Tag Archives: Runaway Clown

Princess #25, 10 March 1984

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  • The Haunted Station (artist Julio Bosch) – first episode
  • Horse from the Sea (artist Rodrigo Comos)
  • Rusty, Remember Me (artist Eduardo Feito) – first episode
  • Stefa’s Heart of Stone (artist Phil Townsend, writer Alison Christie)
  • The Secret Swimmer (artist Phil Gascoine) – first episode
  • How Honest Are You? – Quiz
  • The Dream House (artist Mike White)
  • Day and Knight (artist Juliana Buch) – first episode
  • The Runaway Clown (artist José Canovas? or Miguel Faster?) – final episode
  • Flight from the Romanys (artist Maria Dembilio) 
  • Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)

Princess is on the countdown to the merger with Tammy on 7 April 1984, the last of the six titles Tammy absorbed in her lifetime. How is Princess building up for it? She has the advantage in that she had always been one for short serials, around five to eight episodes, though some serials were longer. So finishing one serial fast and starting another as a filler isn’t difficult for her in getting ready for the merger.

This week Princess begins four serials, two of which will conclude in the merger with Tammy. The ones that will go into the merger are “Rusty, Remember Me” (Donna Martin finds an injured fox cub) and “Day and Knight” (Sharon Day is being picked on by Carrie Knight, the school bully who looks set to become her stepsister). The other two are “The Haunted Station” (time travel to the 1930s via a train station and meeting a girl in danger) and “The Secret Swimmer” (Liza is wrongly blamed for her friend’s accident and becomes an outcast at school). Also set to go into the merger because of its length is “Stefa’s Heart of Stone”, a reprint from Jinty. After the devastating loss of her friend Joy, Stefa Giles freezes up to avoid such hurt again, but she is taking it to extreme levels that not only hurt everyone around her but are the heights of stupidity as well. This week she pretends to be sick to avoid Ruth’s party because Ruth is a near look-alike for Joy. She manages to dodge the party, but it doesn’t look like she’s going to get away with it.

Other reprints, “Horse from the Sea” (Jinty) and “The Dream House” (Tammy) are still running but will finish in Princess. Finishing this week is “The Runaway Clown”, who is finally reunited with her father. Lydia has made her “Flight from the Romanys”, the gypsies who kidnapped her, but she still has a way to go before her story ends. As she is still wearing the rags her kidnappers forced her to wear, the authorities take her for a ragamuffin and don’t believe her story. She finds herself thrown into a workhouse. From one goddam situation to another.

In “Sadie in Waiting”, Grovel the grovelling butler tries his hand as a painter. Predictably, the results are not exactly Rembrandt. He is advised to “chuck that rubbish”.

Princess #22, 18 February 1984

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  • Sheena and the Treetoppers (artist Rodrigo Comos)
  • The Saddest Dog in Town (artist Eduardo Feito)
  • Rowena of the Doves (artist Peter Wilkes)
  • Flight from the Romanys (artist Maria Dembilio) – first episode
  • How Trendy are You? Quiz
  • Horse from the Sea (artist Rodrigo Comos)
  • The Runaway Clown (artist José Canovas? or Miguel Faster?)
  • Stefa’s Heart of Stone (artist Phil Townsend, writer Alison Christie)
  • Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
  • Laura in the Lyon’s Den! (artist Bob Harvey)

Princess is now running on the same print as Tammy, and her stories are a mix of her own and reprints from Tammy and Jinty. Former Jinty readers would have been crying if they knew “Stefa’s Heart of Stone” was being reprinted here, as she was one of Jinty’s most popular stories and there was huge demand for a reprint in the 1980 Pam’s Poll. As Stefa, a long serial, is still in her early episodes in a title that will merge with Tammy in six issues, it is no wonder she carried over into the merger. Other reprints are Jinty’s Horse from the Sea (which enabled some of the original artwork to survive) and Tammy’s Rowena of the Doves. 

Sheena has a lead to save her treehouse from being demolished. It’s the old lost will scenario that could save the property if found, but where the %#$*!@ is it? Sheena decides to go and check the old mansion on the property, but what a spooky place it is. It’s a test of nerves.

Sammy, the saddest dog in town, can’t find his original owners. He has good friends to help, but their hopes of finding Sammy’s owners are dashed again this week. 

Spoiled, rebellious Laura is put to work in the kitchen of Mrs Lyon’s store. She is beginning to surprise herself in enjoying the work and even defending old battle-axe Lyon. 

The Runaway Clown is now training as a wire walker. But her trainer won’t let her use a safety net and she’s only a beginner. Yikes! 

An upcoming merger isn’t stopping Princess from starting new stories. This week it’s Flight from the Romanys, where a high-class girl, Lydia Parks, gets kidnapped by gypsies to be their slave. What a shock to the system for such a sheltered, pampered girl. At least Lydia is not a spoiled brat, so she’s an instant sympathetic character. 

In Sadie in Waiting, Grovel the grovelling butler tries his hand at cooking because Princess Bee is entertaining an Eastern princess. Desert rat stew, scorpion soup, sheep’s eyes and camel steak are on his menu and the gags for the story (including the gagging we readers are doing already).

Princess II, 25 February 1984

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Princess II cover 25 February 1984

  • Flight from the Romanys (artist Maria Dembilio)
  • The Dream House (artist Mike White) – first episode
  • Laura in the Lyon’s Den! (artist Bob Harvey)
  • Rowena of the Doves (artist Peter Wilkes)
  • The Runaway Clown (artist José Canovas? or Miguel Faster?)
  • Stefa’s Heart of Stone (artist Phil Townsend, writer Alison Christie)
  • Sheena and the Treetoppers (artist Rodrigo Comos)
  • Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
  • Horse from the Sea… (artist Rodrigo Comos)
  • The Saddest Dog in Town (artist Eduardo Feito)

We are now well and truly into the run of Princess II where she is falling back on reprints from Tammy and Jinty. From Jinty we have “Horse from the Sea” and “Stefa’s Heart of Stone”. Many former Jinty readers would have envied Princess readers for getting a reprint of Stefa. Jinty’s letter page indicated there was a popular demand for this serial to be repeated, but for some reason neither Jinty nor the Tammy & Jinty merger obliged. From Tammy we get “Rowena of the Doves” and now “The Dream House”.

Nonetheless, Princess is still producing her own stories. One is the cover story, “Flight from the Romanys” (not good grammar there). Lydia Parks is kidnapped by nasty gypsies, for no other reason than to make a slave out of her and profit from the chattels she had on her (rich clothes, a horse). Considering her father is a wealthy lord, they could have shown more imagination than that! This episode is dedicated to establishing just how cruel Lydia’s kidnappers intend to be to her, and Lydia showing us her resolve to escape despite her tears or the gypsies’ attempts to discourage her.

A more savoury gypsy gives “The Runaway Clown” both hope (her father will find her and no going back to the home she ran away from) and fear (danger from an elephant) when she looks into her crystal ball. Of course the fortune teller means Princess, the vicious elephant trainer who has been gunning for Cindy. This time Princess gets caught out and sacked, but has Cindy really seen the last of that nasty piece of work? Time will tell. Meanwhile, the weather presents its own dangers, and it leads to the death of the fortune teller.

Spoiled Laura is showing improvement in the “Lyon’s Den”. But is it genuine, or is it because she hopes to get a shopping trip in Paris out of it? Mrs Lyon suspects the latter, but readers are left wondering if the former is coming into it. Later, Mrs Lyon is surprised to see Laura on television donating her prize pony to the children of the blind home and promptly phones Laura’s aunt as she smells a rat. Is she right?

Two Princess stories, “Sheena and the Treetoppers” and “The Saddest Dog in Town”, reach their penultimate episodes. The Treetoppers are trying to find a missing will that would save their treehouse, but no luck. And now the demolition men are asking the councillor whether or not they have the green light to demolish the old house and the treehouse with it.

Lucy and Martin Denton are not having much luck tracing the owner of the “Saddest Dog in Town” either and turn to the local newspaper for help. Then a lorry passes by and the dog runs after it because he has recognised the engine sound. His rightful owner at last?

Sadie, Cook and Grovel all jump on the table in fright when they see mice on the bench, not realising they are only sugar mice intended as a gift for them. They not only end up feeling very silly but lose their treat as well, because the cat ate the mice.

Princess II, #21, 11 February 1984

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Princess 21 cover

  • School of Dark Secrets (artist Carlos Cruz) – final episode
  • Laura in the Lyon’s Den (artist Bob Harvey)
  • Stefa’s Heart of Stone (artist Phil Townsend, writer Alison Christie)
  • The Runaway Clown (artist José Canovas? Miguel Fuster?)
  • How Mean Are You? – Quiz
  • Horse from the Sea… (artist Rodrigo Comos)
  • Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
  • Princess Pet Book part 3
  • Rowena of the Doves (artist Peter Wilkes)
  • Sheena and the Treetoppers (artist Rodrigo Comos)
  • The Saddest Dog in Town (artist Eduardo Feito)
  • Fun Fair (puzzles)

This is Princess II’s one and only Valentine issue. Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, which gives it topical flavour. Only Sadie in Waiting actually commemorates Valentine’s Day (below), and we get a hint that Grovel has a softer side, though of course he won’t admit it.

“School of Dark Secrets” reveals its secret. The staff are descended from the Witches of Barnham. All they need to complete the coven and receive the powers of the original witches is Judy, the descendant of Alvira, the 13th witch in the portrait. Too bad for the witches they failed to spot the clue that the portrait of Alvira had been painted over with that of Judy’s great-great-grandmother, so they grabbed the wrong descendant. Not surprisingly, when the true face of Alvira is revealed, it’s “yecch”. Now, did someone paint the portrait over to fool the witches or because they couldn’t stand the sight of Alvira’s ugly mug? At any rate, the school is closed down and then reopened with more wholesome staff.

Laura is way too much for Mrs Lyon this week – she actually throws a huge, creamy cake in the woman’s face! She’s still serving in the restaurant, though.

Stefa starts on the path to turn her heart into stone to avoid feeling grief again. Everyone is upset by the change in her but don’t realise why. The doctor advises a complete change. A fat lot of good that’s going to do.

Princess, the elephant performer, is so jealous of “The Runaway Clown” that she sets a tiger on her. This backfires big time on Princess, and it looks like it’s about to lead to the Big Top going up in flames as well.

The Treetoppers fend off an escaped lion, but their treehouse is still facing the bulldozers. Then Sheena has a brainwave – but what is it?

The origin of the “Horse from the Sea” is revealed this week. Legend says a Penrose married the daughter of the King of the Sea, and she came up from the sea on the horse. Ever since then the horse has appeared whenever the heir of Penrose is in danger, which apparently is what is happening now.

Rowena’s father, King Guthlac, has sent her to summon her three brothers to his aid. One brother has already refused, as has the second this week, because he’s in the power of a vampire. It’s all down to the third now.

In “The Saddest Dog in Town”, a clue emerges as to who the dog’s lost owner is. He is linked to Jess, a girl who wanted to learn ballet, but her parents couldn’t afford it. But where is Jess?

Sadie in Waiting Valentine

Princess II, #19, 28 January 1984

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Princess 19 cover

  • The Saddest Dog in Town (artist Eduardo Feito) – first episode
  • Laura in the Lyon’s Den! (artist Bob Harvey) – first episode
  • Stefa’s Heart of Stone (artist Phil Townsend, writer Alison Christie) – first episode
  • School of Dark Secrets (Carlos Cruz)
  • The Runaway Clown (artist José Canovas? Miguel Fuster?) – first episode
  • Rowena of the Doves (artist Peter Wilkes) – first episode
  • Are You a Scaredy Cat ? Quiz
  • Horse from the Sea (artist Rodrigo Comos) – first episode
  • Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
  • Princess Pet Book (artist Mario Capaldi) – feature
    Sheena and the Treetoppers (artist Rodrigo Comos)

This is where Princess switches to the Tammy format (same newsprint, style and page count) and starts printing reprints from Tammy and Jinty. A new comic using reprints is not a good sign. It is an indication of an ailing comic and cutting costs, or perhaps even that the decision had already been made to merge Princess with Tammy.

The reprints are “Stefa’s Heart of Stone”, “Horse from the Sea” (Jinty) and “Rowena of the Doves” (Tammy). Later another reprint, “The Dream House” from Tammy, joins the lineup. Stefa was one of Jinty’s most popular stories. There was a huge demand to repeat her story in “Pam’s Poll“. Despite this, it was a repeat that did not eventuate in either the remainder of Jinty’s run or her merge into Tammy, but it finally did so in Princess and would continue in the Tammy merger.

However, there are also totally new stories. In “The Saddest Dog in Town” the Dentons take in Sammy, a dog who hitched a ride into town, but there is a real mystery as to why Sammy is so sad. It appears to be linked to his searching for something (or someone?) and disappointed to find it.

In “Laura in the Lyon’s Den!”, Aunt Leroy decides it’s time to get someone to sort out her spoiled and mischievous niece, Laura. That’s definitely a good idea, but is the approach – give Laura a holiday job in the family restaurant under the strict supervision of Mrs Lyon – going to work out? Mrs Lyon herself is not happy about such a burden, and Laura’s a real handful. Still, Laura could meet her match in Mrs Lyon as she definitely has what it takes to deal with a rotten brat.

In “The Runaway Clown” Cindy runs away from a children’s home where she always puts her foot in it. She is drawn to the circus, where she goes to the rescue of a tightrope walker in trouble although she’s never walked a tightrope before.

The Treetoppers’ treehouse is in danger. The site is going to be demolished to make way for a stadium. The Treetoppers decide they’re going to put up a fight. Meanwhile, Judy tries to get her father to take her away from the “School of Dark Secrets”, but Miss Grimkin is onto Judy and manages to pull the wool over Dad’s eyes.

Princess Bee goes away; Grovel takes advantage to open the place to guided tours, and passes himself off as a lord. He is in danger of being caught out when Princess Bee returns unexpectedly. Sadie graciously covers up for him – while still teaching him a lesson.