There's no doubt that comics ain't what they used to be. Beano, Whizzer and Chips, Eagle, Commando, Dan Dare, Buster, Bunty, Roy of the Rovers 鈥 just the titles are enough to evoke sepia-tinged childhood memories.
Most have gone the same way as Sweeny Toddler, Sid's Snake et al. And those that haven't 鈥 well, witness this explanation from the Dandy's editor Craig Graham last month about its latest incarnation, Dandy Xtreme.
"Following extensive research, we discovered The Dandy readers were struggling to schedule a weekly comic into their hectic lives. They just didn't have enough time. They're too busy gaming, surfing the net or watching TV, movies and DVDs鈥 They required a guide, packed with the stuff kids need to know to stay in the loop - a lifestyle magazine attuned to their hectic lives, featuring all the latest trends, must-haves, must-sees and must-dos."
The Monitor is asking readers to think back to an era when the closest thing to media personalisation was those name tags your mum used to sew into your pullover the day before the start of term.
To coincide with the start of Comics Britannia on 成人论坛 Four, the Monitor is appealing to readers for their own nominations of their favourite comic.
Send no more than 100 words using the comments form below, explaining why your comic was the Korky Cat's whiskers. Any pictures can be e-mailed to yourpics@bbc.co.uk and must be entitled "comics", with a description attached.
Update, day five: Misty
"Does anyone remember a weekly comic called Misty? It was based on the idea that not all girls liked fluffy stories and were more interested in gentle scares and fantasy. I had a full set under my bed until my mum spring-cleaned them. The magazine was eventually merged with something else (I think it was Diana - ponies and the like), perhaps considered more wholesome in the late 1970s."
Bec Smith
Update, day four: Krazy
"Krazy was the best comic. Every week, it would subvert the normal comic format, with characters invading other stories, and some mad characters too! Who could forget The Krazy Gang, Pongo and the 12陆p Buytonic Boy? Plus, there was the added bonus of the back-cover disguise, which could be anything from a towel to a fake mirror (or, for the April Fools issue, the front cover upside-down!). Brilliant!"
Steve Biggs
Update, day three: The Eagle
"I was brought up to read - in chronological order - Robin, Swift and finally The Eagle (published by the ). These were deemed "educational" but still managed to feature tales of derring-do by such immortals as Dan Dare (spaceman) and Jeff Arnold (cowboy) - and had amazing centre-page cutaway illustrations of "how things work". But what my brother and I REALLY wanted to read were Beano, Dandy and Topper. My father was a dentist, so we used to sneak into his waiting room out-of-hours and feast our eyes on these forbidden fruits which were available for his lucky patients to read."
Phil Swinburne
Update, day two: Twinkle
"My favourite comic was Twinkle (published by ), the comic 'specially for little girls' as the tagline would have it. The best strip was Nurse Nancy, a little girl who ran a hospital for toys with her granddad. The covers showed a blonde Twinkle getting up to all sorts of wholesome activities - snowman building, baking, sewing, dancing the Highland Fling and saying her prayers."
K Walker
Update, day one: Tiger
"I used to get the Dandy each week, but would take great pleasure in nicking my brother's Tiger for half-an-hour in the toilet. Who can forget all those sporting heroes - Billy's Boots, Johnny Cougar, Skid Solo? But my all-time favourite was Hot Shot Hamish - "Hoots mon, it's the hot shot!" went the cry almost every week as the rather portly Scotsman struck the ball so hard it burst the back of the net."
Richard
16:38 UK time, Friday, 14 September 2007
