Detective Weekly
Encyclopedia
Detective Weekly was a British
story paper of the 1930s
, the storypaper which had begun in 1894 and which had for most of its life been famous as "Sexton Blake
's own paper". Issue 1 of Detective Weekly was released in 1933, a week after the last Union Jack. It was a larger, tabloid-sized paper, and had less use of colour on the cover than its predecessor.
The first series of stories concentrated on Sexton Blake, and his family history, with a wayward brother turning up. However in later issues the character could be dropped entirely. He returned to the paper in the late 1930s, but most of the stories where reprints of earlier Union Jack stories from the 1920s.
The paper was discontinued in 1940, following the introduction of paper rationing in the World War II
. This left The Sexton Blake Library as the only publication containing stories of the detective, aside from the comic strips in Knockout
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
story paper of the 1930s
Overview
Detective Weekly was a continuation of the Union JackUnion Jack (magazine)
- Introduction :There were two story papers called Union Jack. The first appeared in the 1880s but was only very short-lived. The name was then used by Alfred Harmsworth in 1894 for a new halfpenny storypaper intended as a companion to the successful Halfpenny Marvel.Harmsworth considered it his...
, the storypaper which had begun in 1894 and which had for most of its life been famous as "Sexton Blake
Sexton Blake
Sexton Blake is a fictional detective who appeared in many British comic strips and novels throughout the 20th century. He was described by Professor Jeffrey Richards on the BBC in The Radio Detectives in 2003 as "the poor man's Sherlock Holmes"...
's own paper". Issue 1 of Detective Weekly was released in 1933, a week after the last Union Jack. It was a larger, tabloid-sized paper, and had less use of colour on the cover than its predecessor.
The first series of stories concentrated on Sexton Blake, and his family history, with a wayward brother turning up. However in later issues the character could be dropped entirely. He returned to the paper in the late 1930s, but most of the stories where reprints of earlier Union Jack stories from the 1920s.
The paper was discontinued in 1940, following the introduction of paper rationing in the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. This left The Sexton Blake Library as the only publication containing stories of the detective, aside from the comic strips in Knockout
Knockout (comic)
-1939 series:The first ran from 4 March 1939 to 16 February 1963, 1251 issues, when it merged with Valiant. Magnet was discontinued in 1940; but its lead character, Billy Bunter, was thereafter granted his own cartoon strip in Knockout. Comic Cuts merged with it in 1953...
.