You are browsing the archive for Margaret Thatcher.

by Rob Murray

The Round-up

September 1, 2013 in Events, General, Links, News

© Stanley Franklin @Procartoonists.org

Cartoons of Margaret Thatcher – including The Pit and The Pendulum by Stanley Franklin, above, has been showing at Leeds Gallery over the summer. Read a review of the exhibition here.

The British Cartoonists’ Association is on the lookout once again for Young Cartoonists of the Year and will now also accept digitally produced artwork (although a hard copy must be submitted). Find out more about how to enter the contest here.

Artwork from Procartoonists.org member Hunt Emerson‘s adaptations of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Frankenstein will be exhibited by The Wordsworth Trust in Grasmere, Cumbria, for one month from 4 October. Read more at downthetubes.net.

Procartoonists.org member Steve Bell discusses his depictions of US presidents in this audio interview and transcript.

Those interested in going behind the scenes with cartoonists and illustrators should check out both The Tools Artists Use and 20 Questions With Cartoonists.

The Oldie, one of the most high-profile markets for UK gag cartoonists, has reached 300 issues. Richard Ingrams, founder of the magazine and former editor of Private Eye, looks back on his time with both organs in this piece from The Telegraph. A new Oldie Book of Cartoons is released next month.

Also due to land on bookshelves and coffee tables in September is Private Eye: A Cartoon History. Edited by longtime Eye man Nick Newman, the book will feature more than 1,000 gags from the past 50 years. It certainly looks jam-packed, if these sample pages are anything to go by.

Ed adds: Late entry from Sarah McIntyre, aka @Jabberworks, at the Telegraph: Comic adventures for kids of all ages.

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by Blog Team

The Iron Lady vs the Cartoonists

June 11, 2013 in General, News

Margaret Thatcher © Jonathan Cusick @ Procartoonists.org

© Jonathan Cusick @ Procartoonists.org

An exhibition of Margaret Thatcher cartoons, The Eyes of Caligula and the Lips of Marilyn Monroe, opens at the Chris Beetles Gallery in London today (11 June).

The gallery is promoting the event with the caricature above by Procartoonists.org member  Jonathan Cusick. The exhibition features cartoonists including Jak, John Jensen, Larry, Ed McLachlan, Matt and Peter Brookes.

Running alongside it is a retrospective exhibition called Daggers Drawn: 35 Years of Kal Cartoons in The Economist. Both exhibitions run until 22 June. More details at the Chris Beetles website.

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by Rob Murray

The Round-up

April 12, 2013 in General, Links, News

© Ed Fisher/Cartoon Bank @Procartoonists.org

Cartoon captions are a major theme in this week’s Round-up. Bob Mankoff, cartoon editor of The New Yorker, looks back at the work of Ed Fisher (including the excellent meta-cartoon above), and also recalls some of the best caption contest entries by Roger Ebert. Both Ebert and Fisher passed away recently.

Over at The Telegraph, editorial cartoonist Christian Adams has unveiled his first caption competition, and is offering the original artwork as a prize for the best suggestion. Each contest will be topical, and this week’s features the late Baroness Thatcher. Head over to his blog to enter.

Unsurprisingly, Thatcher has been the subject of many cartoons in the past week or so. Gerald Scarfe, a cartoonist famous for his savage depictions of the former PM, talks about his relationship to his subject in this Q&A for the BBC. Elsewhere, David Ziggy Greene posts a piece he wrote and drew for French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo back in 2010. Read it here.

One of our members, the delightfully talented Gabriel Alborozo, has launched a new project. Simple Pleasures celebrates those small moments in life that make everything a little better. Alongside his own ideas, Gabe is taking suggestions from visitors to the site. You can also follow the project.

A new documentary film, Dear Mr. Watterson, celebrates the world of Calvin and Hobbes, while the strip’s creator, Bill Watterson, is also discussed in this article from Salon which argues that we should all respect the great man’s privacy.

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by Blog Team

Mrs Thatcher and the cartoonists

April 10, 2013 in Comment, General, News

Peter Brookes of Times on Margaret Thatcher @ procartoonists

© Peter Brookes of The Times @ Procartoonists.org

Powerful people in politics with wealth and helpers mix myth and reality to help deliver a projection of their achievements to the public. Parts of the same formula also drive the work of many cartoonists.

Dave Brown of The Independent on Mrs Thatcher

© Dave Brown of The Independent @ Procartoonists.org

Both sorts of visual trickery are now at work in the national catharsis following the death of the former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

Matt Pritchett of the Telegraph on Mrs Thatcher

© Matt Pritchett of The Telegraph @ Procartoonists.org

We’ve gathered ten cartoons for you to enjoy, whatever your opinion of the politician. We are sure you will have seen more, please do add links in the comments.

There is a mixture of reactions here from fresh-off-the-drawing-board images to retrospectives from the 1980s like this one.

Noel Ford of the Daily Star on Mrs Thatcher @ procartoonists

Noel Ford from the Daily Star @ Procartoonists.org

There are reactions from the regions …

Frank Boyle Edinbugh Evening News on Mrs Thatcher

© Frank Boyle of the Edinburgh Evening News @ Procartoonists.org

delayed jokes …

Christian Adams of The Telegraph @ procartoonists

Christian Adams of The Telegraph @ Procartoonists.org

iconography …

Steve Bell of The Guardian on Mrs Thatcher @ procartoonists

© Steve Bell of The Guardian @ Procartoonists.org

futurology …

Hack Cartoons on Mrs Thatcher from Tribune @ procartoonists

© Matt Buck Hack Cartoons for Tribune @ Procartoonists.org

appeals …

Banx of the FT on Mrs Thatcher @ procartoonists

© Banx of the Financial Times @ Procartoonists.org

and pathos.

Steven Camley of The Herald on Mrs Thatcher @ procartoonists

Steven Camley of The Herald @ Procartoonists.org

To repeat, we are sure you will have seen more and please do add them below in the comments.

Updated: Saturday 13th April. One national newspaper commissioned a whole supplement on Mrs Thatcher and gave the commission to Posy Simmonds – read it here. You will find more about Posy if you use the search tool on the sidebar of this site.

 

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by Rob Murray

Round-up: What the Bloghorn saw

November 25, 2011 in Links

The prolific cartoonist David Langdon, whose long career included work for The New Yorker, Punch and The Spectator,  has died at the age of 97. Among his achievements, Langdon claimed to have originated the ‘open mouth’ expression now used by almost every gag cartoonist to clarify who is speaking in their compositions. See The Guardian for an extensive obituary, while the Bucks Free Press has more here.

Gerald Scarfe‘s savage and iconic depictions of Margaret Thatcher have led to a newly discovered species of pterosaur being named after the caricaturist. The Portsmouth News explains all here.

DC Thomson has announced a digital subscription service for its weekly comics, The Dandy and The Beano, allowing readers to get their fix via iPad or iPhone. The Courier has more details here.

Finally, while writing about the recent sale of a Roy Lichtenstein painting, ArtInfo.com questions the value – or lack of it – that is placed on original comic art, compared with the ‘fine art’ it inspires.

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by Royston

Let's talk about Maggie

June 15, 2009 in News

maggie

Margaret Thatcher caricatured by Charles Griffin

The Cartoon Museum in London has a series of talks coming up by Kenneth Baker, John Minnion and Steve Bell, to tie-in with the exhibition Maggie! Maggie! Maggie!

Margaret Thatcher – A Unique Phenomenon takes place on Tuesday 16th June, 6.30pm – 7.30pm. From 1985 to 1990 Kenneth Baker was a minister in Margaret Thatcher’s administrations. He is a collector and writer on cartoons and co-curator of the exhibition.

Where There is Discord: The Mrs Thatcher Show is on Tuesday 23rd June, 6.30pm – 7.30pm. John Minnion, caricaturist for the New Statesman, has put together a presentation using caricatures and music to tell the story of the Thatcher years.

Maggie – the Monster from the Blue Lagoon? takes place on Wednesday 1st July, 7pm – 8pm. Steve Bell began drawing Margaret Thatcher in “Maggie’s Farm” and later in “If…”. He has been the chief political cartoonist on The Guardian since 1990. He talks about his three decades of drawing Margaret Thatcher.

Admission prices: Adults £5, Conc £4, Friends of the Museum £3.50. Booking is essential, call 020-7580 8155. The exhibition runs until July 26. The Cartoon Museum, at 35 Little Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London is open Tuesday-Saturday 10.30am to 5.30pm and Sundays 12pm to 5.30pm.

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by Royston

Margaret Thatcher: Two cartoon views

May 3, 2009 in Comment

maggie

Margaret Thatcher caricatured by Charles Griffin

It was 30 years ago today (May 4) that Margaret Thatcher walked through the doors of 10 Downing Street as Prime Minister, quoting the words of St. Francis of Assisi. Opinion is still sharply divided on whether or not she managed to bring harmony where there was discord, or hope where there was despair.

The two contrasting views on the Iron Lady will be represented in an exhibition which opens at the Cartoon Museum in London on Wednesday (May 6) entitled Maggie! Maggie! Maggie! Margaret Thatcher – Mother of the Nation or Monster from the Blue Lagoon.

The exhibition, which runs until July 26, is guest curated by two veterans of the ideological battles of the Thatcher years: Kenneth Baker, who served in the Thatcher cabinet from 1985 until 1990, and Steve Bell, political cartoonist for The Guardian who established his reputation as a fierce satirist during the Thatcher Years. No prizes for guessing which view each curator will be taking.

The exhibition aims to show how Thatcher has been both loved and loathed by politicians, the press and the public. The selection of nearly 100 cartoons by 35 cartoonists from across the political spectrum includes works by Bell himself, Michael Cummings, Stanley Franklin, Nicholas Garland, Les Gibbard, Charles Griffin, Jak, Peter Kennard, Gerald Scarfe, Posy Simmonds and Ralph Steadman.

It chronicles her rise to power, the Falklands war, the miners’ strike, privatisation, the poll tax, Europe, her eventual downfall and her long term impact on both the Conservative and Labour parties.

A fully illustrated 100-page catalogue will be available to accompany the show, it includes contributions by the two curators, along with such diverse types as Lord Carrington, Michael Foot, Geoffrey Howe, Ken Loach, David Owen, David Steel and Norman Tebbit.

The Cartoon Museum, at 35 Little Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London is open Tuesday-Saturday 10.30am to 5.30pm and Sundays 12pm to 5.30pm.

The BBC have a short preview piece available here.

And in the interests of balance, and because you probably can’t turn your computer monitor upside down …

maggie2

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