-Offs - Presto the Magic Rabbit

Most named characters who appeared in only one issue of Cheeky Weekly (and thereby qualify for inclusion in this series of One-Offs posts) were limited to a single page, and quite often a single panel. Presto the Magic Rabbit is unique in being a one-off who featured throughout Cheeky's Week, and even got his own feature in the comic.

Presto, a giant rabbit (or possibly someone in a giant rabbit suit), was hired by Cheeky's pals to put on a special magic show during the cinema interval in the first birthday issue of Cheeky Weekly, dated 21 October 1978. The show appeared as a feature entitled Hey Presto! Magic Show, and Presto was depicted performing a series of carrot-driven conjuring tricks.

Presto had in fact arrived in Krazy Town a week early, and there followed several inadvertent encounters with the toothy funster in the days preceding the magic show. In a scenario reminiscent of 1950 film, Harvey, Cheeky's pals pretended not to see the big bunny. This caused our hero to doubt his sanity but to his relief, the truth was revealed on Saturday.

After the magic show, Presto set a word-search challenge for Cheeky Weekly readers, on the back cover's Cheeky's Pal Puzzle. This colour appearance of the conjuring cottontail revealed that he was brown of hue, whereas he had appeared to be white when depicted on the internal pages.

After setting the puzzle, Presto apparently left Krazy Town (possibly in a puff of smoke and with a wave of a magic carrot), as he never appeared in the comic again.

There is a possibility that Presto was in fact the Cinema Commissionaire in a rabbit suit - see here.

Cheeky Weekly cover date 21 October 1978

Cheeky Weekly commences its second year of publication with this first birthday issue. Not all comics survive to the end of their first year, so this is certainly something to celebrate. The main cover pic features birthday cards from a few of Cheeky's pals and we're invited to guess who sent them. Despite the cover's 'see inside' caption, the identity of the senders of the greetings isn't given in the comic. Can anyone name them all?

Rather surprisingly, no mention is made of the anniversary in this week's cover strip.


The writer of the Cheeky's Week script for this issue seems to have taken inspiration from the 1950 film Harvey, starring James Stewart; as during the week Cheeky has multiple encounters with a human-size rabbit that is apparently only visible to the toothy funster.

6 Million Dollar Gran is reduced to a 2-page episode in which the synthetic senior citizen strives to keep young Pete Potts out of danger as he sleepwalks around town. All comic readers know that one must never waken a somnambulist. This Gran episode is drawn by Nigel Edwards, the third time he has stood in for usual artist Ian Knox.

Inside The Mystery Comic, The Man In The Plastic Mac isn't fooled by our Elephant chum's deft disguise dodges and, like Gran, Mustapha Million's story is truncated by having one page less than normal.

On page 22, back within the Cheeky Weekly section, our Calculator Kid pals are beset by that recurring problem for comic characters; the old meanie who won't give kids back their footballs. Needless to say, Calculator soon has the balls bouncing back to their rightful owners.

Space seems to be at a premium in this issue, as even our perplexing pal Paddywack is reduced to a single row of panels this week.

On Saturday a relieved Cheeky finds out that the giant rabbit he's been seeing all week wasn't the result of a mental aberration brought on by the strain of a year's worth of jokes and japes. It is in fact Presto The Magic Rabbit, who Cheeky's pals have hired for a special show at the cinema, to celebrate Cheeky Weekly's first birthday. Not only that, but Ursula the usherette is giving away all the goodies on her tray for free.

After this week's episode of the film serial, Presto returns on the back cover to set this week's Cheeky's Pal Puzzle, a rather too-brain-taxing word search.

All the Cheeky's Week features in this comic are drawn by by Frank McDiarmid pencils.

Presto The Magic Rabbit makes his only Cheeky Weekly appearance in this issue, and consequently this is the only issue to contain the Hey Presto! Magic Show feature, replacing the usual supporting feature pages.

The higher-than-usual number of adverts in this issue resulted in some features being truncated. While being frustrating for readers expecting their usual-sized helpings of 6 Million Dollar Gran, Mustapha Million and Padddywack, the increased advertising is possibly a sign of a reasonably healthy circulation, or else IPC was offering reduced rates for advertising in this title due to poor sales.

Cheeky Weekly	Cover Date: 21-Oct-1978, Issue 53 of 117
Page	Details
1	Cover Feature 'Happy 1st Birthday'\Cheeky's Week - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils (first art on feature)
2	Sunday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
3	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Nigel Edwards
4	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Nigel Edwards
5	Ad: IPC 'Whoopee' 3 of 9 Ad: 'Look and Learn' 11 of 16
6	Monday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
7	Laugh and Learn - Art Brian Walker - Art Barrie Appleby
8	Ad: Kellogg's
9	Tuesday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
10	Skateboard Squad - Art Jimmy Hansen
11	Ad: IPC '2000AD'Ad: 'Shiver and Shake'
12	Wednesday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
13	Tub 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 34 - Art Nigel Edwards
14	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
15	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 37 - Art John Richardson
16	Elephant On The Run 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
17	Elephant On The Run 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
18	Mustapha Million 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
19	Ad: Weetabix
20	Disaster Des 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 30 - Art Mike Lacey
21	Thursday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
22	Calculator Kid - Art Terry Bave
23	Friday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
24	Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton
25	Ad: Trebor 'Chews Music Centre Competition & Free Jeans Badges' 2 of 3
26	Saturday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
27	Hey Presto! Magic Show (single appearance) - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils (single art on feature)
28	Hey Presto! Magic Show (single appearance) - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils (single art on feature)
29	Interval - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils
30	The Terrible Trail to Taggart's Treasure reprint from Shiver and Shake - Art Eric Bradbury
31	The Terrible Trail to Taggart's Treasure reprint from Shiver and Shake - Art Eric Bradbury
32	Saturday - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils\Cheeky's Pal Puzzle 'Presto' - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils (first art on feature)

Cheeky's Week Artists Cover Date 21-Oct-1978

Artist	Elements
Frank McDiarmid pencils	10