Options
'SCREAM!' weekly comic (IPC, UK)
Daniel Dare
Posts: 3,503 Forum Member
✭✭✭
The Spring of 1984 brought a splash of horror and mystery to the newsagent stands, beckoning me and thousands of other gruesome children with some reverse psychology to buy and read 'if we dare' with 'Not for the Nervous!' becoming their weekly warning.
Edited by some undead chap known as Mr.Ghastly McNasty, dressed in a ragged hood and robe, his face always in shadow and unseen, introducing each comic strip within with a sinister yet friendly tone. Strip stories such as The Thirteenth Floor, Monster, The Dracula Files, Terror of the Cats, The Nightcomers and a couple of anthology type stand-alone stories courtesy of the Tales from the Grave and Library of Death.
Issue #1 had a pair of free 'Dracula fangs', and issue #2 had a rubber spider.
I remember the TV adverts promoting its launch (I've tried looking on youtube for it, but to no avail) and as I was a fan of Fleetway/IPC's range anyway (I was already collecting Eagle, 2000AD, Battle, Jackpot), this comic was right up my crooked path as I adored the Hammer Horror double bills that the BBC used to show in the late 1970s and early 80s, also owning a couple of Hamlyn horror film hardback books, those 70's Horror Top Trumps, and a set of Horror Laffs bubblegum cards, this was a comic tailored for me!
An standing order (thanks to the TV ad) was placed even before my newsagents had it in!
Unfortunately, it was launched during a turbulent time at IPC's printers and their union of workers. After 15 weekly issues later, talks broke down and the printers went on strike, abruptly affecting a whole plethora of IPC magazines and comics. There were no warnings from the previous weeks' issues across the range that there may be a hiatus with some titles. Some continued, a few skipped a week but a couple had been given the chop entirely with Tammy and Scream! being the casualties.:(
There is an urban myth that Scream! was banned because of its horror content but nothing as glamourous as that I'm afraid.
Did anyone else here used to collect it too? What are your memories of it and which strips were your favourites?
There's a great website dedicated to the memory of Scream! here:
http://www.backfromthedepths.co.uk/
Edited by some undead chap known as Mr.Ghastly McNasty, dressed in a ragged hood and robe, his face always in shadow and unseen, introducing each comic strip within with a sinister yet friendly tone. Strip stories such as The Thirteenth Floor, Monster, The Dracula Files, Terror of the Cats, The Nightcomers and a couple of anthology type stand-alone stories courtesy of the Tales from the Grave and Library of Death.
Issue #1 had a pair of free 'Dracula fangs', and issue #2 had a rubber spider.
I remember the TV adverts promoting its launch (I've tried looking on youtube for it, but to no avail) and as I was a fan of Fleetway/IPC's range anyway (I was already collecting Eagle, 2000AD, Battle, Jackpot), this comic was right up my crooked path as I adored the Hammer Horror double bills that the BBC used to show in the late 1970s and early 80s, also owning a couple of Hamlyn horror film hardback books, those 70's Horror Top Trumps, and a set of Horror Laffs bubblegum cards, this was a comic tailored for me!
An standing order (thanks to the TV ad) was placed even before my newsagents had it in!
Unfortunately, it was launched during a turbulent time at IPC's printers and their union of workers. After 15 weekly issues later, talks broke down and the printers went on strike, abruptly affecting a whole plethora of IPC magazines and comics. There were no warnings from the previous weeks' issues across the range that there may be a hiatus with some titles. Some continued, a few skipped a week but a couple had been given the chop entirely with Tammy and Scream! being the casualties.:(
There is an urban myth that Scream! was banned because of its horror content but nothing as glamourous as that I'm afraid.
Did anyone else here used to collect it too? What are your memories of it and which strips were your favourites?
There's a great website dedicated to the memory of Scream! here:
http://www.backfromthedepths.co.uk/
0
Comments
It merged with "The Eagle" comic.
Indeed it did merge with the Eagle, although not right away, amalgamating three months later.
As mentioned, there was no 'customer care' back then saying what had happened to the comic, leaving newsagents to bear the brunt of disgruntled children and teenagers (myself included).
The Thirteenth Floor was the comic's most popular strip at it had no boundaries to where or what it could do, the perfect format and naturally made the transition to the Eagle.
http://www.comicsy.co.uk/hibernia/store/products/the-very-best-of-library-of-death/
http://www.comicsy.co.uk/hibernia/store/products/the-complete-dracula-file/
I've yet to place an order for these, along with 'The House of Daemon'. Will do though.
I do have their The Thirteenth Floor and Doomlord collections.
I'm surprised that Egmont (the owner of rights to Scream! and Misty) aren't reprinting their back catalogue in these days of where a lot of kids (aged 9 to 15) are into supernatural teen-demographic films and novels.
OP, You might enjoy http://cobwebbedroom.blogspot.co.uk/
There seemed to be a glut of horror themed goodies in the early 80s. I also had the Horror Top Trumps, and another personal favourite were Spooky Chews badges. Remember them?
Great post.
The Thirteenth Floor often touched satirically on the ugly aspects of Thatcher's Britain.
Yea, The Cobwebbed Room is a great blogsite, 'been visiting there these past five years. I've sold quite a few horror/monster related items to the blogger via ebay and he's posted them onto his pages. From memory, a set of monster puffy stickers, set of horror Weetabix glow-in-dark stickers, backpage adverts, Smiths Crisps Horror Bag and a couple more things.
Never the less, thank you anyway, your link is appreciated and hopefully it'll be fun for anyone yet to come across it.
Here's an article from last year about it
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jan/08/alan-moore-early-comic-monster-republished-original-panels
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Monster-Alan-Moore/dp/178108453X/ref=as_li_ss_tl?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1463127246&sr=1-1&linkCode=sl1&tag=downthetubes&linkId=483c7f32c8734543486a8f2052f8dbd2
Scream! and Misty are just two of the fan-favourite comic titles that Rebellion acquired a while back. Until now, Rebellion have been reprinting classic strips in their Treasury of British Comics books, so it's fantastic news that the Scream and Misty Special will contain brand new stories!
I understand the special will be on sale in newsagents and has a cover price of £3.99.
More information here:
http://downthetubes.net/?p=39160
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8t0vfJBxn4
There will be two covers, one as 'Misty and Scream!' and a variant cover as 'Scream! and Misty' - Misty Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MISTY-Weekly-Comic-UK-577828555654480/
Available in newsagents from October 18th.
https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/07/25/2000ad-rebellion-solicits-october-2018/
Yes, that Victorian era London strip was called Tales from the Grave and serialised short horror stories that spread over 2 to 4 issues.
The artwork and its Victorian references and depravity were extremely well drawn by Scotsman, Jim Watson, whom sadly passed away late last year.