Credit crunch cartoon: The car-boot sale

As a result of the credit crunch/economic downturn/recession, whatever you want to call it, there has been a boom in car-boot sales, apparently. This cartoon accompanies a local newspaper article on that very topic this week.

When you do on-spec cartoons for magazines, you find that you have certain favourites that you're sure will sell, but never seem to. This cartoon, which I originally drew 14 months ago (though it was redrawn for the paper, mainly to make the signs bigger and clearer) was one of those. It did the rounds.

I suppose the problem for the magazine market was that it is not a "boom boom" joke, as such, more a humorous aside about the kind of tat that people try to get rid of at boot sales. So it works better in an illustrative capacity, accompanying an article on the same subject.

The "three-sign" joke is one I've used several times. Here are two examples, from Private Eye and Reader's Digest.



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Rejected cartoon: Rover and out

I have a topical cartoon in the current issue of Private Eye. This is not it. They passed on this one, and probably with good reason: you need to have a working knowledge of Patrick McGoohan's cult TV series The Prisoner to get it.

The gag made me chuckle though, so I thought, What the heck, I'll draw it up for my own amusement! If you don't get it, this may help: Wikipedia on Rover.

Or it may not ... nothing's very clear with The Prisoner. I was one of a generation of kids who were sat in front of the TV by their parents, when the series was repeated on Channel 4 in the Eighties, and told: "Watch this and see if you can tell us what the heck it's about. We didn't have a clue when it was shown in the Sixties!"

I can't claim to have understood it all, but I did find it hugely enjoyable, as is this musical tribute from little-known band The Times from 1983.

"Be seeing you!"



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"If this isn't nice, I don't know what is."

Normally, I'm not one to pass on any kind of self-help advice, it's an area that I can be a bit cynical about. But there's one piece of advice that I read a few years ago that I was reminded of again recently, and it comes from an equally cynical source, the often gloomy but always life-affirming author Kurt Vonnegut.

Here's what he said: "I urge you to please notice when you are happy, and exclaim or murmur or think at some point, 'If this isn't nice, I don't know what is.'"

It's essential advice for what are currently quite gloomy times. We need reminding that it's not all bad. And you know what? It really works. Try it. It doesn't have to be big stuff, just those little moments. But you'll find that you say it (or think it, if you prefer!) quite a lot, and those moments do stack up.

I've had a few this week. Once just sitting watching TV with my kids. "If this isn't nice, I don't know what is," said I. They ignored me, of course, and carried on watching "Horrid Henry". Another time I saw a tiny bird in the street whose skittish way of walking made me laugh. I thought the phrase this time, so no one would think I was mad.

So remember: Please notice when you are happy.
:-)

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Alien cartoon: One from the archives

Let's take another delve into the past, with a ten-year-old cartoon. This one appeared in the Times newspaper's Metro supplement dated January 30, 1999.

It's an exceptionally silly joke. The pay-off is a dreadful pun, of course, but the image of the nagging aliens, and the things they are saying, means I just about got away with it (he said, hopefully.) "Your skirting boards need a good clean," is exactly the sort of thing my late Mum used to say.

When this appeared on an early version of my main website, I was flattered when Tony Reeve, a far more established cartoonist, referred to it as "one of the all-time great alien invasion jokes" when he linked to my site. But I can't help feeling that he was overstating the case, somehow.

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Bloghorn moves. Royston not at all worried ...

The Bloghorn, for which I write cartoon-related pieces and help with proofreading etc, is moving home.

The online diary of the Professional Cartoonists Organisation can now be found at thebloghorn.org ... so if you have the blog bookmarked or subscribe to the feed you'll need to update.

There's a brand-new look for the site, as well as a new address. It's looking great, though a fellow cartoonist did point out one disturbing thing that cropped up in the "word cloud" of topics on the left:


I'm assuming that I am simply being mentioned alongside a fondly remembered British humour magazine. But I'm watching my back just in case ...

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Weather cartoon: Cold enough for ya?

Here's a local paper cartoon for this week on the topic of it being a bit parky out. I wish the wind had been coming from the Antarctic as penguins are funnier (and easier to draw).

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New Year's resolutions can work

New Year's resolutions get a bad press. You often hear people say that the chances of you sticking to them are so slim that you may as well not bother. But I made one in 1997 that I'm still sticking to: to be a cartoonist.

I've dabbled in cartooning as long as I can remember, but it was at the beginning of 1997 that I decided I would draw regularly and keep posting batches of cartoons out to magazines. Within a few months I was getting published. Of course, I still had a day job and it was a few years before I became a full-time cartoonist, but it was that New Year's resolution that got the ball rolling.

I suppose the key to sticking to a resolution is to pick something positive, which that was. I'd decided I was going to do something, rather than stop doing something. Having said that, my resolution this year (there's just the one, let's not get carried away) falls into the latter camp.

Remember that Simpsons scene where Homer tells Bart to get back to the dinner table, then the voice in his head says, "What are you doing, you fool, that food could be ours!"? Yep, my resolution is to stop finishing off my kids' meals when they leave food on their plates! Five days in, I'm holding up OK. And now I've committed it to the blog I'll have to stick to it.

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Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Seasons greetings to all who've been reading my ramblings this year. This cartoon (click to enlarge) was bought by Prospect magazine for its 2008 Christmas card. You can also see a festive cartoon by me in the Christmas Private Eye.

I sold a few Christmas gags this year, which almost makes up for the drop-off in corporate Christmas cards, due to companies cutting costs. Anyway, 'tis the season to be jolly, so let's not fret about the Credit Crunch for a few days at least! This blog is now taking a break and will return in 2009.

Have a great one!

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Review of the Year type thing

As every magazine and newspaper you open at the moment seems to have a review of the year, from every possible angle, I thought I’d do a cartooning review year, as seen through this blog.

So, here are my personal 2008 highlights. If you think that it reads more like one of those round robin letters you get with Christmas cards, feel free to crumple it up and throw it in the bin.

The Shrewsbury Cartoon Festival was definitely a major highlight of 2008. This year’s was the best one yet in terms of the quality of the exhibitions. Plus, as ever, it was a great social gathering. Here's my "big board":


I really enjoyed being part of the Professional Cartoonists Organisation team at the Big Draw. We didn’t win but we did produce a striking banner. I got a kick from having cartoons exhibited at the Chris Beetles Gallery for the first time. I sold most of them, too. Which was nice.

Talking of exhibitions, they've had some superb ones at the Cartoon Museum this year. The most recent I attended was the Giles show, complete with a reconstruction of his studio. Then there was the Beano and Dandy one, which I reviewed for the PCO blog. But I think my favourite was the show of cartoons by the Punch cartoonist Pont, back in May, which I also reviewed.

This year I drew a strip for indie heroes The Wedding Present … but the best part was being name-checked on their new album as a result! Rock 'n' roll. I was chuffed to get a desert island cartoon published for the first time and I also got a kick out of the fact that one of my cartoons went to the Antarctic. I got a lot of great feedback from one gag more than any other this year, though – the one below, which was in Private Eye.

It just proves that everyone loves a cat cartoon! There are several other highlights I could mention, mainly social gatherings with other cartoonists. I tend not to blog about these at length, as they’re private occasions, but they're always great fun. And it never ceases to amaze me that cartoonists, who are all very much in direct competition with each other, tend to get on so well!

One gathering that I will single out, though, took place just last week ... a team of us from the PCO took part in an audition for the TV quiz show Eggheads. We don’t know yet if we’re gong to get on the show, but even if we don’t we had such a laugh doing it that it was worth it just for the experience. And, of course, we all ended up down the pub afterwards. Wish us luck!

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Big Draw banners up for auction

Remember the Professional Cartoonists Organisation banner which we created at the Big Draw back in November? Well, the Campaign for Drawing, which runs the event, has put it up for auction on eBay.

The other "Battle of the Cartoonists" banners, by the teams from Private Eye, The Guardian and The Independent, are also for sale. All profits go to the Campaign for Drawing which, like any small arts charity, is always in need of extra funds.

In a press release, the campaign says:

"Six for the price of one! Individually signed cartoon strips by the brilliant Pete Dredge, Robert Duncan, Royston Robertson and Kipper Williams. A series of cartoon scenes on over-sized train tickets look at the painfully funny side of travel. There are six classic jokes with great appeal for all who have suffered on British public transport. Irresistible to cartoon fanatics, train spotters – anyone with a sense of humour!"

So get your credit card out. You'll need a pretty big bank balance as well as a big wall though!

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Christmas cartoon: Snow fun

I've got two Christmas cartoons in the December edition of Reader's Digest. Here's one of them. Despite the fact that, as I mentioned last week, cartoon-wise it seems to have been Christmas for several months, my personal festive preparations have so far stubbornly failed to get going. So now I'm off to write some cards.

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Oliver Postgate: Pure creativity in an age before audience research

You will have heard by now of the death of Oliver Postgate, the creator of several iconic children's TV programmes. The ones I remember most fondly were Ivor the Engine (above) and the marvellous Clangers.

Postgate, who was 83, lived here in Broadstairs. I saw him on the prom once, ambling along. I've heard people around here say they realised who he was only when he spoke, his voice recognisable as he narrated so many of his own programmes. But I recognised him instantly from many a nostalgic TV documentary.

In one he talked about creating live animation in the early days of TV ... using magnets. Sometimes they'd use the wrong side of a magnet and the characters would flip over on live TV! Of course, the shows were never recorded so they just moved on.

He and Peter Firmin made their programmes in an old barn in Blean, near Canterbury, completely separate from the BBC which screened them. I love this quote from Postgate from the BBC obituary:

"We would go to the BBC once a year, show them the films we'd made, and they would say, 'Yes, lovely, now what are you going to do next?'"

"We would tell them, and they would say, 'That sounds fine, we'll mark it in for eighteen months from now', and we would be given praise and encouragement and some money in advance, and we'd just go away and do it."

Oh, for the age before focus groups and audience research!

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Christmas cartoons: A long time coming

Yes, it's that time of year again: the Father Christmases are out in force and Slade are on heavy rotation. But for many cartoonists it's been a long time coming, as we've been drawing Christmas cartoons on and off since the summer.

To do Christmas cartoons you usually have to adopt a pretty cynical tone. Most people, adults at least, are quite cynical about the festive season, I find. But the terrible truth is ... I actually really enjoy it! We don't go hugely overboard on it (I think disappointment often comes when you do) but I usually have a good time. So on that note, here's an alternative Christmas song ...



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DIY cartoon: Fun with flat packs

Here's proof that even old, tired, neglected and rejected cartoons can find a happy home, somewhere in this big ol' world of ours ...


Thank you Dr Flat Pack! He's in Australia, wonder if he's a flying flat-pack doctor?

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Return of the penguin and polar bear cartoon

I have blogged here before about my cartoon that went to the South Pole with South African National Antarctic Expedition. Well now the penguin and polar bear cartoon is being used on a T-shirt by the Bipolar Expedition, above, an Australian project which raises funds to find better ways to manage and diagnose bipolar disorder.


As the cartoon, which was first published in Reader's Digest two Christmases ago, has proved to be one of my most popular, I also used it when I got some business cards made last year.


Inevitably, though, it's one of those cartoons that some people just don't get. I used it on some Christmas cards two years ago and a friend told me that the conversation with his wife went something like this:

Friend: Ha, check out Royston's card!
Wife: Oh, yeah. A-ha-ha-ha.
Friend: You don't get it, do you?
Wife: No.

Well, you can't win 'em all.

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Credit crunch/recession cartoon

Here's a cartoon for these lean times, drawn recently for a regular business client. Sometimes you can just about get away with the wordy caption.

So how's your recession going? I've noticed a drop in enquiries regarding cartoon jobs lately, which I assume must be down to people feeling the pinch. I've certainly done fewer company Christmas cards than usual, with some clients saying they're not bothering this year.

Still, as Mervyn King, the Bank of England boss is fond of saying, we'll get through it! As though we have any other option. Well, I suppose we could go for the whole jumping off a tall building thing. But for cartoonists, who have depicted that scenario many times, that would be too much of a cliche.

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Book review: Oddly Distracted

Here is a review of my cartooning colleague Gerard Whyman's new book Oddly Distracted which I wrote for The Jester, the newsletter of the Cartoonists' Club of Great Britain. Click the image to enlarge it and read the review.

You can see a preview of Ger’s book and order copies online at Lulu.com

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Turner skies and seagull cries

I work in a converted attic room. I'm not quite up to posting "the artist's studio" type pictures at the moment, too much mess and general chaos. And not in an interesting way. Instead I offer this view from the window at 7am this morning.

I'm not much into photography but I was quite taken by this sky. Sometimes you can see why Turner used to regularly come down to this part of the world to paint the skies.

The birds are seagulls, of course, and do not fly south for the winter as they're hard as nails. So we get to hear their shrieks all year round! People who don't live in seaside towns love the sound of seagulls. Quite often I'll be on the phone to clients, who are usually based in London, and they'll hear the seagulls, which results in them breaking off and saying, with a wistful note in their voices, "Oooh wow, I can hear seagulls ..."

UPDATE 29/11/08: Just had another one. "Ooh, are you by the sea? What a lovely sound!" I always agree politely, of course, rather than saying, "Not when you're working all day right underneath the bloody roof they are perched on ..."

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101 Uses for a George Bush

This cartoon was drawn for the blog 101 Uses for a George Bush, which was set up by the cartoonist Jon Kudelka.

Jon Kudelka is inviting cartoonists to help him get 101 "uses" drawn before Dubya hands over the reins of the presidency to Barack Obama on January 20.

"In the spirit of international goodwill and co-operation that George has fostered over the long years, it’s only fair that the cartoonists to whom he’s given so generously give something back," says Jon.

Hear, hear.

I decided to do a cartoon based on one of the funnier moments of the Bush presidency: Pretzelgate. If only it had all been such a barrel of laughs.

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Michael Crichton cartoon

No cartoon goes off faster, if you'll excuse the distasteful analogy, than a cartoon about the death of someone famous. By that I mean, if you don't sell it straight away, its moment is gone. You can't tout it around all the magazines.

This one did not sell. Luckily a gag like this is quick to draw! But it made me chuckle so I'm posting it here. I like the idea of the Jurassic Park author turning up one day and saying, "Told you so".

And his death happened in the week that scientists said they may be able to clone a woolly mammoth. As Jeff Goldblum says: "They were so busy working out whether they could, they forgot to ask whether they should." Or something like that.

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