Tag Archives: Pam of Pond Hill

Tammy 7 January 1984

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Queen Rider (artist Eduardo Feito, writer A. D. Langholm)

Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over) – new story

Foul Play (artist John Armstrong, writer Ian Mennell) – first episode

Happy New Year Fun Time

Your Button Box Calendar (Chris Lloyd)

The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Ian Mennell)

Good as New (artist Maria Dembilio but credited as “Mary”, writer Maureen Spurgeon)

Room for Rosie (artist Santiago Hernandez, writer Alison Christie) – final episode

First Term at Trebizon (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Anne Digby)

The Crayzees (artist Joe Collins)

For New Year we present the last New Year issue from Tammy, in which Tammy starts a new story, provides a Button Box New Year calendar, makes the less-than-happy Happy New Year announcement that her price has gone up to 20p, and presents a coupon that could win 25 readers a signed copy of “Queen Rider”, one of the adaptations Tammy is currently running. “Room for Rosie” finishes her run with her own New Year story, in which she has a last-minute save from the scrap heap on New Year’s Day and starts off her new year with a new life in a fun fair. The Crayzees (below) present a surprisingly sobering story for New Year, and it’s one of their best. Both “Queen Rider” and “First Term at Trebizon” hit their climaxes this week, which means their resolutions aren’t far off and more new stories are on the way.

What is the new story for the New Year issue? John Armstrong has a change from Bella and is illustrating “Foul Play”, a new hockey story that’s got a mystery attached. Katie Johnson has suffered a badly injured hand from an ill-fated hockey match. Was it an accident as she believes or a foul from her own team (who viewed and resented her as an usurper) as everyone else believes – including the person who looks like they’re about to conduct a vendetta against the team? Like Carol-Anne Brabazon of Bunty’s “Down with St Desmond’s!”, they’ve even got a photograph of the team they’re going strike against, crossing out the faces of each member as they go. 

New Year was a popular time for new stories, and next week we are promised another new story, “Julie’s Jinx”, drawn by Julian Vivas. 

Pam of Pond Hill also starts a new story for New Year, but it’s anything but happy. She is less than thrilled to come back to school after the revelries of Christmas and New Year, and it seems things only get worse from there: grotty weather, grumpy winter blues staff, a flu bug that seems to be everywhere, and a classmate’s big-headed sister is unwisely appointed prefect, which provides her with the opportunity to throw her weight around, especially with Pam’s class. And so the plot threads are established for the rest of the story to follow. 

The New Year itself is 1984, so two things are expected: George Orwell’s “1984” and leap year. We read on in anticipation to see how Tammy honours both of these.

But no reader would have guessed that new year 1984 ultimately proved to be Tammy’s annus horribilis. This was the year of Tammy’s cancellation and go into what surely would have been the most incompatible merger in comic book history with the photo comic Girl. But even worse, Tammy was cut off by a strike before any of that even happened and never given a chance to finish her stories or say a proper goodbye.

Tammy 31 December 1983

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Cover artist: Trini Tinturé

Queen Rider (artist Eduardo Feito, writer A. D. Langholm)

Christmas Chuckles

Bethlehem’s Come to Us (artist Maria Dembilio but credited as “Julian”, writer Alison Christie)

The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)

Christmas Chuckles

A Christmas Mystery (artist John Johnston, writer Maureen Spurgeon) – Quiz

First Term at Trebizon (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Anne Digby)

Ralph Roisterham’s “Tiger” – a Pony Tale (artist Veronica Weir, writer Chris Harris)

Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)

Room for Rosie (artist Santiago Hernandez, writer Alison Christie)

The Crayzees (artist Joe Collins)

For the Christmas season we present the last Christmas issue of Tammy ever published. Inside, we have “Christmas Chuckles”; a Christmas story from the Crayzees where Miss T saves Christmas by helping to cure Santa of a cold; a special Christmas story from “Room for Rosie” (scans here), which ye Editor put on hiatus but informed us would return at Christmas; a Christmas story from Pam of Pond Hill in which we have morals about being organised for Christmas, but don’t be a power-driver over it; a Christmas quiz; and one of my favourite Tammy stories, “Bethlehem’s Come to Us…”, which is reproduced below. What can the Christmas spirit do for a family who are constantly quarrelling and back-biting because of the stress over Dad’s redundancy? So far, not much, and now it’s Christmas Eve. Is there hope yet? As Tammy would say – read on and see.

The Button Box does not have a Christmas story as it did in Tammy’s 1982 Christmas issue, but it has a story about the value of kindness, which is related to Christmas. It is the only Button story to have a foreshadowing, in which the button itself was shown in an earlier story but its story was not told at the time. Instead, its story is revealed at Christmas. 

An interesting note about Tammy artist John Johnston is that whenever he does spot illustrations for Tammy’s quizzes he uses a style based on Mad artist Paul Coker Jr., even using Coker panels from Mad as templates for some of the spot illustrations. One appears in the aforementioned Christmas quiz.

Tammy was big on adaptations, and it is currently running two: “Queen Rider” by A. D. Langholm and “First Term at Trebizon” by Anne Digby. There is evidence that “Queen Rider” was another book to start life as a girls’ serial, as “Bad Bella” from Tammy annual 1976 has a very similar plot (no, not Bella Barlow, whose title in the same annual has been changed to the once-only “That Barlow Kid” to avoid confusion). “Bad Bella” is no doubt a reprint from somewhere. Update: we have received information that “Bad Bella” is reprinted from Sally.

This week’s Pony Tale has a decidedly feminist slant to it, where Jane Dunnet disguises herself a boy to take over her brother’s “Tiger” job to an aristocrat, as the family badly need the wages. Of course she is discovered in the end, but she has conducted herself so incredibly well that everyone is all the more impressed at her being a girl. 

Tammy 17 March 1984

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Cover artist: Maria Barrera 

  • Dear Diary – I Hate You! (artist Maria Barrera) – part one
  • Cassie’s Coach (artist Tony Coleman, writer Alison Christie)
  • Guiding Hand (artist Phil Townsend) – Complete Story
  • Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)
  • Put a Spring in Your Step! (artist John Johnston, writer Maureen Spurgeon) – Quiz
  • Angela Angel-Face (artist Rodrigo Comos) – first episode
  • The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)
  • My Terrible Twin (artist Juliana Buch) – final episode
  • Dear Diary – I Hate You! (artist Maria Barrera) – part two
  • Out in the Open – Feature

We have been looking at how Princess built up towards her merger with Tammy in 1984. Now we take a glimpse at how Tammy was doing the same during the final weeks before the merger.

Giving serials double episodes to finish them off fast was a common thing in a buildup towards a merger (or a special issue). This falls to “Dear Diary – I Hate You!”, which has been given double episodes of late. It also had a lot of cover spots.

One of the curious differences between DCT and IPC was how often they used the blackmail serial. DCT cranked them out in such quantity it created a semi-regular blackmailer, “The Honourable S.J.” from Judy. By contrast, IPC didn’t seem to bother much with blackmail serials (though some IPC stories had blackmail elements; Bella, for example, had her share of blackmailers over the years), so “Dear Diary – I Hate You!” is an exception for being one. The cause of the blackmail is an incriminating diary, which our protagonist packed by mistake when she went to boarding school. As with many blackmail stories at DCT, the blackmail is making the unfortunate protagonist unpopular with her classmates because the blackmailer, who is disliked by everyone, is forcing her to be her toady. Perhaps the writer wrote blackmail stories for DCT or was inspired by the DCT example. Tammy had stopped running credits, so we don’t know who wrote this one. But I have wondered if it was Ian Mennell, as it has an extremely nosy girl as the antagonist of the story and a powerful plot device, as with an earlier Ian Mennell story also set in a boarding school, “Cuckoo in the Nest”. If so, the nosy antagonist is a big step up from the one in CITN; she is the outright villainess of the piece, whereas the other was not.

Stories reaching their conclusions were also another common feature in a merger buildup. This week it is “My Terrible Twin”, a 1979 Tammy story that was reprinted by popular demand. 

Pam also finishes her current story, where a big-headed, bragging ballroom champion classmate finally gets her well-deserved humbling, one that leaves her floored – literally – on the dance floor. Pam’s next story is a two-part filler before the merger with Princess. Sadly, it was one that was crying out for more development with more episodes. It is about a new pupil in Pam’s class who is kept under such tight apron strings that she is a virtual prisoner in her own home, her parents walk her to and from school, and they even want the headmaster to keep her separated from her classmates during breaks, but he refuses to do so. It turns out their conduct is an overreaction to big trouble when she fell in with a bad crowd, and not giving her even half a chance to earn back their trust.

Fillers, another feature in a merger buildup, appear as well. This week it is another reprint of “Angela Angel-Face”, a story from Sandie that was reprinted as a filler in Jinty in 1980. This one is not regarded as one of Jinty’s best moments, and it’s not one of Tammy’s either. As Angela is a five-parter, she will be the one to have double episodes over the next two issues of Tammy before the merger. Another filler is a complete story, “Guiding Hand”, about a tomboy who thinks she knows it all and everyone else is soft until she meets her match in a Girl Guides challenge.

What is set to go into the merger lineup? We are promised that a new Bella story is starting soon, so she has to be one. The Button Box is another, and so is Tammy’s other serial, “Cassie’s Coach”, a period story about Victorian children who find an unusual home in a coach on the scrap heap after their mother is falsely imprisoned and they are evicted from their home.

Tammy 18 February 1984

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Cassie’s Coach (artist Tony Coleman, writer Alison Christie)

Foul Play (artist John Armstrong, writer Ian Mennell)

Julie’s Jinx (artist Julian Vivas, writer Nick Allen) – final episode

Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over) – new story

Where’s Your Valentine? – Quiz (writer Maureen Spurgeon)

The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)

Dear Diary – I Hate You! (artist Maria Barrera) – first episode

Plans for a Wedding – (artist Carlos Freixas) – complete Valentine story 

Valentine Chuckles

My Terrible Twin (artist Juliana Buch)

Make His Heart Melt! – Valentine Cookery Feature

It’s Valentine’s Day, and we honour the occasion with Tammy’s final Valentine issue, from 1984. And now it is 2024 – forty years since the issue was published. Happy 40th!

Inside, Tammy honours Valentine’s Day with Valentine’s Day features, a quiz, and a story about an upcoming wedding with a problem – two feuding aunts who will both be attending. Will the aunts’ feud spoil the wedding, or will the family find a way to sort them out and have a happy wedding, aunts and all?

The Button Box could have also gone for something romantic for Valentine’s Day, but instead it’s a historical period tale about “Rebecca”, a 19th century protest movement against exorbitant road tolls, with the protesters smashing toll-gates while dressed as women. The protest in the story ends in arrest (except for the protagonist’s father, who manages to escape), but “Rebecca” makes its point and helps to standardise the tolls. 

The issue also marks where Tammy stopped printing credits, so it is not known who wrote her new serial, “Dear Diary – I Hate You!”. Susie Judd passes a scholarship exam to a top boarding school, but on arrival she discovers she unwittingly packed her sister’s diary, which says she cheated in the exam. This makes things awkward for Susie, as the school really means business about its motto, “Honesty Always”, which seems to be plastered everywhere the eye can see. She gets paranoid about what if someone finds out what’s in the diary. There’s one “what if” we can sense already, as Susie has been warned about a dodgy girl at the school. The girl hasn’t appeared yet, but it’s obvious she’s going to be the villain of the story.

Tammy’s historical period serial, “Cassie’s Coach”, is on its second episode. Cassie and her siblings find an old coach from a junkyard to live in after their mother is wrongly jailed and they lose their home. However, this week it stirs up jealousy from both the upper class (the previous owner of the coach) and the lower class (Cassie’s old neighbours), and Cassie cops the spite at both ends. Fortunately, at both ends there are also helpers to the rescue.

“Julie’s Jinx” reaches its final episode. Julie Lee does not know whether a Romany corn doll she gave her friend Gloria is a jinx or not, but Gloria’s pony has been acting strangely ever since she had it, and now spiteful Cindy has spread rumours about it being a jinx. What a relief when they find a rational explanation – the doll was giving the pony an allergic reaction. 

That’s one mystery solved, but in “Foul Play”, the mystery of who is conducting a vendetta against a hockey team after an accusation of foul play (with nothing proven about it) continues. This week, the vendetta strikes several members of the team in one blow. 

Pam of Pond Hill also starts a new story, which enters the world of ballroom dancing. Pam’s classmate Francesca, after splitting up with her ballroom dancing partner when she’s close to a ballroom competition, chooses Goofy to be her partner instead. Pam is seriously wondering what the hell Francesca is thinking of – and, considering Goof’s disco dancing disaster at the beginning of the episode, we do too.

“My Terrible Twin” Lindy gets away with gatecrashing a fashion parade, but it was still gatecrashing. What does that say about how far she is on the road to reform after being paroled? A test for her looms when the landlady wants the flat redecorated. 

Tammy 15 January 1983

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Cover artist: Guy Peeters

  • Romy’s Return (artist Juliana Buch, writer Charles Herring)
  • E.T. Estate (artist Guy Peeters, writer Jake Adams) – first episode
  • The Crayzees (artist Joe Collins)
  • The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)
  • Bella (artist John Armstrong, writer Primrose Cumming)
  • Tammy/Gymnastics Freebies
  • Carla’s Best Friend (artist John Richardson) – Complete Story
  • Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)
  • Nanny Young (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Maureen Spurgeon)
  • Cuckoo in the Nest (artist Tony Coleman, writer Ian Mennell)
  • Make the Most of Winter (by Chris Lloyd) – feature 

Tammy makes another strong addition to the New Year. It’s the first episode of her classic “E.T. Estate”, complete with a beautiful cover spot to kick the story off and grab the readers. It is one of Tammy’s most striking covers. In the story, Keats Estate is dubbed E.T. Estate after it gets hit by a meteorite shower and emerges from it looking like a war zone…and war it is, for anyone who discovers what really fell from the sky. It’s an alien threat from outer space! 

Nanny Young finishes her current story, so she will start a new one next week for the January/New Year lineup. 

The complete story is another reprint from Misty, which was originally titled “A Girl’s Best Friend”. This is one of Misty’s most powerful stories and one to leave you in tears. A guide dog seeks help from a white witch to restore her mistress’s sight. But for the spell to work, someone must be willing to exchange their own sight for the girl’s blindness, which means they will become blind if the girl is to see. Ulp!

This week’s Button Box story is a World War II story about courage and not giving up, and that courage comes in all shapes and sizes and not just fighting the enemy on the battlefield. And to inspire courage in her Islamic gymnastics pupils, Bella is telling them the story of her going to Australia to teach gymnastics (her 1978 story).

In “Romy’s Return”, so-called best friend Linda resorts to dirty tricks to stop her friend Romy from winning the swimming trials because she doesn’t want to be pushed out. Afterwards, she is surprised and shocked to find the pool full of litter. It looks like Romy did it, but if so, Linda is the one who is really to blame. Has she gone too far? 

The Cuckoo in the Nest has a new problem: how to pass as a girl on the dance floor at the school disco, and in school uniform because he has no disco gear. His uncle did not think to kit him out in a proper girl’s wardrobe.

Pam has an idea to fulfil Tess’ dream of being a ballet dancer – get her into synchro swimming. But she hadn’t counted on Tess getting overzealous about the idea. 

Tammy 8 January 1983

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Cover artist: Bob Harvey

  • Bella (artist John Armstrong, writer Primrose Cumming)
  • Hold Tight, Please! (artist Peter Wilkes) – complete story reprinted from Misty
  • The Crayzees (artist Joe Collins)
  • The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)
  • Romy’s Return (artist Juliana Buch, writer Charles Herring)
  • Fathers’ Footsteps (artist John Johnston, writer Gerry Finley-Day) – final episode
  • Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over) – new story
  • Nanny Young (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Maureen Spurgeon) 
  • Cuckoo in the Nest (artist Tony Coleman, writer Ian Mennell) 
  • Make ‘n’ Match! (by Chris Lloyd) – feature

We continue our New Year/January theme with more January issues from Tammy. January was always a time for some old stories to finish and new ones to start for the New Year. What’s in the lineup for that in this issue? “Fathers’ Footsteps” comes to an end, to be replaced next week by Tammy’s smash-hit story of 1983, “E.T. Estate”. Pam starts a new story, and Nanny Young will start one in two weeks, as her current story is on its penultimate episode. “Cuckoo in the Nest” is now building towards its climax; Leslie learns his great aunt, the unknowing cause of all his troubles, is going to pay a visit soon. 

As the cover (beautifully drawn by Bob Harvey) suggests, Bella is holding court at the Palace of the Shah. But this week she is courting trouble as she is pushing for women’s rights in a conservative Muslim country even more forcefully than the reformist Shah. She scores a victory for the women – this time – but others are worried about the backlash over it.

This week’s Button Box story is a moral lesson in the joys of sharing, which you won’t learn if you are selfish. For our complete story we get a reprint from Misty, “Hold Tight, Please!”.

“Romy’s Return” is a story that would not be out of place at DCT (a schemer, dirty tricks, and a girl who can’t find her feet again after she moves back). Linda Powell is enjoying the top spot at school after her best friend, Romy Benedict, vacated it when she moved to London. Then Romy moves back and wants to move back into top spot, but not if Linda can help it. The situation has Linda constantly oscillating between dirty tricks to keep her top spot and pangs of conscience. Which will win this week? At the beginning of the episode it is Linda’s conscience, but by the end of it she goes back to dirty tricks when she loses her form project to Romy.

Tammy New Year Issue 1 January 1983

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  • Bella (artist John Armstrong, writer Primrose Cumming)
  • Romy’s Return (artist Juliana Buch, writer Charles Herring)
  • Fathers’ Footsteps (artist John Johnston, writer Gerry Finley-Day)
  • The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)
  • Tammy Wall Diary – feature (writer Chris Lloyd)
  • Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)
  • What’s Your New Year Resolution? – quiz (artist John Johnston, writer Maureen Spurgeon)
  • Nanny Young (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Maureen Spurgeon)
  • Cuckoo in the Nest (artist Tony Coleman, writer Ian Mennell)
  • The Crayzees (artist Joe Collins)

For New Year we profile the 1983 New Year issue of Tammy. Inside, Tammy provides readers with a wall diary and a New Year quiz. “Fathers’ Footsteps” joins the New Year celebrations when both feuding families become snowbound and take refuge in a barn, where they start a New Year barn dance to keep themselves warm. The Crayzees and Pam of Pond Hill also have New Year themes.

January was a common time for girls’ titles to start new stories, so what is coming up this time? “Fathers’ Footsteps” is clearly about to end, so a new story will replace it soon. Pam will start a new story next week. The current Nanny Young story looks like it is headed for its conclusion, which means she will soon start a new story too. However, Bella and the other serials look like they still have a way to go before they reach their conclusions, so there will not be much else new in the Tammy lineup over January 1983.

Tammy Christmas Issue 25 December 1982

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Bella (artist John Armstrong, writer Primrose Cumming)

The Fireside Friend (artist Douglas Perry) – complete story

Father’s Footsteps (artist John Johnston, writer Gerry Finley-Day)

The Christmas Roses (artist Peter Wilkes) – complete story

Tammy Christmas Box! – Christmas quiz

The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)

Cuckoo in the Nest (artist Tony Coleman, writer Ian Mennell)

Nanny Young (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Maureen Spurgeon)

Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)

Crayzee Christmas (artist Joe Collins)

It’s Christmas time, and here is the Tammy 1982 Christmas issue. It’s dated the Big Day itself, so we have to wonder how and when the issue was distributed. Did readers have to wait until after Boxing Day for their copies? That must have been agony for them.

All the way through the issue Tammy has beautiful holly borders. Two complete stories (recycled from Strange Stories), a Christmas Quiz, The Button Box, Nanny Young, Pam of Pond Hill and Crayzee Christmas all add their bit to Christmas with a Christmas and/or related themes, such as snow and fireside. Mind you, Miss T is rather reluctant to do so as Christmas isn’t for witches, but Edie isn’t giving up that easily (below). Father’s Footsteps (where both feuding families suffer the biggest trick yet from sneaky Joy and Kim but of course will blame each other for it) is heading for a snowbound situation, so in a way it also adds to the theme. Only in Bella and Cuckoo in the Nest is it business as usual. 

As the cover says, it is pandemonium at Pam’s Pond Hill “Snow White” panto. Much of the problem is Di’s hero-worship of the lead, “Divine” Davinia, because she is so sophisticated. Di takes it to such extremes that it is interfering with the panto, annoying the class and upsetting her friends. Worse, Davinia is using it to take advantage of her. Di’s obsession with Davinia even lands her in a kettle drum in the orchestra pit during dress rehearsal! This week, Pam finally brings Di to her senses by getting her to see Davinia for what she really is: a selfish creep. So selfish that she cuts the panto to attend a concert and then has the gall to come back to be a star when the concert is cancelled – but she reckons without Pam.

Miss T is not into the Christmas spirit. From Tammy 25 December 1982.

Tammy 6 November 1982

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Cover artist: Juliana Buch

A Horse Called September (artist Eduardo Feito, writer Anne Digby)

Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)

Hand of Fortune – complete story (artist Juliana Buch, writer Ray Austen) 

Tomorrow Town (artist José Casanovas, writer Benita Brown)

Fathers’ Footsteps – first episode (artist John Johnston, writer Gerry Finley-Day)

Nanny Young (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Tom Newland)

Rae Rules O.K. (artist Tony Coleman, writer Gerry Finley-Day)

Bella (artist John Armstrong, writer Primrose Cumming)

For Guy Fawkes, we bring you the Tammy Guy Fawkes issue from 1982, with a nice cover from Juliana Buch. Inside, Buch illustrates a spooky complete, “Hand of Fortune”, about a promising pianist whose music career seems dashed when she damages her hand. Then something – or someone – takes a hand to lead her to an even better career path as a violinist. 

“A Horse Called September”, “Rae Rules O.K.”, “Tomorrow Town” and the current Pond Hill story are all on their penultimate episodes. So we should expect quite a big lineup of new stories starting soon, some of which are presumably part of the buildup to Christmas.

Meanwhile, a new story starts, “Fathers’ Footsteps”. It is one of those comical family feud serials. What are the two families fighting over? Scottish dancing vs. Morris dancing. Caught in the middle of the feud (as usual with these types of stories) are the daughters from the families, who never wear anything but school uniform, even on weekends. Ditto the two scheming girls whose tricks on both families make the feud even worse.

Nanny Young finally seems to be making headway with spoiled Elmer, but his father sticks his foot in it, sending things back to square one for poor Nanny.

Bella arrives in a Muslim country for her new job as a gymnastics coach. The job pays well, and it makes a change, coaching gymnastics in a palace. But the Islamic culture is already causing problems for Bella, especially when it clashes with her independent streak. And in a country where females are expected to know their lowly place, things look set for a lot of clashing. 

Tammy 19 February 1983

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Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)

E.T. Estate (artist Guy Peeters, writer Jake Adams)

Bella (artist John Armstrong, writer Primrose Cumming)

The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi, writer Alison Christie)

Into the Fourth at Trebizon (artist Diane Gabbot(t), writer Anne Digby) – text adaptation

Just Like a Child… – complete story, repeated from Strange Stories

Heart to Heart Hints (Mari L’Anson) – Valentine feature

The Crayzees (artist Joe Collins) 

Happy Valentine’s Day (writer Maureen Spurgeon) – quiz 

Nanny Young (artist Phil Gascoine, writer Maureen Spurgeon)

Cuckoo in the Nest (artist Tony Coleman, writer Ian Mennell)

Goodies – Valentine’s Day cookery feature

For Valentine’s Day, here is the Valentine issue from Tammy 1983, an issue that is now 40 years old this year. Happy 40th!

Inside, we have plenty of Valentine features, including a Valentine’s Day story from “The Crazyees”. You would think The Button Box would have joined Valentine’s Day with a love story from the button box, but instead it’s a button story about Elizabeth II’s coronation.

Setting the Valentine theme off is a most beautiful Valentine’s Day cover, one of my favourites, with Tammy’s resident features: Bella, Pam of Pond Hill and The Button Box. It also features what must be the most extraordinary story ever in girls’ comics: “Cuckoo in the Nest”. There are loads of Cinderella stories, slave stories, animal stories, sports stories and SF stories, but you surely won’t find another serial like this in girls’ comics. Love it or hate it, you can never forget it. Why? It has a boy, Leslie Dodds, as the main protagonist, no less. Also, he is masquerading as a girl at a boarding school, would you believe? The reason for it is bit complicated to explain here, but maybe there’ll be an entry on this one at some point. So we have a boy who has to learn hard and fast about the girls’ world to keep up his masquerade, and the girl readership gets a taste of the boys’ world into the bargain. No doubt the closet male readership enjoyed this story too, along with the footy that’s in it. The story is now on its penultimate episode, which ends on the note that the game is now well and truly up for Leslie, and there’s no place to hide.

Still on the subject of masquerades, aliens are taking over “E.T. Estate” (and then Earth, of course) by switching all the people with themselves as doubles. They try to do this with Jenny Holmes, the only girl who knows what they’re up to. However, this time a weakness comes into play, which causes it to fail. But then Jenny discovers her parents have been switched. How? These aliens may be able to duplicate the human beings they replace, but boy, are they lousy actors! Their impostures would make the “Cuckoo in the Nest” look professional by comparison. Another weakness exposed. 

Bella’s current job is gymnastics instructor. There’s nothing new about that, but this time she’s doing it in an Islamic country where teaching oppressed Muslim girls gymnastics gets her caught right up in a modernism versus fundamentalism clash, with an usurper taking advantage to overthrow the Shah Bella works for. Shades of Iran! Right now, Bella’s retelling her pupils the story of how she taught gymnastics in Australia. However, the flashback doesn’t quite square with the original 1978 print. Either there’s something wrong with Bella’s memory or there’s some cavalier editing here. 

In Pam of Pond Hill, Tess Bradshaw has gone crazy over synchro swimming. However, an unfair ban (now lifted) on Pond Hill pupils using the public swimming baths at any time and now a clash of instructors have been causing problems. But that is nothing compared with Tess’s biggest problem: her nonstop yakking and bragging about synchro, which constantly annoys everyone if it doesn’t put them off her.

“Just Like a Child…” (reprinted from Strange Stories, with text boxes replacing the Storyteller) is a cautionary tale not to be too quick to dispose of your old childhood treasures, just because you think you’re past them. You never know, as Andrea Owen finds out when she is a little too zealous to switch from toys to teen stuff, only to find that one toy won’t be got rid of that easily. 

In Nanny Young, there’s a fake ghost called Sir Roger when the residents of rundown Manor Towers play ‘ghost’ to get publicity to save the manor (which backfires). It might be coincidence, but could this be a reference to Sir Roger from “Gaye’s Gloomy Ghost”?