The Shrewsbury International Cartoon Festival comes to an end

Big Boards in the town square 2006. Photo © Roger Penwill. Roger Penwill writes: The old maxim that all good things come to an end has become true for the Shrewsbury International Cartoon Festival. The sad and untimely loss of two key organisers just prior to the pandemic, Covid putting it’s oar in to disrupt planning […]

Shrewsbury Cartoon Festival Exhibitions 2022

Roger Penwill reports from Shropshire’s medieval county town: For its 19th year the Shrewsbury Cartoon Festival is represented by a collection of three exhibitions. At the Bear Steps Gallery, the festival’s spiritual home since the inaugural festival in 2004, are the Festival themed exhibition “Look and Learn” and an exhibition of work by the popular cartoonist Noel […]

Not the 2020 Shrewsbury Cartoon Festival

Cancelled poster by © Roger Penwill Glenn Marshall writes: This weekend would have seen the main events of the Shrewsbury International Cartoon Festival  but sadly, like so much else, it has had to be cancelled. One of the organisers, Roger Penwill, commented a few weeks ago when the postponement was announced “We felt that we had no […]

Noel Ford 1942-2019

Noel with daughter Sara at Nottingham’s Big Grin Cartoon Festival 2003. Photo © Pete Dredge Pete Dredge writes: It’s a cruel irony that it is only when someone passes  that the outpourings of love, praise and acknowledgement spill out from friends, colleagues and acquaintances. Such has been the response to the sudden and unexpected death […]

Herne Bay Cartoon Festival 2019 launch countdown

This year’s poster was created for the festival by © Marf. Sue Austen (Festival Organiser) writes: The Herne Bay Cartoon Festival has landed for another year. This is the seventh consecutive festival in the lovely Kent seaside town. The theme for this year is Fly Me to the Moon referencing the fiftieth anniversary of the […]

Book Marks exhibition

Poster cartoons by © Sarah Boyce, The Surreal McCoy & Noel Ford. Clive Goddard writes: An exhibition of cartoons on the theme of books, literature and libraries drawn by the UK’s finest and funniest cartoonists. Appropriately enough the show will be taking place at Westminster Reference Library from June 3rd to 22nd and is free […]

Shrewsbury Cartoon Festival photo album

The ‘Plan B’ Shrewsbury Square. Photo © Tat Effby. Glenn Marshall & Jonathan Cusick write: With Storm Hannah due to roll in threatening rain and high winds the marquee company wouldn’t put up the festival’s gazebo roofing. Fear of airborne ‘para-boarding’ cartoonists made the festival organisers hastily arrange a Plan B for Saturday, which involved […]

Shrewsbury International Cartoon Festival in the rear-view mirror.

Jonathan Cusick, Pete Dredge, John Roberts and Helen Pointer ‘drawing the crowds’. Rupert Besley writes: The sun shone on the righteous – and on the cartoonists in Shrewsbury. It was a bumper gathering in the town this last weekend, with visitors and participants drawn from far and wide. Few more so than festival regular Dean […]

Herne Bay Cartoon Festival 2017:
The End of the Pier Show

The Herne Bay Cartoon Festival main event was held on the Pier for the first time on Sunday, after four years at the Bandstand. It proved a perfect fit for a live cartooning event. The sun shone and a good time was had by all. Photos © Kasia Kowalska unless otherwise stated The cartoonists who took part […]