Lucky's Living Doll

[Tammyfan]

Considering a lot of Enid Blyton's work was printed in some girls' comics, there probably was a big influence. Her stories were printed in 'Princess' comic in the early sixties also some were in 'June' at the same time, how many more I do not know?

A lot of her stories in 'Princess' were illustrated by Eric Parker.

Irrefutable proof that Enid Blyton was a big influence on girls' comics, at least during the 1950s and 1960s. It must have waned later on.

[philcom55]

Her influence certainly hadn't waned by the 1970s, which saw Bella's John Armstrong drawing the Secret Seven for Penny and Mike Noble drawing the Famous Five for Look-In. However, my own favourite Blyton strip from the Seventies was this adaptation of 'The Naughtiest Girl in the School' that appeared in the little-known comic Pixie during 1972:







While this sort of tradititional boarding school setting may have already seemed out of date when the above strip saw print it's interesting to note how many of the same elements resurfaced in JK Rowling's hugely popular Harry Potter books a few years later.

- Phil Rushton

[Tammyfan]

It must have started waning by the 1980s. The IPC titles that used to print Enid Blyton had disappeared by then. I don't know if any DC Thomson titles printed Blyton stories, though there might have been an influence there as well. IPC titles did a lot of adaptations of tv serials and books, and it was not just Enid Blyton. There was Anne Digby, The Moon Stallion and AD Langholm among others.

Interesting that this Blyton story is about a difficult pupil who wants to get herself expelled. I wonder if this had some influence on Tammy's "Amanda Must Not Be Expelled" (1972). Amanda always sets herself out to be expelled from any school she goes to because she just wants her gym back home (oh really, Amanda, don't schools have gyms as well?). But at her latest school the girls want her on the school gymnastics team to win a trophy, so they are constantly foiling her schemes to get herself expelled.

[Phoenix]

'The Naughtiest Girl in the School'

Enid Blyton certainly created other spirited but awkward characters besides Elizabeth Allen, but I can't recall any who went through a similar transition. I have never been really comfortable with the 'Whyteleafe' series, in particular the way Elizabeth is inexorably 'persuaded' to conform. The O'Sullivan twins were admittedly a bit obnoxious at the beginning of their life at St. Clare's, but there doesn't seem to be any evidence that the author is intentionally manipulating them towards conformity, and both series were being written at roughly the same time. But then so were the first half dozen or so adventures of the 'Famous Five', in which Blyton gives full rein to the adventurous and explorative spirit of the children. The 'Adventure' series built strongly on this attitude, as did, to a lesser extent, the 'Malory Towers' one, and they were the more enjoyable for it. I suspect that if I were to attempt to reread the 'Whyteleafe' series, which is certainly still on one of my bookshelves, I would not find it remotely pleasing.

[DavidKW]

I once did read the "Naughtiest Girl" books - they were my sisters & as I was living in boring rural Oxfordshire where there's hardly anything to do that I like... and at the time I liked stories on naughty kids too. They were ok, but looking back not outstanding.

Must say that picture strip is a good adaptation of it.

Must say that some of the books like the Secret Seven don't age well today - I mean the girls in the group never DID anything and the let the boys patronise them with " it would be too scary for the girls". They'd have lamped them for being spoken too like that today. Probably.

I know of a couple of adults via the quiz leagues who read Enid's books now & appreciate them.

[DavidKW]

Of course a little connection there is that Pixie subsequently merged with June, which was still carrying the "and Pixie" on its final edition in 1974 (LLD on cover) even though I believe all the original Pixie strips had ended.

Must say:

Obviously they could not have two Robert MacGillivray ...

Can't understand logic of that, since as well as LLD & some Stangest Stories contributions Rob MacG was by 1968-69 in June also doing the strip about that very tall girl as well (sorry - forgot name of it!). So they clearly allowed for 2 or more in June.

Perhaps in 1974, his artwork & stories was not favoured at IPC by the Tammy & Jinty editiors - too happy for them perhaps? And maybye they had to take his work as he was under contracy till 1978-ish? (no wonder he ran when lured to DCT!)

[philcom55]

Although MacGillivray was all-but exclusive to DC Thomson by 1980 it's worth noting that he did manage to draw 'Ben the Bad' - as far as I know his one and only strip for IPC's Buster - during that year. Unfortunately I don't own any copies of Buster that late.

- Phil R.

[DavidKW]

Thanks for the info - seems Rob MacG was still getting around like a freelance.

Long-Legged Peg - that was the strip I was trying to think of. Was quite good.

I think this merger of June & Pixie was illogical & an act of suicide - after all Pixie is first advertised in June as the "comic for your younger sister" out of June's aimed readership; and if they had to merge the "and Pixie" should've been removed asap (a name like Pxie sounds like an under 5s comic). (and Sue Day - with a few updating tweaks - should've continued in June under the merger).

[Tammyfan]

Thanks for the info - seems Rob MacG was still getting around like a freelance.

Long-Legged Peg - that was the strip I was trying to think of. Was quite good.

I think this merger of June & Pixie was illogical & an act of suicide - after all Pixie is first advertised in June as the "comic for your younger sister" out of June's aimed readership; and if they had to merge the "and Pixie" should've been removed asap (a name like Pxie sounds like an under 5s comic). (and Sue Day - with a few updating tweaks - should've continued in June under the merger).

Pat Mills says the policy of merging comics was dubbed "Hatch, match and dispatch" and he called it "disgraceful". He probably would have used the June & Pixie merger as an example of how disgraceful it was.

[Tammyfan]

Of course a little connection there is that Pixie subsequently merged with June, which was still carrying the "and Pixie" on its final edition in 1974 (LLD on cover) even though I believe all the original Pixie strips had ended.

Must say:

Obviously they could not have two Robert MacGillivray ...

Can't understand logic of that, since as well as LLD & some Stangest Stories contributions Rob MacG was by 1968-69 in June also doing the strip about that very tall girl as well (sorry - forgot name of it!). So they clearly allowed for 2 or more in June.

Perhaps in 1974, his artwork & stories was not favoured at IPC by the Tammy & Jinty editiors - too happy for them perhaps? And maybe they had to take his work as he was under contract till 1978-ish? (no wonder he ran when lured to DCT!)

At DCT MacGillivray illustrated some darker stories. This quite surprised me as I was more used to seeing his style in lightweight humour stories such as LLD and Wee Sue, the latter of which carried his artwork up to 1981. But he did illustrate some dark DCT stories, and SF stories as well. Examples include Balloon of Doom, Down with St Desmond's!, and Catch the Cat appearances in the Bunty annuals. He must have enjoyed the change from the lightweight stories he used to do.

[DavidKW]

I read on this site (on subject of Rob MacG) that his art style was thought too lightweight for "Misty". A shame on that front as I recently got "The Balloon Of Doom" (Lucky Charm) & this showed he was more than capable of darker stuff.

Seems like he wanted to do darker stuff but IPC saw his art as too light & when at DCT he got a more free reign perhaps.

I didn't know he took over the artwork of "Wee Sue"; and that it was published until 1981 made me think - why in the final June annual (published 1981) were there not the usual good LLD reprints, but instead new LLDs not drawn by MacGilivray (drawn by artist who drew the "Battling Baileys" for Mandy picture library instead; scary artwork too).

[DavidKW]

Must say I feel LLD should sometimes have taken more darker episodes (if Misty can do sinister stroies on living dolls...) along with a more sci-fi action-adventure route.

Just thinking - could've had tales where an small alien arrives & gives Tina trouble; a nerve gas created by a disbolical mastermind or Lucky's cousin Chris by accident turns Tina/Lucky/Mrs Smith bad or partners in crime.

Someone from a government agency employs Lucky as she thinks she has an "angel on her shoulder" - cue ITC/Avengers flavoured action adventure with missions & espionage.

MacGilivray's artwork would've embraced it well.

One of the routes that perhaps could/should've been taken to help rescue the June title (but the demise of June & missed opportunities will make another blog subject) (I'm thinking now).

[Tammyfan]

Must say I feel LLD should sometimes have taken more darker episodes (if Misty can do sinister stories on living dolls...) along with a more sci-fi action-adventure route.

.

Actually, Misty never did a sinister doll serial. There was "Ragsy", from one of her annuals. The main comic had a few complete stories about puppets, dummies and music boxes, but the only one about dolls that I remember was "Was It Just...a Game?" But no doll serials. That may seem pretty strange, but IPC was suprisingly light on doll stories at that stage. No carryover or influence of LLD in Tammy, Jinty or Misty. I recall only two evil doll stories from Tammy and none in Jinty (except for Paula's Puppets, but that was puppets, not dolls).

[DavidKW]

Thanks for the clarification.

Funny thing is I recently saw a 1985 Bunty annual & it had a strip called "Teeny Tina" - about a girl called Tina Tate who has a mini doll-sized version of herself which lurks in the background, unseen to all but Tina.

Ironic that the lead was also called Tina (hidden message/theory here perhaps?).

By then Rob MacGilivray was with DCT & doing "Belle Of The Ball" for Bunty. Teeny Tina was done by another artist who drew it very well (wonder if IPC slapped an injunction preventing Rob MacG doing similat LLD strips for DCT?)

[DavidKW]

When exactly did LLD start?

Can confirm myself - week ending 16/11/1963.

Just recently got a copy of Schoolfriend for the week before that - and in the caption at the bottom of the concluding episode of Rob MacGilivray's Maypole & The Swimming Pool is news an exciting new strip starts next week.

Also recently got 23/11/1963 S-F with 2nd ever episode of LLD - oh to have that elusive first.

Still am very curious as the what happened to Lucky Smith's father - was it ever revealed?