Where'd I put that trumpet?

As mentioned previously, I’m stuck beneath the weight of a creative block right now. So, I was rather encouraged to find myself mentioned in the introduction to the Spectator magazine's cartoon special (8 page section in the current mag). It's a selection of some of the best cartoons from the last decade, and quite understandably, when looking at the brilliant cartoonists featured, none of mine were included. But...! In the introduction by cartoon editor Michael Heath, where many of the gag cartoon greats get thanked for their contributions, he also writes, "Readers should keep a lookout for the smart new kids on the block: Len, Wilbur and Murray."
I ought to stay cool and aloof, but...Woo yay!!

Oh, and on top of that, the same magazine has used one of my cartoons in a set of greeting cards currently advertised for sale within their pages. It’s a colour version of this one.

Beautiful plumage

Thought of this one ages ago- Inspired after I put out some bird feeder things when that 3 inch dusting of snow managed to cripple the country.
It's in the current Spectator magazine.

Pensioners- beware them! Who knows what goes on behind that blue rinse...

You're gonna need a bigger boat

Still haven't thought of any new cartoons- think it's the 8th or 9th week of blankness. I blame the summer-I’m out surfing and beach partying all the time. I can't be stuck indoors thinking of silly pictures when there are rays to catch...
Still got a few doing the rounds though, and this one appears in the current Spectator.

In the mag the colours have gone a bit wonky though- the sharks are pink. I probably shouldn't worry too much about realism-I don’t think in real life sharks speak English and have middle class concerns about ‘seasonal foods'.

It's OK, I'm a professional

I'm very sad- Almost as sad as this Sad Kitty...
I broke my laptop the other day- My nice Sony Vaio.
It had a bug in it- literally. A small crawling insect was inside the screen.
I waited until it crawled beyond the edge of the visible screen and 'squished' the surrounding case, to try and end its stupid crawly life.
"Crack!" went the screen.
"Oh Bol**cks!" went I.
20 odd years I've been in IT support- you can't buy talent like mine.

Anyway- Sad Kitty was an attempt to come up with some sort of design to put on T Shirts and Mugs. I uploaded some images to one of those online 'print on demand' services. For those who don't know- people look at the online shop, choose a design and get it printed on mugs etc and receive it by post. I used to have a link to it on this blog. I stopped promoting it after I found out that after postage and packaging costs a single mug would be about 20 quid. I felt a bit ashamed at expecting people to shell out that much, so I haven't bothered with it again. The products are still up there though, and I think 2 items have been sold-netting me a grand total of £1.50 in profits.
Who needs a pension, eh

It's an enigma, Matron, an enigma

Here you go- one with not as much ink as the previous one, but it got published (in the current issue of Prospect), so I suppose there must be more think behind it. You can always rely on the old clichés with cartoons- desert islands, psychiatrists, and the lesser spotted ‘person in full body cast in traction’.
It's sort of about how stuff goes 'viral' on the internet-and one person’s pain is another person's entertainment n all that. Who was it who said- “If I fall over it's a tragedy- if you fall over it's comedy."
??

I’ve no idea if these sort of body casts and traction things exist in real life- I get all my knowledge of medical procedures from the Carry On films.

Less Ink More Think

I believe it was the cartoon editor of The New Yorker who once said, "It’s not the ink—it’s the think that makes a cartoon."

Well, I think I've used too much ink in this one- I couldn't sell it, despite hearing that people liked the drawing.

It's supposed to be about the cheesy glossy mags, and celebs selling their images for people to drool over. But, the reference is probably too obscure- After all, how many people these days are aware of the Cottingley Fairies scam from 1917?