| Anyone here read comics? 18:17 - Sep 3 with 1228 views | TwoKnightsInIpswich |
The story of the British comic book is a story of managed decline, cultural snobbery, and an establishment that has systematically treated working-class visual culture with utter contempt. To understand why comic books enjoy a mainstream, multi-generational reverence in the United States while being dismissed as childish ephemera in the United Kingdom, we have to look past the colourful spandex and examine the sharp class lines that dictate British cultural life.
In the United States, comic books grew up alongside the American century. They were forged in the Great Depression by working-class, largely Jewish immigrants who created modern mythologies like Superman—a character who, in his earliest days, was an explicit champion of the oppressed, fighting corrupt landlords and union-busting bosses. The US government actively weaponised this medium during World War II to foster national unity, and later, the mid-century counterculture adopted comics as a legitimate vehicle for radical political expression. Over decades, America built a robust infrastructure of dedicated comic shops and conventions, allowing the medium to mature with its audience. Today, the graphic novel is rightly celebrated in the US as a vital literary form.
Across the Atlantic, the British establishment took a completely different approach. For generations, the UK comic market was dominated by cheap, weekly anthologies like The Beano and The Dandy, or later, the brilliantly subversive 2000 AD. These were brilliant pieces of working-class irreverence, but they were explicitly produced on cheap newsprint, designed to be read, swapped, and thrown away.
But the real divergence happened in the 1950s, driven by a wave of moral panic. While American comics managed to survive censorship and evolve, British moral guardians—driven by an elitist disdain for American "pulp" culture—effectively restricted the growth of the medium. The British elite have long maintained a rigid hierarchy of culture. "High culture"—theatre, literature, classical art—is fiercely protected and subsidised, heavily associated with the upper and middle classes. Visual storytelling, particularly in comic form, was branded as "low culture," a lazy alternative to reading fit only for children or the functionally illiterate.
This snobbery created a self-fulfilling prophecy. Because the cultural gatekeepers decreed that comics were for children, the domestic industry was never given the space or financial backing to grow into a mature, respected art form. British talent—and we have some of the greatest comic writers and artists in human history, from Alan Moore to Grant Morrison—frequently had to cross the Atlantic to find work in the American market, because the UK infrastructure simply did not exist to support them.
The tragic irony is that British comics have always possessed a deeply radical, working-class pulse. Yet, through a combination of institutional snobbery and market starvation, the UK public has been conditioned to see a profound artistic medium as nothing more than a childish phase to be outgrown. It is a stark reminder of how class prejudice in this country dictates not just who gets to make art, but who is allowed to enjoy it.
Did you read comics as a child, why did you stop?
Do you still read comics/manga/graphic novels - any recommendations? [Post edited 3 Sep 18:18]
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| Anyone here read comics? on 18:38 - Sep 3 with 1171 views | BlueBadger |
This reads a bit AI-ish. |  |
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| I used to read.... on 18:49 - Sep 3 with 1136 views | Bloots |
....The Tiger, plus the Dandy and the Beano.
Billy's boots was my favourite. |  |
| "....get on, get on, get on, my groovy train” - Peter Joseph Hooton (Aug 1990) |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 19:05 - Sep 3 with 1127 views | Guthrum |
I read the Beano. As did my brother after me and the family continued getting it until after he left home.
Don't know about disposable, my mother had a near-complete collection of Beanos from the mid 1970s to the early 2000s in her loft. |  |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 19:08 - Sep 3 with 1112 views | mellowblue |
I never saw the Dandy etc as being class related or themed. But then I was only 10 or whatever at the time.
Having 2 brothers we had 3 comics to share.
I had the Victor comic, which was full of thrillng warfare stories where we give Jerry a good duffing. Tophole !! and daring adventures and heroic tales as well as comic characters like the athlete Alf Tupper who would fuel himself on fish and chips before every race and Gorgeous Gus, an eccentric aristo who was a goalkeeper.
My brothers had the Beano and Dandy or sometimes Wizard as a change, so plenty of entertainment to be had.
The OP seems very dismissive of the great British comic. [Post edited 3 Sep 19:09]
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| Anyone here read comics? on 19:53 - Sep 3 with 1046 views | John_Warks_Willy |
I haven’t read your post, sorry. But I’m late 40s and still get a copy of the Dandy annual at Christmas. Love it 😀 |  |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 20:08 - Sep 3 with 1022 views | WeWereZombies |
| Anyone here read comics? on 18:38 - Sep 3 by BlueBadger |
This reads a bit AI-ish. |
Either that or Dominic Sandbrook...
[edit: for the sake of clarity, the above was a sarcastic comment but I did put the final paragraph of the post into Google and the only match was an agreement from AI...] [Post edited 3 Sep 20:21]
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| Anyone here read comics? on 20:20 - Sep 3 with 993 views | Pique |
I used to read The Beano, Roy of the Rovers, and my Dad's and Uncles' old copies of Dan Dare in The Eagle. And I've read several of Alan Moore's works, a true British genius.
Out of interest, in what way did the 'British moral guardians' you mention restrict the growth of the medium? Are we talking actual censorship? |  | | |
| Anyone here read comics? on 23:29 - Sep 3 with 896 views | GlasgowBlue |
I have a large collection of American Marvel comics including a near complete run of Amazing Spider -Man, complete run of Avengers, near complete run of Uncanny C-Men, complete run of Daredevil etc. Had the collection valued pre covid and again very recently. It’s lost half of its value in just six years. |  |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 05:13 - Sep 4 with 817 views | Joey_Joe_Joe_Junior |
I remember enjoying Asterix and Obelix in year 7. |  |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 06:08 - Sep 4 with 786 views | WeWereZombies |
| Anyone here read comics? on 05:13 - Sep 4 by Joey_Joe_Joe_Junior |
I remember enjoying Asterix and Obelix in year 7. |
One of the things that the OP omits is the strong tradition of Bande Dessinée in Francophone nations and regions. There are even museums dedicated to the art in Angouléme, Brussels and Paris. | |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 07:19 - Sep 4 with 738 views | NthQldITFC |
One or two who hold the Daily Mail up and can make out a word or two. |  |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 08:02 - Sep 4 with 706 views | MattinLondon |
I used to read the Dandy and the Beano - but when I was a kid I used to love reading football comics. There used to be a monthly (I think it was monthly) football comic which featured Inited, Everpool, Liverton and a football mercenary called Jon Stark.
A few years ago I read The Watchmen and I really enjoyed that. If anyone has any suggestions for comics like that, then please let me know.
I think I gave up reading comics because music like Nirvana etc became much more relevant to the teenage me. |  | | |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:09 - Sep 4 with 640 views | Leaky |
Well a fair few on here read the Guardian |  | | |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:18 - Sep 4 with 624 views | Bigalhunter |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:09 - Sep 4 by Leaky |
Well a fair few on here read the Guardian |
If it introduced a colouring in page to make you feel less excluded, would you be willing to give it a go? |  |
| Sometimes I giggle about the frothing lunatic who’s put me on ignore and now has to constantly log out to see what I’ve said. Beneath that counterfeit persona lurks the same pitifully desperate egomaniac. | | Poll: | September 2025. Which one? |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 09:37 - Sep 4 with 610 views | Leaky |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:18 - Sep 4 by Bigalhunter |
If it introduced a colouring in page to make you feel less excluded, would you be willing to give it a go? |
No refused to buy newspapers after the phone hacking scandal, guess now just got out of the habit of buying them. | | | |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:58 - Sep 4 with 581 views | NthQldITFC |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:09 - Sep 4 by Leaky |
Well a fair few on here read the Guardian |
I'm grumpy that my original has fewer uppies than this poor copy.
(and it's the Grauniad!) | |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 09:58 - Sep 4 with 579 views | badadski |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:37 - Sep 4 by Leaky |
No refused to buy newspapers after the phone hacking scandal, guess now just got out of the habit of buying them. |
beano and transformers comic, i used to be so excited for the transformer one. | | | |
| Anyone here read comics? on 09:58 - Sep 4 with 579 views | baxterbasics |
Beano as a kid, then as a younger teen I got into 2000AD and Judge Dredd. All very British.
I did go through a phase of buying various Image titles in the late 90s (Spawn, The Maxx, Stormwatch, Gen13) and some DC, but once adult life took over I stopped keeping up with it. Sold 75% of my collection a couple of years ago. |  |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 10:04 - Sep 4 with 571 views | baxterbasics |
| Anyone here read comics? on 19:05 - Sep 3 by Guthrum |
I read the Beano. As did my brother after me and the family continued getting it until after he left home.
Don't know about disposable, my mother had a near-complete collection of Beanos from the mid 1970s to the early 2000s in her loft. |
Between the ages of 8 and 10 I would religiously take my pocket money to the newsagent near me on the corner of Foxhall/Heath Road to buy the Beano for around 18p.
This would still leave me enough shrapnel to add a Marathon bar or similar, then either a 'power prop' airplane kit or a finger monster or a rubber bouncy ball.
TWTD. | |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 10:56 - Sep 4 with 515 views | FBI |
I stopped getting comics around age 9: Warlord, of course. But it's only now that I notice the hilarity that the magazine I replaced it with as I became obsessed with football was... Shoot!
As for graphic novels etc, I never liked them
BUT
A good friend of mine is Mike Molcher, a reasonably well-known member of the 2000AD world. And I share a name with the very famous comicbook guy who wrote Watchmen with Alan Moore. It can lead to some fairly entertaining social (and social media) situations :-) [Post edited 4 Sep 10:57]
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| Anyone here read comics? on 11:05 - Sep 4 with 496 views | GlasgowBlue |
British comics didn’t really have the credibility of American Superhero comics until people like Steve Parkhouse, Paul Neary, Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons, Grant Morrison arrived on the scene.
2000AD was a big turning point, as was the black and white Black Knight/Captain Britain stories that were British written and drawn as back up stories in Hulk Comic, around 1979/80. | |
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| Anyone here read comics? on 11:10 - Sep 4 with 490 views | mellowblue |
| Anyone here read comics? on 10:04 - Sep 4 by baxterbasics |
Between the ages of 8 and 10 I would religiously take my pocket money to the newsagent near me on the corner of Foxhall/Heath Road to buy the Beano for around 18p.
This would still leave me enough shrapnel to add a Marathon bar or similar, then either a 'power prop' airplane kit or a finger monster or a rubber bouncy ball.
TWTD. |
thankfully my comics came with the newspaper so that was not a financial burden on me. My 15p a week generally was pooled over 2 weeks to make 30p, which bought an airfix kit for 17p some glue or paint if needed, the rest went on sweets. | | | |
| Anyone here read comics? on 13:47 - Sep 4 with 415 views | WD19 |
They are for children and/or Americans. See also wrestling.
The Beano was class. Dandy a little less so. Big fan of The Victor. |  | | |
| Anyone here read comics? on 14:47 - Sep 4 with 367 views | IndependentlyBlue |
| Anyone here read comics? on 13:47 - Sep 4 by WD19 |
They are for children and/or Americans. See also wrestling.
The Beano was class. Dandy a little less so. Big fan of The Victor. |
Quite right too. Big fan of The Victor, obviously Alf Tupper was a great hero, as was Wee Bandy. Previous to that The Beano and The Beezer were big favourites. Also remember, though not a comic, the Children’s Newspaper. |  |
| Better to stay silent and be thought a fool than open your mouth and remove all doubt |
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