Topper

Topper was launched by DC Thomson on 7th February 1953 as a tabloid sized comic, a dramatic contrast to the smaller Beano and Dandy. To mark the occasion, the first issue carried a free gift-the dramatically named 'The Big Crack Bang'. Features in the early issues included Mickey the monkey (the comic's long running cover star in many later issues) by Dudley D Watkins, The Fighting Frasers by Bill Holroyd, Beryl the Peril by David Law (Beryl would remain a fixture throughout Topper's run)and Paddy Brennan's Flip McCoy. There were also reprints of Watkins' Treasure Island strip from The People's Journal (later watkins reprints throughout the fifties included Kidnapped and Robinson crusoe, and later King Solomon's Mines, Allan Quatermain and Oliver Twist). The comic absorbed short lived stable mate Buzz with issue #1145 in January 1975, and later Sparky with issue #1277 (July 1977). With issue #1440 the comic's dimensions shrank to the same size as Beano and Dandy, and the title was eventually cancelled after 1963 issues in September 1990, in the same week as its sister title Beezer. The two titles were relaunched as a combined title, Beezer & Topper the following week, and this ran for a further 153 issues until August 1993.

Other prominent characters and strips to have appeared in Topper include Foxy, Figaro, Captain Bungle, Tiny, Nick Kelly, The Whizzers from Ozz, Desert Island Dick, Splodge, Thor Thumb, the Inky Top Imps, Whistling Billy, Julius Cheeser, Nancy, Big Fat Boko, Willy Nilly and The Topper Twins.