Terry Bave's new book!

Head over to Wacky Comics for some exciting news about Terry Bave, one of the all-time comic greats (not to mention contributor to Cheeky Weekly). I've put my order in!

Cheeky Little Ed

I'm currently re-reading my way through the issues of Whoopee!, commencing from the point at which Cheeky Weekly merged into it. For me, one of the most enjoyable strips of Whoopee!'s post-Cheeky-merge era is Little Ed, drawn by David Mostyn. Including the artist as one of the characters in the strip is an idea that had of course been seen several times before in a number of comics, but this is a fun take on the concept, with a nicely antagonistic relationship between Ed and 'Starvin' Artist'.

The Little Ed strip from Whoopee! dated 16 April 1983 includes a cute idea - Artist gets rather heavy-handed with the ink rubber and wears a hole in the page, allowing readers a glimpse of the contents of the next-page-but-one, the Cheeky strip.

Note Artist's frayed cuff - nice touch!

Art: Frank McDiarmid

It would have been nice if the Cheeky strip had made some reference to Artist's exposure of their page, but the Bookworm strip which appeared on the reverse of Little Ed's page showed no evidence of the hole, either.

See here for a previous post about Little Ed.

The features - Laugh and Learn

Cheeky's Teacher gained his own puzzle feature, Teacher's Teasers, as from 26 August 1978. Although Teacher's Teasers was a filler that appeared in just 3 issues, it seems that the Cheeky Weekly editor felt the podgy pedadogue deserved elevation to co-star status with the toothy funster himself in a new feature, Laugh and Learn.

Laugh and Learn had a sporadic, 5-issue run between Cheeky Weekly's 07 October 1978 and 09 December 1978 comics. Each episode was set in Cheeky's classroom, where Teacher would focus on a particular area of general knowledge. As Cheeky's tubby tutor attempted to impart salient facts relating to the topic in question, our toothy pal would counter each point with a wily witticism. Only in the 04 November 1978 comic did Cheeky emerge from the lesson punishment-free; in all the other episodes Teacher gave him lines or, on one occasion, an essay to complete.

In the first strip Barrie kids us that Bubblegum Boy
has been aloft since the Cretaceous period,
67 to 65.5 million years ago.
We know he actually emerged in the Krazy era (1976-1978).

Teacher's lectures commenced with the lesson on prehistoric creatures shown above, and subsequent episodes covered the following topics;

• Chivalry and Knighthood (this was the only single-page Laugh & Learn, all the others being 2 pages)
• The Seven Wonders of The World
• The History of Transport
• British Wildlife

The artwork on the series was unusual for a British humour comic, as each episode was a collaborative effort between Barrie Appleby, who drew the classroom and characters therein in his usual fun, zany style, and Brian Walker who did some very nice work illustrating the topics on which Teacher was expounding. Brian signed his work in all but the first strip, whereas Barrie didn't sign at all.

Cheeky avoids a punishment

Despite the caption in the final panel of the fifth Laugh and Learn, dated 09 December 1978, reading 'There'll be another feast of fun and facts soon pals!', it was the last episode to appear - see below. Maybe reader feedback indicated that kids found the educational element of the feature uncomfortably similar to actual lessons.

Laugh and Learn in the Cheeky Weekly Index

Feature	First Appearance	Final Appearance	Total Issues	Total Issues Missed In Run	Page History
Laugh and Learn	07-Oct-78	09-Dec-78	5	5	6,7,8,9,22,23

Issues Missed In Run

14-Oct-78

28-Oct-78

11-Nov-78

18-Nov-78

25-Nov-78

Feature	Artist	Number of Issues	First Appearance	Final Appearance
Laugh and Learn	Barrie Appleby	5	07-Oct-1978	09-Dec-1978
Laugh and Learn	Brian Walker	5	07-Oct-1978	09-Dec-1978

The Pages - Page 14

Page 14 underwent 85 churn events during Cheeky Weekly's run - the highest churn rate of any of Cheeky Weekly's pages. For this reason I propose to substitute the insightful prose analysis of the comings and goings on this page, which have heretofore fascinated readers of previous The Pages posts, with a couple of tables succinctly detailing the weekly contents of the page (cries of 'Boo!', 'Shame!' from disappointed blog readers).

Let's start off with this summary - just a reminder that '1/2' after an element name means the Total figure represents the number of times page 1 of a 2-page story fell on page 14. So Mustapha Million had the first page of his story on page 14 in (coincidentally) 14 issues, while the second page of the Tuesday feature, with an embedded Doug's Doodle, was to be found on page 14 in 6 issues. 12 of the 27 single-page Elephant On The Run episodes were to be found on page 14, etc.

Count of Elements (or distinct combinations thereof) appearing on Page 14

Elements	Total
Mustapha Million 1/2	14
Elephant On The Run	12
Why, Dad, Why?	12
What's New, Kids	9
Mystery Boy	6
Old Comic	6
Tuesday 2/2\Doug's Doodle	6
Advertisement: IPC	5
Paddywack	4
Disaster Des	3
Joke-Box Jury	3
Stage School 1/2	3
Advertisement: WH Smith	2
Elephant On The Run 1/2	2
Star Guest	2
Wednesday (conclusion)\Creepy Sleepy Tale 2/2	2
What's New, Kids\Advertisement: IPC	2
6 Million Dollar Gran 2/3	1
Advertisement: Birds Eye Mousse	1
Advertisement: KP	1
Advertisement: Knit Stitcher	1
Advertisement: Weetabix	1
Advertisement: World Cup Aces	1
Christmas Jokes booklet 2/2	1
Constable Chuckle booklet 2/2	1
Creepy Sleepy Tale 1/2	1
Disaster Des spot the difference	1
Doctor Joke booklet 2/2	1
Farmer Giles booklet 2/2	1
Hid Kid what does he look like\Advertisement: IPC	1
Jogging Jeremy booklet 2/2	1
Joke-Box Jury\Advertisement: IPC	1
Kite Competition winners	1
Knock-Knock booklet 2/2	1
Manhole Man booklet 2/2	1
Mechanic Jokes booklet 2/2	1
Mr Chips booklet 2/2	1
Petula Jokes booklet 2/2	1
Silly Snaps 1/2	1
Six-Gun Sam booklet 2/2	1
Teacher's Teasers	1

And here is a run down of the contents of page 14 in every issue of Cheeky Weekly. Enjoy.

Date	Details
22-Oct-77	Tuesday (first appearance) 2/2 - Art Frank McDiarmid\Doug's Doodle (first appearance) - Art Terry Bave
29-Oct-77	Tuesday 2/2 - Art Frank McDiarmid\Doug's Doodle - Art Terry Bave
05-Nov-77	Creepy Sleepy Tale 1/2 - Art Mike Brown
12-Nov-77	Tuesday 2/2 - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils\Doug's Doodle - Art Terry Bave
19-Nov-77	Ad: Knit Stitcher (single appearance)
26-Nov-77	Tuesday 2/2 - Art Frank McDiarmid\Doug's Doodle - Art Terry Bave
03-Dec-77	What's New, Kids
10-Dec-77	Joke-Box Jury (first appearance)
17-Dec-77	Tuesday 2/2 - Art Frank McDiarmid pencils\Doug's Doodle - Art Artie Jackson
24-Dec-77	Tuesday 2/2 - Art Dick Millington\Doug's Doodle - Art Terry Bave
31-Dec-77	Ad: IPC 'Spotter Book next week'
07-Jan-78	Old Comic reprint from Chips 'Dickie Duffer' 1 of 2 reprint from Chips 'Rudolf the Red Nosed Ranger'
14-Jan-78	What's New, Kids
21-Jan-78	What's New, Kids
28-Jan-78	Ad: IPC 'Misty No 1' 1 of 2 Ad: 'Shoot' 5 of 13
04-Feb-78	Ad: IPC 'Misty No 1' 2 of 2
11-Feb-78	What's New, Kids
18-Feb-78	What's New, Kids
25-Feb-78	What's New, Kids
04-Mar-78	What's New, Kids
11-Mar-78	Ad: KP (first appearance) 'Outer Spacers Star Wars promotion' 1 of 2
18-Mar-78	Ad: Weetabix (first appearance)
25-Mar-78	What's New, Kids
01-Apr-78	Ad: IPC 'Monster Fun Holiday Special' 2 of 2 Ad: 'Look and Learn' 4 of 16
08-Apr-78	Old Comic reprint from Tip Top 'Happy Family' reprint from Tip Top 'Merry Moments at Sunnyside School' 2 of 2
15-Apr-78	Ad: WH Smith (first appearance)
22-Apr-78	What's New, Kids\Ad: IPC 'Look and Learn' 7 of 16
29-Apr-78	Joke-Box Jury\Ad: IPC 'Look and Learn' 8 of 16
06-May-78	What's New, Kids\Ad: IPC 'Whizzer and Chips' 3 of 6
13-May-78	Kite Competition winners (single appearance)
20-May-78	Old Comic reprint from Film Fun 'Abbott and Costello' 2 of 2
27-May-78	Hid Kid what does he look like (single appearance)\Ad: IPC 'Tiger' 3 of 10
03-Jun-78	Old Comic reprint from The Jester 'Sandy and Dusty'
10-Jun-78	Old Comic reprint from Chips 'Casey Court' 3 of 3 reprint from Chips 'Jimmy Joy' 2 of 2
17-Jun-78	Old Comic reprint from Tiger 'Dodger Caine' 3 of 3
24-Jun-78	Ad: Birds Eye Mousse (first appearance)
01-Jul-78	Ad: World Cup Aces (single appearance)
08-Jul-78	Paddywack (first appearance) - Art Jack Clayton
15-Jul-78	Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton
22-Jul-78	Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton
29-Jul-78	What's New, Kids
05-Aug-78	Ad: WH Smith
12-Aug-78	Creepy Sleepy Tale 2/2 - Art Not known\Wednesday (conclusion) - Art Barrie Appleby
19-Aug-78	Creepy Sleepy Tale 2/2 - Art Not known\Wednesday (conclusion) - Art Barrie Appleby
26-Aug-78	Joke-Box Jury
02-Sep-78	Teacher's Teasers - Art Ed McHenry
09-Sep-78	Joke-Box Jury
16-Sep-78	Ad: IPC 'Soccer Monthly No 1'Ad: 'Cheeky Annual' 1 of 6
23-Sep-78	Silly Snaps 1/2
30-Sep-78	Why, Dad, Why? (first appearance) 'Mystery Comic' 1 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
07-Oct-78	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 2 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
14-Oct-78	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 3 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
21-Oct-78	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 4 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
28-Oct-78	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 37
04-Nov-78	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 5 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
11-Nov-78	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 6 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
18-Nov-78	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 8 of 34 - Art Reg Parlett
25-Nov-78	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 9 of 37
02-Dec-78	Elephant On The Run 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 10 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
09-Dec-78	Elephant On The Run 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 11 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
06-Jan-79	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 9 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
13-Jan-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 13 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
20-Jan-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 14 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
27-Jan-79	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 10 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
03-Feb-79	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 11 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
10-Feb-79	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 12 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
17-Feb-79	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 13 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
24-Feb-79	Disaster Des 'Mystery Comic' 18 of 30 - Art Mike Lacey
03-Mar-79	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 15 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
10-Mar-79	Disaster Des 'Mystery Comic' 20 of 30 - Art Mike Lacey
17-Mar-79	Disaster Des spot the difference (single appearance) - Art Mike Lacey
24-Mar-79	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 23 of 37
31-Mar-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 23 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
07-Apr-79	Star Guest 'Fuss Pot' - Art Norman Mansbridge
14-Apr-79	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 26 of 37
21-Apr-79	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 27 of 37
28-Apr-79	Star Guest 'Scared-Stiff Sam' - Art Mike Lacey
05-May-79	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 29 of 37
12-May-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 28 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
19-May-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 29 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
26-May-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 30 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
02-Jun-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 31 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
09-Jun-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 32 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
16-Jun-79	Elephant On The Run 'Mystery Comic' 32 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
23-Jun-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 33 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
30-Jun-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 'Mystery Comic' 34 of 34 - Art Joe McCaffrey
07-Jul-79	Stage School (first appearance) 1/2 - Art Robert Nixon
14-Jul-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 - Art Joe McCaffrey
21-Jul-79	Stage School 1/2 - Art Robert Nixon
28-Jul-79	Stage School 1/2 - Art Robert Nixon
04-Aug-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
11-Aug-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 - Art Joe McCaffrey
18-Aug-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
25-Aug-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
01-Sep-79	6 Million Dollar Gran 2/3 - Art Ian Knox
08-Sep-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
15-Sep-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
22-Sep-79	Disaster Des - Art Mike Lacey
29-Sep-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
06-Oct-79	Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton
13-Oct-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
20-Oct-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
27-Oct-79	Mustapha Million 1/2 - Art Joe McCaffrey
03-Nov-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
10-Nov-79	Elephant On The Run - Art Robert Nixon
17-Nov-79	Knock-Knock booklet (single appearance) 2/2
24-Nov-79	Manhole Man booklet (single appearance) 2/2
01-Dec-79	Doctor Joke booklet (single appearance) 2/2
08-Dec-79	Six-Gun Sam booklet (single appearance) 2/2
15-Dec-79	Mechanic Jokes booklet (single appearance) 2/2
22-Dec-79	Constable Chuckle booklet (single appearance) 2/2
29-Dec-79	Christmas Jokes booklet (single appearance) 2/2
05-Jan-80	Jogging Jeremy booklet (single appearance) 2/2
12-Jan-80	Farmer Giles booklet (single appearance) 2/2
19-Jan-80	Petula Jokes booklet (single appearance) 2/2
26-Jan-80	Mr Chips booklet (single appearance) 2/2
02-Feb-80	Elephant On The Run (final appearance) - Art Robert Nixon

The Ads - Cheeky Weekly Christmas issues

Cheeky Weekly's brief existence on the newsagents' shelves spanned 3 Christmases; those of 1977, 1978 and 1979. Sadly, however, industrial action prevented publication of the Christmas 1978 issue, although much of the work prepared for that issue eventually surfaced in one form or another.

Thus, there were only ever 2 in-house ads promoting forthcoming Cheeky Christmas fun. The first appeared on page 30 of Cheeky Weekly dated 24 December 1977 (the full-blown Christmas issue appeared a week later, cover dated 31 December 1977 and with an official on-sale date of 22 December).

The artwork for this half-page ad is dominated by a drawing that was utilised a number of times in the comic, and is what I refer to as the 'standard Cheeky face' (as seen at the top of this blog). The toothy funster invites readers to spend Christmas with him and his 'pals' (a rather quaint, archaic word which by the late 70s' was only ever used in comics).

Below our hero's grinning mug, and surrounded by a holly border, a random cast of Cheeky Weekly characters have been assembled by some deft cut-and-paste action. To enhance the seasonal effect, certain of Cheeky's co-stars are sporting pencilled-in festive headgear. Snail bravely risks a sarky remark about Ursula.

Among the milling throng were 2 characters who actually didn't appear in the following week's comic, Doodle Doug and Milkie. The less-than-seasonal evil leer that Doug is displaying here is a possible reason for his exclusion from the festive issue.

Two years later, and sharing the page with an ad for the 1980 Cheeky Annual, this half-pager appeared in Cheeky Weekly dated 22 December 1979;

No doubt due to budgetary constraints, the cast list for this ad is pared down to Cheeky and Snail, and no festive border is present. The toothy funster models a rakish topper-and-scarf combination, as Snail hitches a ride. Us 'pals' are exhorted not to miss the seasonal issue, and Snail is on-message with his advice to order a copy. Prospective purchasers are promised a comic 'full of festive fun'.

Cheeky Weekly cover date 27 January 1979

Our chubby chum Tub gets to appear on two covers this week. Not only is the rotund rascal the subject of the main pic on Cheeky Weekly's front page, but he makes a return to The Mystery Comic's front page after having been bumped from the perplexing publication by the Snap Game in the two previous issues. Readers might have expected the image of Tub on Cheeky Weekly's cover, depicting him clad in his jim-jams and plummeting earthward, to have some connection with his strip in this week's issue.  However, readers are left puzzling over the strange cover scene, as the image is lifted from a panel in the Tub strip that will appear in 2 weeks' time. Maybe the absence of Tub from the comic for 2 weeks resulted in Tub's asynchronous cover appearance.

Beneath Tub's dramatic descent, Mike Lacey draws his first What A Cheek cover strip. Cheeky and the Knock-Knock Door are enjoying a joke as the toothy funster commences his usual Sunday paper round, entirely unaware that they are about to be squashed by their corpulent co-star.

Art: Mike Lacey

We enjoy a rare glimpse chez Lily on page 2. Lily's attire and the way Milkie is hanging around her front door on a Sunday (a day when milkmen don't even deliver) reminds me of this…



6 Million Dollar Gran is back to a full 3 pages, after having been reduced to a 2 page story in last week's issue. Gran and the Potts kids pay a visit to the flower show, and yes that familiar old plot gets yet another airing - a thief steals the trophy. Order is soon restored when Gran lassos the fleeing felon with the Mayor's chain of office (almost strangling said dignitary in the process).

Art: Ian Knox

There's some nice feline fun by Terry Bave in the Calculator Kid story.

On the cover of The Mystery Comic, this week's double cover star Tub is involved in a snowy tale. Maybe this story was intended for last week's snow-themed issue, in which the hapless heavyweight's story was one of the few not to participate in the gelid japes. This week's Elephant on the Run episode finds our pachyderm pal and his plastic-clad pursuer in a mountain ski-ing resort - another story that would have been ideal for last week's snow issue, in which Elephant's strip was among the few that were conspicuously free of the white stuff.

Tub's is not the only strip returning to The Mystery Comic after a two week break. The exasperated father and inquisitive offspring team from Why, Dad, Why? are also back. However, the snap game intrudes upon the Mystery Comic for a third week, so this time Mustapha Million's 2 page story is missing.

In the course of the Disaster Des strip we learn that US President Jimmy Carter is a reader of Cheeky Weekly.

Art: Mike Lacey

Paddywack, who has painted himself into a corner on this week's Pin-Up Pal poster, brings the issue to a close.

Mike Lacey provides all 10 Cheeky's Week elements in this issue, plus his regular strip Disaster Des. A Herculean effort, yet not quite equalling the 13 elements in total that he contributed to the 04 November 1978 comic.

Cheeky Weekly	Cover Date: 27-Jan-1979, Issue 64 of 117
Page	Details
1	Cover Feature 'Tub' - Art Nigel Edwards (single art on feature)\Cheeky's Week - Art Mike Lacey
2	Sunday - Art Mike Lacey
3	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox
4	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox
5	6 Million Dollar Gran - Art Ian Knox
6	Monday - Art Mike Lacey
7	Calculator Kid - Art Terry Bave
8	Your chance to vote (first appearance)\Ad: IPC 'Mickey Mouse' 9 of 18
9	Tuesday - Art Mike Lacey
10	Paddywack - Art Jack Clayton
11	Spaghetti Junction maze (single appearance) - Art Steve Bell (single art on feature)
12	Wednesday - Art Mike Lacey
13	Tub 'Mystery Comic' 13 of 34 - Art Nigel Edwards
14	Why, Dad, Why? 'Mystery Comic' 10 of 28 - Art John K. Geering
15	Mystery Boy reprint from Whizzer and Chips 'Mystery Comic' 15 of 37 - Art John Richardson
16	Friends of Cheeky Snap Game
17	Friends of Cheeky Snap Game
18	Elephant On The Run 'Mystery Comic' 15 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
19	Elephant On The Run 'Mystery Comic' 15 of 34 - Art Robert Nixon
20	Disaster Des 'Mystery Comic' 14 of 30 - Art Mike Lacey
21	Silly Snaps\What's New, Kids
22	Thursday - Art Mike Lacey
23	Skateboard Squad - Art Jimmy Hansen
24	Joke-Box Jury
25	Friday - Art Mike Lacey
26	Eagle Eye reprint from Shiver and Shake
27	Eagle Eye reprint from Shiver and Shake
28	Chit-Chat
29	The Burpo Special 'Uncle Hamish' - Art Mike Lacey (first art on feature)
30	Saturday - Art Mike Lacey
31	Saturday - Art Mike Lacey
32	Pin-up pal 'Paddywack' - Art Jack Clayton (single art on feature)

Cheeky's Week Artists Cover Date 27-Jan-1979

Artist	Elements
Mike Lacey	10

Whoopee! staff artist's Cheeky

1982's 'little alien lost' movie blockbuster, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, had its UK premiere on 09 December of that year. In Whoopee! dated 26 February 1983, Cheeky regaled his Krazy Town pals with a barrage of E.T. gags. At the end of the strip, readers were invited to submit their own E.T. suggestions for the chance to win 'E.T. type awards'.

Whoopee! 26 February 1983
Art: Frank McDiarmid

In Whoopee's 09 April 1983 issue, the following announcement appeared, including a version of Cheeky drawn by (presumably) a Whoopee! staff artist.

Whoopee! E.T. - Erroneous Text.