Hi everyone - I’m doing some research into the recipes that appeared in British girls’ comics and would be very grateful for any info please as I'd like to survey as many as possible (I'm interested in how generic these were or whether they were tailored to the type of comic; also what sorts of foods etc; how they address the reader; and so on). I have complete runs of Misty and Spellbound but my collections of other girls’ comics are pretty scattered and I don’t have many annuals (which is where I feel these mostly appeared - though happy to be proved wrong here! - maybe some comics had a weekly recipe page?)
If you have any memories of these, or images you're happy to share, please can you post here or send them to me jround@bournemouth.ac.uk. Thank you!! Julia
Recipes in British girls' comics?
Moderator: AndyB
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
You may have set yourself a lifetime’s work here. As far as I recall, the comics and annuals are chock-full of recipes from the earliest days to the last. Here are a few from the DCT annuals, which cover a range of years. Not surprisingly, most of them are party food:
Judy 1971


Diana 1971


Debbie 1984


Judy 1992

Mandy 1994


Bunty 2001


I’ll hunt through some of the other annuals, and post other examples as I find them.
Judy 1971


Diana 1971


Debbie 1984


Judy 1992

Mandy 1994


Bunty 2001


I’ll hunt through some of the other annuals, and post other examples as I find them.
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
Tammy had recipe features in her regular comic. One was "Tuck-in with Tammy" in the late 1970s and another was "Tammy's Tasties" in the 1980s. The recipes tended to go for baking (cookies, cakes, etc). If she had a special feature (Valentine's Day, for example), sometimes she would include a special recipe for it, such as Valentine's Day cookies. Readers could also contribute recipes. One was a Tammy's Tasties recipe for butter crunch.
In June annual 1982, Bessie Bunter had a special recipe feature. These were baking recipes with the names inspired by the strip.
In June annual 1982, Bessie Bunter had a special recipe feature. These were baking recipes with the names inspired by the strip.
Last edited by Tammyfan on 29 Jan 2025, 02:32, edited 2 times in total.
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
Thanks both! Great scans Goof! Yep realise there's a lot - I'm hoping as I dip into them something worth pursuing will present itself, e.g. a recurring type of food, phrasing, etc.
I didn't know there was a regular Tammy feature, that's really helpful Tammyfan, thank you! Very interested in how they tie into weekly stories.
I didn't know there was a regular Tammy feature, that's really helpful Tammyfan, thank you! Very interested in how they tie into weekly stories.
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
Tammy on occasion ran a special Pam of Pond Hill feature. One was "Pam's Picnic", which was a recipe page for picnic food.
- stevezodiac
- Posts: 5089
- Joined: 23 May 2006, 20:43
- Location: space city
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
Can I ask what image site you are using to add those pictures? Since Tinypic closed I've never found a good alternative. Most wanted login details.
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
imgur.com. No login and it's free.stevezodiac wrote: ↑03 Feb 2025, 15:44Can I ask what image site you are using to add those pictures? Since Tinypic closed I've never found a good alternative. Most wanted login details.
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
In the wake of this discussion, I have included a sample of "Tammy's Tasties" in a Tammy entry up at "A Resource on Jinty". The link is https://jintycomic.wordpress.com/2025/0 ... uary-1984/
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
I did a bit of checking. "Tuck-in with Tammy" started in 1978. I don't have the date for when it started. It didn't always appear but lasted until Misty merged with Tammy on 19 January 1980.
Re: Recipes in British girls' comics?
Thanks! - those dates are useful. I've got a decent collection of around 150+ scans across multiple titles and decades now, mostly from annuals. Will post back when I've done some analysis...