An Annual Treat

 

WITH CHRISTMAS approaching with the speed and certainty of a tomato fired from Dennis the Menace's catapult, copies of the Beano Annual 2023 have started popping up in shops, ready to be slipped into Christmas stockings around the country!

Of course, the annual has been available to buy since August, but it really gets the big push in the run up to Christmas, being one of those seasonal staples throughout the decades. And, once again, I'm thrilled to have written some stories within! 

Among the other treats in the book, you'll find four Minnie the Minx stories, four Bash Street Kids tales and four Dangerous Dan adventures, all written by me! And boy, is my wrist tired!

Here's a brief preview of some of the antics I've penned for this year's annual:

Bash Street Kids

There's a special Bash Street Kids in this year's book, featuring a cameo appearance from yours truly (see above). I'd written a writer appearing in this longer, ongoing treasure hunt tale, and then decided to chance my arm and see if it could be me (hey, you only live once, right?) I was delighted to receive an email a few weeks later, showing my cameo in the strip, drawn by long-time Bash Street artist David Sutherland! Such an honour to be drawn by the legend himself, and also it's a thrill to see myself in the annual, having read so many as a child! It's a Christmas miracle!

Minnie the Minx

There's a bunch of Minnie stories that I'm pleased with in this year's annual, but the one I'm super proud of is the Multiverse tale I came up with! Everyone's got a multiverse these days, haven't they? And the Beano is no exception! I was AMAZED by Laura Howell's work on this, and how she effortlessly captured the look and style of both Leo Baxendale's original Minnie, and Jim Petrie's iconic incarnation of the minx. It's a multiverse of minxness! 

Dangerous Dan

I've been writing the adventures of Beanotown's top spy, Dangerous Dan, for a couple of years now, and it's always nice to write the longer stories from him, with a bit more space for all the action and antics! Plus, I can't believe it's taken me so long to write this spoof on James Bond's infamous introduction. Achievement unlocked! Art, as ever, by the superlative Sharp Brothers.

That's just three of the treats in store this year, along with all your other favourites, and is available in stores and online NOW!

- Fanton.