Cool Politician Dude.

[Roger Kettle]

During the recent elections, a leaflet arrived through my door from the 65 year-old Conservative candidate in my area. The layout of this leaflet involved a photograph of the gentleman concerned and the following words:
As the pop song goes.....
"I wanna be your number one"
On polling day, Make Ron Caird YOUR number one.

Good, eh?

[The Peepmaster]

He could have had "Never Ending Tory", "Love is Blue", or "Maggie May (or rather DID impose a poll tax)" as his theme tune.

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

Not Ron Caird, former editor of Twinkle, Roger?

As I recall, he was a doyen of the Thomson Leng Musical Society. Nah - he must be nearer 75 than 65...but then, politician's have been known to let slip the odd porky...

[Roger Kettle]

The same Ron Caird, Tarks! I was possibly being kind about his age.
I have no idea who was responsible for this hard-hitting, hip, political slogan. I DO know they need slapping.

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

Wonderful! Delighted to see he's alive and kicking still, even if it is for the Tories.

And if my memory continues to serve me well, I'm sure Ron needed no help from any spin-doctoring PR men to come up with that slogan himself. A glittering Twinkle career obviously stood him in good stead.

[The Peepmaster]

Wasn't Twinkle a girls' comic? I used to read Eagle and TV21.

It was years before I managed to see a girl's Twinkle.

[Malc]

I used to read the Bunty and Judy.
The stories were always better, more person-centred and less about lightning raids behind German lines.

I named one of the characters in my pirate strip Bunty in tribute.

There. I said it and I'm glad.

[Diamond Lil]

I had a doll called Bunty, named many years before the magazine.  Imagine my delight when my brother once featured Colonel Escargot playing with his doll...called Bunty.  My other doll was called Annabelle...now that I think of it, were D C Thomson's bugging my playroom for ideas??

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

Ah, the stories I could tell about Twinkle office shenanigans would shatter a few illusions I promise you...but I think I signed some sort of official DC Thomson Secrets Act many moons ago, and I can't risk it until I know for certain my time left is short.

Bunty is the only girls-only (plus Malc) publication I've ever worked for. It was a one-tier strip about a little lass who used a computer, imaginatively titled 'Computakid' (I was under orders - not my own idea). It didn't last very long as you may imagine - computers back in the 80s were a tad more limited than they are now. And since I had no knowledge of them at all back then, the very simplified style of drawing I used for the strip had the keyboard attached to the monitor, and no 'box'.

Actually, I may have invented the laptop.

[Roger Kettle]

I signed the very same Secrets Act myself, Tarks. That's why I've never mentioned the goat incident of '72.

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

Before my time, Roger - I didn't start till '77. And naturally, the Secrecy Act means I've never heard anything about it. Though I gather the goat did recover well.

[Roger Kettle]

The goat was fine. Sadly, the hamster didn't make it.