http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk en-gb garynorthfield.co.uk 2010-9-11T00:00:00Z garynorthfield.co.uk http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#75236 I now have myself a proper blog httpstupidmonsters.wordpress.comAll future updates of news sketches personal ramblings will go there. This blog was ok but I never had alerts if anyone commented and the rss was all messed up so I didnt like posting here as much. It also felt a bit formal seeing as its on my portfolio website. So I can relax a bit more I reckon on my new blog.See you there 2010-9-11 15:02:34 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#48980 Lots happening recentlyLast month I moved into a new studio with fellow illustrators Sarah McIntyre and Viviane Schwarz. The studio is based in an old Police station in Deptford and weve even set up a website httpfleecestation.co.uk to chronicle our exploitsAlso very excitingly Ive been signed up by topnotch childrens authorillustrator agent Rosemary Canter at United Agents. Together with her assistant Jodie Marsh were hoping Ill turn into a brilliant childrens book creator Im already having too much fun playing with the formats and styles so fingers crossed something marvelous from my brain will erupt into book stores in the nottoodistant future 2009-9-18 17:52:40 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#43501 This week sees the release of the book Henry VIII Has to Choose which I recently illustrated for Franklin Watts. Its a jolly romp featuring King Henry trying to figure out who his next wife will be with the help of his court painter Hans Holbein.Also in the post popped up Jim Medways anthology Garden Funnies Sporting a groovy front cover unofficially subtitled A Captive Audience by yours truly with contributions from luminaries such as Jim himself Lizz Lunney Francesca Cassavetti and Alex Potts.Heres the original picture which I submitted with a different colour scheme. Ive no idea how Jim prints his comics he did tell me once but Ive foolishly forgotten... but I love the pixelated halftone look and rounded corners. Nice work Jim 2009-6-18 21:54:58 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#42992 Had some great news the other day as I unexpectedly received a paperback version of Derek The Sheep apparently the book has been chosen as the picture book option for the Booked Up scheme from Booktrust All year 7 children entering participating Secondary Schools will be able to choose a free title from a small selection of books to encourage them to read. From what Ive read elsewhere 98 of schools took part last year with over 2 million children getting a free book. So of course if they are in the scheme your children and all their friends are duly encouraged to plump for Derek 2009-6-8 19:30:00 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#42702 Ever wondered what Oi My Sandwiches is in Hungarian Then wonder no more...My comicstrip Worlds Greatest Heroes which turns up every month in National Geographic Kids is now appearing in the Hungarian version of the mag. I particularly like the idea that Hungarian sheep shout out Bee instead of Baa. Thats Sir Edmund Hillary by the way encountering the perils of mountainclimbing in New Zealand 2009-6-3 20:06:40 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#41996 Ill be selling copies of Derek the Sheep plus a bunch of minicomics at this weekends MCM Expo so do drop by and say hello. Sarah McIntyre will be popping by my table from about 2.00pm on Saturday to do some sketches and theres plenty of other exDFCers and other topnotch cartoonists in attendance at their own tables so its definitely worth a visit Ill be there for both days.Elsewhere dont forget to pick up the latest issue of National Geographic Kids which has my two page Anne Frank comic strip inside Also I believe my first day cover for Phil Stamps is available and you can even buy a signed version if you so wishedTootle pip 2009-5-21 01:01:49 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#40746 Had some very exciting news recently regarding my regular comic strip in National Geographic Kids its been picked up by the Hungarian version of the mag Now all we need to do is encourage the other 12 or so international versions of the mag to go for it too and world domination will finally be mine In other news I recently took part in workshops and an exhibition at the brilliant Crystal Palace Childrens Book Festival. Check out my ugly mug plus satisfied Derek fan here. Thanks to Sarah for the cracking writeup and photos and mega thanks to Alex Milway top author and downright top geezer for organising the whole shebang get well soon old bean.Heres my pic from the exhibitionIve started messing about with actual watercolours as opposed to photoshop colouring looking like watercolour and I might start knocking out pics to sell on the website so watch this space for details. 2009-4-29 14:30:24 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#39781 Click the pic 2009-4-14 01:58:41 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#39141 Yep unfortunately The DFC has come to an end. No more Little Cutie for the forseeable future which is a shame. Although this does free me up to work on some ideas Ive been meaning to wrestle with for flipping ages.Meanwhile check out Super Comics Adventure Squad A group blog featuring the creators of The DFC with sketches new projects and all sorts of news from the cream of the UKs comic community. And meHeres an elephant I drew for it this very afternoon... 2009-4-2 22:29:06 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#38984 Not bought my everso lovely Derek the Sheep book yet Then heres another good review to convince youBizarrely the book has turned up as a seperate solicitation on amazon.com with a release date of 3132009. Its not been republished in the US as far as I know but Ive noticed that publication date elsewhere so who knows what it all means 2009-3-31 01:48:04 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#38666 Updated my Pinkys Crackpot Circus page to include all ten strips that appeared in The Dandy. I havent got scans of all the comics so theres no speechbubbles on some. But that doesnt matter as its only the artwork I was responsible for anyway 2009-3-24 20:03:11 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#38631 Well this week sees the last ever DFC delivered to peoples doors. Tis all very sad indeed.Meantime Ive been uploading a few pages from my strip Little Cutie into the comic strip section including my recent front cover and twopage Frog Prince extravaganza 2009-3-23 02:45:13 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#38330 SAVE THE DFC 2009-3-18 10:26:18 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#37990 Last year I was approached by Whirlwind Media to write and draw two comicstrips. They had proposed to produce a comic which would complement their childrens T.V. pilot show Bottom Knocker Street. Unfortunately the series didnt get commissioned but I had great fun working on the strips which Ive put up for the world to see here 2009-3-11 00:32:12 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#37804 As many of you will already know Random House have decided to pull the plug on the weekly comic The DFC. Considering the current financial climate perhaps it isnt too much of a surprise luxuries such as comics wont exactly be high on peoples shopping lists as purse strings are tightened. With pagerate cuts elsewhere this isnt a great time to be a cartoonist the hourly rate as a Sainsburys shelf stacker seems very enticing at the moment. No kidding. Its a crying shame considering the outrageous wealth of cartooning talent in this country as spotlighted in the DFC and I really hope an 11th hour very rich Knight in shining armour strides in to save the mag. Heres the official statement from Random House Childrens Comic the DFC Up For SaleThe DFC a weekly comic launched May 2008 for boys and girls is up for sale following a decision by The Random House Group to cease publication.Philippa Dickinson MD RHCB said We are very proud of the DFC and the reaction it received from families schools... 2009-3-7 23:29:29 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#37155 My head preserved for posterity in the National Museum of British Cartoonists. 2009-2-23 22:47:07 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#37098 Plenty going on this monthFirst up is the news that Ive dipped my toe into education publishing illustrating Henry VIII Has To Choose for Franklin Watts. Its out in June and is 29 pages of mad loose bold drawings which I had great fun working on despite having the worst flu bug ever in history.Next up is more Tudor nonsense with my guest turn as an artist for Phil Stamp Covers. I drew Francis Drake for the upcoming Tudor stamps collection.This month has also seen the return of Little Cutie to the DFC. Sophie has oodles of trouble catching Charlies eye in this second batch of stories. The DFC is available in various subscription packages and even from AmazonAnd last but not least my continuing forays into historical biography with National Geographic Kids.This month Isaac NewtonAnd thats it I think.And if youre fed up with my badly drawn comics and fancy something a bit more sophisticated and well darker then check out my old mate and top criminal psychologist Laurence Alisons book Kill... 2009-2-22 23:47:42 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#36291 Lobster Johnson 2009-2-8 14:40:54 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#35246 2009-1-20 01:54:56 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#35195 2009-1-19 02:19:56 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#34707 Check out the groovy widget Working on new Little Cuties as I type so Ill be in there very soon 2009-1-9 00:52:31 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#34576 Well another year over one which for me was a heady mix of being pretty rotten and pretty excellent all at the same time. Lets hope 2009 veers more towards the latter for the sake of my sanityId like to thank friends and family for their support for me during what threatened to be a real Annus Horribilis especially Ash Helen Matt and Susannah for putting up with my nonsense.I also didnt get to see much of the runup to Christmas mainly due to having the worst coldfluvirusGodknowswhat laying me out for a couple of weeks thus pushing all my deadlines to the brink of disaster. So thanks too to all my editors for being understanding and patient with me during December especially Alan at DCT Lauren at National Geographic Kids and Melanie at Franklin Watts.Right Ive got all that off my chest Heres a rather cracking Christmas card I received which lifted me from my gloom from aspiring cartoonist Jay Simpson who sent me many splendid comic drawings Good work sir 2009-1-5 23:48:04 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#34293 Many thanks to Richard Bruton for taking the time just before Christmas to review Derek the Sheep. You can read it here at Forbidden Planet. To say I was chuffed with his kind words is an understatement.I also recently had an interview with Anna Mondo who has been a fan of my comics since my early small press days. You can read my ramblings here 2008-12-30 17:40:45 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#33712 Blimey Someones actually reviewed Derek the Sheep and they liked it Hooray Its here at Down The Tubes. Many thanks to John Freeman for taking the time to write the review. 2008-12-12 18:11:14 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#32933 At a special offer price of 1631.99 The DFC is available in selected Tesco stores around the country for one week only until December the 2nd. So if you havent picked it up then maybe nows your chance No Little Cutie Im afraid but he will be in there for the Christmas issue then returns for Season 2 from issue 43 I think.thanks to Sarah Mcintyre for the fab promo pic.Whilst youre in Tesco buying comics dont forget to pick up the Christmas issue of Beanomax for a surprise appearance of Derek the Sheep as he enters a snowman competition up against Big Baz and the crew. And get the latest edition of National Geographic Kids for my nice snowy story about how Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay climbed Everest 2008-11-26 23:57:18 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#32028 Dont forget to book your tickets for the Comica Talk at the ICA on the 23rd November. Heres the link. I recently met up with fellow panellistDFCer Sarah Mckintyre at the MCM Expo a couple of weeks ago and we drew a nice pic of Derek and Vern enjoying a romantic plate of spaghetti together ...Then last week I was horribly ill with a rotten cold so Sarah sent me a nice picture of Nurse Vern tending to poor old DerekDereks expression is uncannily close to my own coughing and spluttering fizog from last week I reckon Derek and Vern make a great double act and I suggested we should do a joint sheepyminicomic together and become millionaires. Personally I think Derek would love to take over Verns flat for a weekend and Vern can sit in Dereks drafty old barn probably knitting jumpers for everyone I shouldnt wonder. 2008-11-6 16:33:21 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#31509 Bit of a catch up with updates due to reallife taking over. Normal service now resumes gtgtgtgtIll be taking part in a talk at the ICA on the 23rd November called Great British Comics Past Present and Future as part of their Comica Festival. Ill be there with my DFC hat on alongside fellow contributors Adam Brockbank John and Patrice Aggs and fellow sheep fetishist Sarah McIntyre. Hopefully I wont be making too much of a plum of myself Ill also be signing copies of Derek the Sheep after.My first batch of Little Cuties has come to an end with a fishy twopager coming up in the Christmas issue. Did you see my loverly front cover the other week Ive popped it in my Little Cutie gallery just in case you did miss it I know I did. Therell be a new bunch of stories in the new year sometime. Christmas will also see a new Derek story in the Beanomax plus a nice snowy Edmund HillarySherpa Tenzing story in the National Geographic Kids Florence Nightingale story now on the shelves.Hopefully soon I... 2008-10-24 00:52:00 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#29736 Derek The Sheep finally makes his debut with Bloomsbury this month Its a 64 page hardback which reprints the first 13 stories from The Beano. Theyve done a cracking job with the book I reckon and Im megachuffed with the little beauty Apart from the fact that theyve slapped my uglymug in the back causing much amusement amongst friends and family ... oh the shame....Ive stuck up some pages on my Derek webpage to give you an idea of the lovely stories on offer.It seems to be available from every conceivable online bookstore so theres no excuse for not picking it up 2008-9-15 18:35:01 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#28905 A strange but lovely week where lots of my comic strips hit the shelves. First up is my debut in National Geographic Kids each month I write and draw the comic history of some famous Hero or Heroine from history. This month is Cleopatra Its a tough gig summing up peoples lives in two pages but Im never one to shirk a challenge Next up is Einstein Remind me not to tackle someone with such complicated theories again ...Derek the Sheep pops up again in The Beano for a turnip fancy dress extravaganza Cant actually find a copy of this so heres the black and white original..Little Cutie carries on in the DFC with his ... 2008-8-29 22:17:18 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#28650 The current issue of The Dandy Extreme contains another one of my jolly Pinkys Crackpot Circus as written by Robert Mc Naughton so hopefully youll all be rushing out and buying a copy it also contains the everunmissable Desperate Dan by Jamie Smart my favourite strip anywhere at the moment.Heres a clip of Pinky and chums in their P.Js.... And lest you forget Little Cutie is on its 3rd installment in the DFC and should hopefully be running till Christmas 2008-8-22 22:44:27 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#28612 As we hurtle into the 21st century us creativetypes have to keep up with all the latest shiny thingamybobs and seeing as my book is out soon Ive set up a Facebook group for Derek The Sheep Not everyone I know looks here and not everyone I know is on facebook now theres no escape from DEREK NEWSIts not that exciting an announcement granted but I thought Id let you know anyway. All current and future Derek promoappearances will be listed here and there. And here. And probably here if I remember. 2008-8-21 20:26:05 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#28084 Not only am I debuting in this weeks DFC with Little Cutie but Im also turning up in this weeks Beano Its a strange little Derek the Sheep tale about not enjoying being at a disco and him and his mate Kevin Rabbit sellotaping lettuce to their friends head. Heres a lovely picture from the strip... Hopefully Ill have news of another strip written and drawn by me coming soon. Something completely different 2008-8-9 13:55:27 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#27897 Great article reviewing the recent evening of Beano talks in Dundee httpdownthetubescomics.blogspot.com200808inreviewhappybirthdaybeanoeventat.html I had an absolute blast in Dundee The talk was a nervewracking nightmare but somehow I blustered through. Many thanks to everyone involved including Christopher Murray and Matthew Jarron. It was great to have a chat with people afterwards including the many veteran Beano artists Derek the Sheep fans and comic fans who came along. Also big thanks to Alan Digby editor of the Beano and Morris Heggie DC Thomson archivist and exDandy editor for giving so much of their time on the Thursday. I went along to the DC Thomson building along with my friend Ashley Fitzgerald and fellow Beano artist Laura Howell and we were allowed to sift through a big stack of original art with Morris indepth knowledge on hand to talk us through it all. Then after lunch Alan gave us a fantastic Grand Tour of the DC Thomson building. I hope I get to go b... 2008-8-4 15:23:24 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#27814 Issue 11 of The DFC is out next Friday and sees the debut of my new creation Little Cutie.Little Cutie is Charlie a poor harassed coot who has attracted the unwanted attentions of a young persistent cygnet by the name of Sophie. No matter what he does or how rude he is to her she still fancies him rotten There are other adventures abound as Charlie deals with jealous geese greedy fat squirrels and a goldfish with an insatiable taste for burgers.Anyway I hope you all rush out and buy a subscription for The DFC which as mentioned before is rammed to the rafters with cracking cartoon geniuses 2008-8-2 22:36:32 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#27239 Its the Beanos 70th Anniversary this year and Ill be taking part in a couple of events coming up soon.Firstly On the 30th July Ill be talking about creating Derek the Sheep at the official anniversary exhibition Happy Birthday Beano in Dundee home of DC Thomson publishers of the Beano and Dandy. The programme also includes the prodigiously talented Beano artist Laura Howell DC Thomson archivist and former Dandy editor Morris Heggie current Beano editor Alan Digby and longtime artist for the Bash Street Kids and Dennis the Menace back in the day David Sutherland.Secondly on the 23rd of August Ill be taking kids classes at the Cartoon Museum in London where again Ill be chatting about Derek The Sheep and getting kids to draw mad characters and stories in a Derekstylee. This will be part of many activities click the cartoon classes and events link running alongside the museums own large Beano exhibition running from 30th July to 2nd of November. 2008-7-20 11:58:13 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#25925 For the last few weeks Ive been working on a new strip for the groovy new childrens weekly comic The DFC. Its a jolly strip called Little Cutie and revolves around a coot called Charlie and his pals on a pond and starts in issue 11 which comes out in August.Not that you should wait so long before you subscribe to the mag cos its packed to the rafters with geniuses like Philip Pullman Simone Lia Jamie Smart Dave Shelton etc. etc... so you may as well subscribe already.In other news artist Rob Kirbyson has painted a lovely portrait of Derek the Sheep And what a wonderfully handsome portrait it is too. 2008-6-22 13:24:36 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#23521 Ive been asked by DC Thomson to take part in their discussion panel at this years Bristol Comic Expo. Its on Sunday 11th May at 1pm in the Park Room at the Ramada Hotel. My name isnt listed on the guest list or anything so youll just have to take my word for it 2008-4-29 10:00:05 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#22986 Derek makes an alltoorare appearance in this weeks Beano my fault sorry. Its the first of a mad twoparter involving magic beanstalks and megawidescreen T.V.s theres even a guest appearance from Noel Edmonds next week. Sort of. And while youre in the newsagent you should also pick up the Dandy Extreme for more adventures of Pinkys Crackpot Circus 2008-4-18 13:35:28 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#21131 Found a couple of Norbert Le Mouton reviews dotted about the net and have updated the Reviews section accordingly. Ive relied on googletranslate to make sense of it all for any nonFrench speaking readers out there so descriptions of blunders and meatballs and Be gay as a finch with the stealing sheep may be a little way off the mark but Id like to think that theyre pretty accurate 2008-3-10 16:42:22 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#20145 The second Pinkys Crackpot Circus is featured in the latest issue of Dandy Extreme on sale now 2008-2-19 01:00:35 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#19896 Recently drew some illustrations for Bonn International Center for Conversion BICC concerning their small arms control project in Southern Sudan. Ive put a small selection up in the illustration section. 2008-2-13 22:13:00 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#19717 My French comic strip book Norbert Le Mouton published by Editions De Lan 2Actes Sud is now available to buy You can pick it up from amazon.fr and various other online French stores.But if you cant speak French then the British version will be available in September from BloomsburyMerci beaucoup 2008-2-8 16:47:43 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#17860 Ill be putting in an appearance at the forthcoming Angouleme Comic Festival promoting my new book Norbert Le Mouton. The festival runs from the 24th to the 27th January and Ill most likely show my face from Friday 25th onwards. 2007-12-27 16:06:32 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#16808 Derek makes an appearance in this months Beanomax Xmas special. Very festive it is too. And stupid. 2007-11-23 11:27:42 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#16807 A short but sweet little interview with me conducted by groovy cartoonistwriter Douglas Noble. Thank you for your kind words sir 2007-11-23 11:18:38 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#18504 Started work on a new strip for the Dandy Pinkys Crackpot Circus written by Robert McNaughton which is pencilled in for the beginning of Feb next year. Hooray 2007-11-20 20:28:51 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#16570 Norbert Le Mouton will finally make his debut next February Check out the preview pics over at the LEdition De LAn 2 2007-11-16 16:14:07 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#16566 Recently started drawing Weird World illos for SpiderMan Tower of Power and have added a small selection to the illustration section. 2007-11-15 15:38:30 http://www.garynorthfield.co.uk/page7.htm#13994 The 2008 Beano Annual is most likely hitting the shelves as we speak and theres a particularly strange 4 page Derek story in there. Derek decides to try out a bit of yodelling and Lenny gives his alpenhorn a good blast. You even get to see Cecil the Bee in a pair of lederhosen Very fetching they are too. 2007-8-27 01:37:06