{"id":32743,"date":"2025-04-30T08:00:53","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T08:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=32743"},"modified":"2025-04-29T17:16:36","modified_gmt":"2025-04-29T17:16:36","slug":"high-command-the-stories-of-sir-winston-churchill-and-general-montgomery-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2025\/04\/30\/high-command-the-stories-of-sir-winston-churchill-and-general-montgomery-2\/","title":{"rendered":"High Command – The Stories of Sir Winston Churchill and General Montgomery"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nBy Frank Bellamy <\/strong>& Clifford Makins<\/strong> (Dragon\u2019s Dream)
\nISBN: 978-9-06332-901-3 (PB)<\/p>\n

This book includes Discriminatory Content<\/strong> produced in less enlightened times. <\/em><\/p>\n

Inexcusably absent as we commemorate the achievements and sacrifices of earlier generations are these twin neglected classics of British comic strip art, crafted by one of the world\u2019s most talented narrative illustrators. These wonderful biographical series originally ran in Eagle<\/strong>, the most influential comic of post-war Britain, which launched on April 14th<\/sup> 1950, astounding readers weekly until 26th<\/sup> April 1969.<\/p>\n

It was the brainchild of a Southport vicar, the Reverend Marcus Morris, who was at that time concerned over the detrimental effects of American comic books on British children. He posited a good, solid, thoroughly decent Christian-inspired antidote and sought out like-minded creators. After jobbing around a dummy to numerous British publishers for over a year with little success, he eventually found an unlikely home at Hulton Press, a company producing adult general interest magazines like Lilliput <\/strong>and Picture Post<\/strong>. The result was a huge hit, spawning clones Swift<\/strong>, Robin <\/strong>and Girl<\/strong> (targeting other demographic sectors of the children\u2019s market), as well as radio series, books, toys and all other sorts of merchandising.<\/p>\n

An incredible number of soon-to-be prominent creative figures in many arenas of media worked on the weekly, and although Dan Dare<\/strong> is deservedly revered as the star, many other strips were as popular at the time, often rivalling the lead in quality and entertainment value. As was the trend of the times, the content combined fact with fiction, stressing learning and discernment equally with adventure, thrills and fun…<\/p>\n

At its peak, Eagle<\/strong> sold close to a million copies a week, but before changing tastes and \u201cmusical owners\u201d killed the title. In 1960, Hulton sold out to comics megalith Odhams, who then became Longacre Press. A year later they were bought by The Daily Mirror Group who evolved into IPC. And so it goes in publishing…<\/p>\n

In cost-cutting exercises, many later issues carried (relatively) cheap and oh-so-trendy Marvel Comics reprints rather than British originated material. It took time, but the Yankee cultural Invaders won out in the end. With the April 26th<\/sup> 1969 issue Eagle<\/strong> merged with Lion<\/strong>, and eventually disappeared altogether. Successive generations have revived the prestigious glamour-soaked title, but never its success.<\/p>\n

From its glorious Reithian heyday (\u201cEducate, Elucidate and Entertain\u201d) came a brace of brief biographical serials devoted to two men crucial to the war effort that had imperilled the readership\u2019s forebears, and these were originally collected into a classy album by Dragons Dream in 1981.<\/p>\n

The first half was reprinted in 2014 as a slim, scarcely seen paperback and hardcover album from Uniform. The Happy Warrior: The Life Story of Sir Winston Churchill as Told Through the Eagle Comic of the 1950\u2019s<\/strong> (ISBNs 978-1-90650-990-3 for the HB and 978-1929154340 for the softcover) came with a scholarly commentary from Richard M. Langworth CBE, but we\u2019re long overdue for the combined volume to resurface.<\/p>\n

If you can, go for the High Command<\/strong> edition, but in whatever form you can devour the life story of Sir Winston Churchill and the quiet general (both scripted by Clifford Makins), beginning with the icon of Bulldog Spirit.<\/p>\n

Originally titled The Happy Warrior<\/strong>, the prestigious full-page back cover feature (running from October 4th<\/sup> 1957 to September 1958) was Frank Bellamy\u2019s first full colour strip. He followed up with Montgomery of Alamein<\/strong> (Eagle volume 13, #10-27, spanning March 10th<\/sup> to 7th<\/sup> July 1962), delivering twice the punch and more revelatory design in 2-page colour-spreads that utterly spellbound readers, whether they were war fans or not.<\/p>\n

Churchill himself approved the early strips and was rumoured to have been consulted before the artist began the experimental layouts that elevated Bellamy from being merely a highly skilled representational draughtsman into the trailblazing innovator who revolutionized the comic page in features like Doctor Who<\/strong> and Garth<\/strong>. The tireless experimenter also began the explorations of the use of local and expressionistic colour palettes that would result in the extraordinary Fraser of Africa<\/strong>, Heros the Spartan<\/strong> and deservedly legendary Thunderbirds<\/strong> strips.<\/p>\n

The Churchill story follows the great man from his early days at Eton through military service in Cuba as a war correspondent, and into politics. Although a large proportion deals with World War II – and in a spectacular, tense and thrilling manner – the subtler skill Bellamy displays in depicting the transition of dynamic, handsome man of action into burly political heavyweight over the weeks is impressive and astonishing. It should be mentioned, though, that this collection doesn\u2019t reproduce the climactic, triumphal last page, a portrait that is half-pin-up, half summation and all hagiography.<\/p>\n

Bernard Law Montgomery\u2019s graphic biography benefited from Bellamy\u2019s burgeoning expertise in two ways. Firstly, the page count was doubled, and the artist capitalized on this by producing groundbreaking double page spreads that worked across gutters (the white spaces that divides the pictures). This allowed him to craft even more startling page and panel designs.<\/p>\n

Secondly, Bellamy had now become extremely proficient in both staging the script and creating mood with colour. This strip is pictorial poetry in motion.<\/p>\n

Makins doesn\u2019t hang about either. Taking only three episodes to get from school days in Hammersmith, army service in India and promotion to Brigade Major by the end of the Great War, Monty\u2019s WWII achievements are given full play, allowing Bellamy to create an awesome display of action-packed war comics over the remaining 15 double-paged episodes. There really hasn\u2019t been anything to match this level of quality and sophistication in combat comics before or since.<\/p>\n

If you strain you might detect a tinge of post-war triumphalism in the scripts, but these accounts are generally historically accurate and phenomenally stirring to look at. If you love comic art you should hunt these down, or at least pray that somebody, somewhere has the sense to reprint this work.
\n\"\" \"\"
\n\u00a9 1981 Dragon\u2019s Dream B.V. \u00a91981 IPC Magazines Ltd.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Frank Bellamy & Clifford Makins (Dragon\u2019s Dream) ISBN: 978-9-06332-901-3 (PB) This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times. Inexcusably absent as we commemorate the achievements and sacrifices of earlier generations are these twin neglected classics of British comic strip art, crafted by one of the world\u2019s most talented narrative illustrators. These wonderful … <\/p>\n

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