Cartoon drawn for fun

I was approached to draw a cartoon recently for an event called the Whitstable Museum of Fun. They put out a call on Twitter asking for suggested themes for the cartoon.

Many, as you might expect, were about local issues relevant to Whitstable residents, but someone, apparently in New Zealand, said "How about a penguin sword fighting a unicorn?" Well, how could I say no?

The result is above. Click the image to enlarge. It was pinned up at the event and kids, who hopefully weren't too traumatised by the impaled penguin, use it as a jumping off point for their own "random" cartoons, drawn on Post-it notes (see below, click to enlarge). All good fun!

Click here to buy Royston's cartoon book, one of which has a penguin on the cover!

Cartoons in Private Eye and Oldie books

The Christmas book-buying season is upon us, inevitably, and I have cartoons in the 2013 Private Eye Annual 2013 and The Oldie Book of Cartoons.

Here's one from the former, as described, along with my Angry Birds cartoon, by Ian Hislop in this video (24.36 minutes in. The Eye editor appears to give it a caption!)

And this, another visual joke, can be seen in the Oldie book:

My cartoons can also be seen in all good bookshops in Private Eye: A Cartoon History and the book of Adventures With the Wife in Space.

But it would be remiss of me not to mention that my own cartoon book is still available. Like Morrissey's Autobiography, it's an instant penguin classic – ahem – and it fits in a stocking better than those mentioned above. Click here to buy it

My cartoon collection ... still out now!

I've just ordered a new batch of cartoon books, so it's probably a good time to remind you that one would make an ideal Christmas present ...

Penguin vs Polar Bear and Other Ridiculous Cartoons is 104 pages long and has lots of funny cartoons in it, taken from Private Eye, Reader’s Digest, The Spectator, Prospect, The Oldie, New Statesman and others.

Visit my shop to buy a signed copy for £5.99 plus £2 p+p. It's also available at the Cartoon Museum shop in London, and at their online store. Plus you can buy it at Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com and Lulu.com. There's even a bargain-price digital download version available.

Library picture

I was more than a little chuffed, when browsing in my local library here in Broadstairs, to come across a copy of my cartoon book. There it is, above, punching above its weight amid heftier tomes. I had heard that it was in there, I suppose it is a "supporting local artists" thing.

Initially I thought no-one had taken it out, but then I remembered that there's no way of knowing. The borrowing process is automated now, and you get a receipt with the return date from a machine, rather than a stamp in your book from a human being. I can't say I'm happy about that, it seems a bit impersonal, but it's better than libraries closing, which is happening all over the country. So, support your local library! (And borrow my book!)

Or, you could buy a copy. (Ideal Christmas present etc.) You can get it from Amazon and Lulu.com, but in the spirit of small enterprise I'd prefer it if you bought it directly from me, as I see more of the money that way: Visit my shop.

Car-toon from my new book

"Look out – speed camera!"
Here's a cartoon from a recent Reader's Digest that also features in my new book Penguin vs Polar Bear and Other Ridiculous Cartoons.

Earlier this week the comic-strip writer Roger Kettle (Andy Capp, Beau Peep, Horace) bought a copy of the book and later contacted me with some very nice comments about it. Totally unsolicited, by the way!

"It arrived today, Royston, and it's an absolute delight. I must have had at least a dozen laugh-out-loud moments which, for those of us weary souls who work in this business, is a remarkable return. Well done on a brilliant collection of gems."

I was more than a little chuffed with that mini-review, particularly from someone with an established record in writing jokes. You can buy the book at my Online Shop for £5.99 plus £2 p+p.

Out now: My new cartoon book ...

My first collection of magazine gag cartoons is available now. It's called Penguin vs Polar Bear and Other Ridiculous Cartoons, is 104 pages long and, well, has lots of cartoons in it.

Here's part of the back-cover blurb: "An encounter between a penguin and a polar bear may sound ridiculous, but it is just as plausible as a prehistoric man attending a job interview, or a cat completing a sudoku. Anything is possible in the world of the magazine gag cartoon.

"This collection by Royston Robertson is made up of cartoons featured in Private Eye, Reader’s Digest, The Spectator, Prospect, The Oldie, New Statesman and others. Some are satirical, others just a bit silly, and they cover subjects from art to technology, the environment to religion, history to Health & Safety. All human (and inhuman) life is mocked."

Sound good? The ideal present for the discerning cartoon lover in your life? Then head over to my newly set-up Online Shop.

You can see some of the cartoons there and buy a signed copy of the book for a mere £5.99 plus £2 p+p.

Royston's portfolio website