”Before The Boys, before Kick-Ass, before Watchmen, there was Captain Civilian.” Have you ever dreamed of becoming a superhero? If you’re like most of us, the answer is probably yes. But while many left that dream behind in childhood, one man turned it into a reality. In 1985, young art student Steve Marchant set out ..read more

We are delighted to announce the winners of the third annual Alison Brown Young Comics Maestro award, recognizing the most exciting comic strip talents from the UK under the age of 18 years old. The 2024 winners are: Winner – Lila Shaw-Mitchell Runner up (U18) – Maanya Pai Runner up (U10) – Frazer Shaw Highly Commended: Artie Thoukidedes ..read more

A selection of zines at The Cartoon Museum Shop “Zines are an accessible, versatile outlet for ideas, art and writing.”– Kristyna Baczynski, Make Your Own Fun – A Zine About Making Zines Have you checked out the zines in our museum shop? They are privately published books that come in all sorts of themes, styles ..read more

During the first half of 2024, we have been working hard to refresh our main gallery display. This comes after spending the past few years conducting visitor surveys during the Easter and Summer holidays, to find out about our visitors’ experiences of the site, both negative and positive. Trying to answer some of the issues ..read more

This July marks The Cartoon Museum’s fifth anniversary of relocating to Wells Street, near Oxford Street. The move followed a successful £1.1 million fundraising campaign led by cartoonist and Cartoon Art Trust chairman Oliver Preston. To commemorate the anniversary of the move, I spoke to Oliver about the process and challenges. 1. Can you briefly ..read more

“How To Make A Mint.” This past May, we received a letter from David Shenton on his 75th birthday, in which he thoughtfully answered our interview questions. We warmly congratulate David on his remarkable 40+ year career as a cartoonist and are delighted to feature him on our museum blog this Pride Month. David’s comics have vividly depicted the gritty realities of gay life, since long before the term “LGBTQ+” existed. His latest comic collection “Forty Lies“, published last December, is an autobiography covering his life from his teens to his 70s(with his unique queer knitting patterns) and i ..read more

On Thursday 4 July the British public will go to the polls for the first time since 2019 to select their government. Will it be Starmer or Sunak? In the lead-up to the election the Museum is hosting a short trail through the history of elections in the UK, highlighting some of our favourite election cartoons over the years and featuring artists such as James Gillray, Trog, Steve Bell, Nicola Jennings and Ella Baron. Your country needs you to piss off © Ella Baron 2024 Many are treating the 2024 election as something of a foregone conclusion. After 14 years of a Tory government the public are ..read more

The Cartoon Museum is currently showcasing a special exhibition titled “Oluwasegun Babatunde: Birth of a Universe.” Babatunde’s creation stands apart from the typical Black narrative depicted by White creators in a Western context. Instead, he presents a Black narrative from the perspective of a Black creator – a tale featuring a Black superhero. His narrative isn’t about seeking validation within the Western framework or condemning racism. In Babatunde’s view, the focus is on the myriad struggles people face: socioeconomic disparities, oppression, poverty, and also rich cultural heritage and ..read more

Robbie, now 86, was born just before World War II and still remembers that as a child she always had her little Rupert Bear soft toy by her side wherever she went. When the German air raids on major British cities became more intense, she was evacuated to the countryside at the tender age of two. During this upheaval, her Rupert soft toy was the only item she could bring along… Since its debut as “The Little Lost Bear” in the Daily Express on November 8, 1920, the tale of Rupert Bear has been illustrated by several artists for over a century, becoming a British national treasure, and earning l ..read more

Welcome to 2024! We’ve started the week with heavy rain, lots of people coming to look at Wallace and Gromit, and the looming prospect of further tube strikes. As you were, then. It’s been a little while since my last Director’s blog, and in the time that has passed we have won a Museums and Heritage award for our autism-focused programming, opened some great exhibitions, said goodbye to our Curator, Emma, and Collections Manager, Kate, and opened a brilliant Wallace and Gromit exhibition telling the story of Britain’s favourite animated duo. Which is still on till April – come and visit! Pet ..read more