Escape Magazine
Encyclopedia
Escape magazine was a landmark British comic strip
magazine founded and edited by Paul Gravett
and Peter Stanbury. Nineteen issues were published between 1983 to 1989. Eddie Campbell
, Phil Elliott
and Glenn Dakin
were amongst the many cartoonist
s published within its pages.
or minicomic
s that occurred in the UK in the early 1980s. Paul Gravett
was running a stall at the Westminster Comic Mart in London called Fast Fiction
where he would sell other people's self published comics for a small cut. These would generally be short-run publications, usually photocopied and assembled by hand, by creators who couldn't find a professional outlet for their work with many coming from an art school background with unique approaches to comic art.
At the same time awareness was growing of international developments in the medium. Art Spiegelman
and Françoise Mouly
's RAW magazine
had started pushing the boundaries in the USA while European anthologies such as Métal Hurlant
, Charie Mensuel and PLG
showed not only radically different styles of comic art to the usual UK/US variety but a more mature and analytical approach to the medium.
Gravett brought his knowledge and enthusiasm while his partner Peter Stanbury, employed at the time at Harpers & Queen, brought experience in print design and production and together they decided to publish, from their flat, a magazine featuring this home-grown talent along with showcasing examples of new and interesting comics from around the world.
and Rian Hughes
, but it also infused the whole attitude of the magazine, that some comics at least deserved be taken seriously. By identifying with the relatively exotic and beautifully produced volumes from Europe, Escape distanced itself from the action-adventure style of 2000AD
and the American superhero
es of Marvel
and DC
and established itself not only as something new, but something important.
stall and distribution to Phil Elliott
and before starting Escape, Gravett was employed as promotions manager for Pssst!, an attempt to publish a British equivalent of the lavish French Bande Dessinée magazines. While disillusioned with the direction, or lack of, Pssst! was taking, his job brought him into contact with many more new and innovative cartoonists around the UK. To some of these, such as Glenn Dakin
in Manchester
, he introduced the concept of self publishing small press comics and sending them out to like minded souls, thus widening the net for Fast Fiction
. Pssst! was forced to close after 10 issues leaving Gravett with a good idea of how not to run a magazine and a pool of talent.
of between 56 and 84 pages in length with black and white interiors and colour covers. The covers were wrap-around and, for the first five issues, hand-separated by Stanbury until full-process colour became viable. The smaller size was chosen to physically differentiate it from other comics around at the time with a nod to the photocopied small press comics that usually came in this format. It was also easy to put in your pocket. The first issue had a print run of 2000 and had a disproportionate reaction from the music and style media bringing in subscribers and advertising, notably the NME
and Time Out.
While the contents of each issue followed a pattern of running home grown talent alongside features on comics from around the world (with an emphasis on European BD and American "art comics") the roster of artists changed regularly with new creators being brought in every issue. Despite, or more likely, because of the wildly different styles and approaches embraced by the magazine Escape had a solid identity and loyal, if disparate, readership. As the landscape of the comics industry changed through the 1980s Escape was there to report it and try to influence where people should be looking.
In 1986 Escape changed to the larger industry standard American magazine format (8.25"x11") enabling them to reprint work by the international creators they'd previously only written about. Jacques Tardi
and Gary Panter
appear in issue eight and George Herriman
's Krazy Kat
became a regular feature. The logo also changed to a bold new design with extra prongs for the E and A and the magazine took on a more professional feel. Of the twelve issues published in this format eight had covers by non-British illustrators as Escape moved away from its small press origins and fully embraced a more international, Art-based ideology.
A year later, and after protracted negotiations, Escape became the first periodical to be published by Titan Books
, a graphic novel repackaging house responsible for collections of Judge Dredd
and American titles such as Swamp Thing
. Gravett and Stanbury retained complete editorial control over the contents and direction of the magazine (despite some pressure from Titan). Despite a 60% sell through on predominantly London-based newsstands Titan were reluctant to push for wider national distribution and after two years and ten issues they parted company. A third, more ambitious, incarnation was planned but failed to find a backer and Escape folded in 1989.
Two exhibition booklets were also produced under the Escape banner:
Publications such as Deadline
and Heartbreak Hotel shared the combination of comic strips by relative newcomers and lifestyle articles designed to reach a non-comics audience.
There are notable influences too on Fleetway
's experiments with comics for more mature audiences. Later issues of Crisis featured Paul Grist
and reprinted European work while the short-lived Revolver employed Escape regulars Rian Hughes
and Julie Hollings amongst others.
While, with the exception of Eddie Campbell
, the core group of artists associated with Escape did not necessarily go on to great riches. The magazine did publish early work by notable creators including Neil Gaiman
, Dave McKean
, Paul Johnson
, James Robinson
and Rian Hughes
.
For the British small press scene
Escape, along with Fast Fiction
, had been an important focal point both artistically and socially. This continued into the 1990s with the magazine holding a pivotal place in the history of the scene.
International distribution brought Escape artists American exposure, most notably to the cartoonists informally known as the Highwater Books
scene. Highwater publisher Tom Devlin
and cartoonist Tom Hart
both cite Escape, and Glenn Dakin
in particular, as influential in forming their attitudes towards comic art. Canadian cartoonist Seth
has recently written about the influence Chris Reynolds
had on him.
It should, however, be remembered that Escape was part of a wider and at the time quite vibrant environment in British comics and that artists did move freely from publication to publication. While the magazine did carve out an important niche and break new ground, the work of Knockabout and Warrior
and aspects of the Harrier Comics
line should be taken into account.
and Underground comics scenes of the late 70's and early 80's.
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
magazine founded and edited by Paul Gravett
Paul Gravett
Paul Gravett is a London-based journalist, curator, writer and broadcaster who has worked in comics publishing and promotion for over 20 years....
and Peter Stanbury. Nineteen issues were published between 1983 to 1989. Eddie Campbell
Eddie Campbell
Eddie Campbell is a Scottish comics artist and cartoonist who now lives in Australia. Probably best known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell , Campbell is also the creator of the semi-autobiographical Alec stories collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and Bacchus , a wry adventure...
, Phil Elliott
Phil Elliott
Phil Elliott is a British comic book creator who was published in Escape Magazine. He was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s.-Career:...
and Glenn Dakin
Glenn Dakin
Glenn Dakin is a British cartoonist and author of children's books. He was a contributor to a number of British comics magazines including Escape and Deadline and was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s...
were amongst the many cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
s published within its pages.
Origins
Escape has its origins in the explosion of small pressBritish small press comics
British small press comics, once known as stripzines, are comic books self-published by amateur cartoonists and comic book creators, usually in short print runs, in the UK. A "small press comic" is essentially a zine composed predominantly of comic strips. The term emerged in the early 1980s to...
or minicomic
Minicomic
A minicomic is a creator-published comic book, often photocopied and stapled or with a handmade binding. In the United Kingdom and Europe the term "small press comic" is equivalent with minicomic reserved for those publications measuring A6 or less...
s that occurred in the UK in the early 1980s. Paul Gravett
Paul Gravett
Paul Gravett is a London-based journalist, curator, writer and broadcaster who has worked in comics publishing and promotion for over 20 years....
was running a stall at the Westminster Comic Mart in London called Fast Fiction
Fast Fiction
Fast Fiction was a market stall, magazine, mail order distributor and news sheet that played a key role in the history of British small press comics...
where he would sell other people's self published comics for a small cut. These would generally be short-run publications, usually photocopied and assembled by hand, by creators who couldn't find a professional outlet for their work with many coming from an art school background with unique approaches to comic art.
At the same time awareness was growing of international developments in the medium. Art Spiegelman
Art Spiegelman
Art Spiegelman is an American comics artist, editor, and advocate for the medium of comics, best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning comic book memoir, Maus. His works are published with his name in lowercase: art spiegelman.-Biography:Spiegelman was born in Stockholm, Sweden, to Polish Jews...
and Françoise Mouly
Françoise Mouly
Françoise Mouly is a Paris-born French artist and designer best known for her work with RAW, a showcase publication for cutting edge comic art, and as art editor of The New Yorker, a position she has held since 1993...
's RAW magazine
RAW (magazine)
RAW was a comics anthology edited by Art Spiegelman and Françoise Mouly and published by Mouly from 1980 to 1991. It was a flagship publication of the 1980s alternative comics movement, serving as a more intellectual counterpoint to Robert Crumb's visceral Weirdo, which followed squarely in the...
had started pushing the boundaries in the USA while European anthologies such as Métal Hurlant
Métal Hurlant
Métal Hurlant is a French comics anthology of science fiction and horror comics stories, created in December 1974 by comics artists Jean Giraud and Philippe Druillet together with journalist-writer Jean-Pierre Dionnet and financial director Bernard Farkas.The four were collectively known as "Les...
, Charie Mensuel and PLG
PLG
PLG may stand for:*PoLyGon Format, A 3D file format*Parti Libéral Genevois *Plasminogen*Pierre-Luc Gagnon, a professional skateboarder*Paul Le Guen, French football manager...
showed not only radically different styles of comic art to the usual UK/US variety but a more mature and analytical approach to the medium.
Gravett brought his knowledge and enthusiasm while his partner Peter Stanbury, employed at the time at Harpers & Queen, brought experience in print design and production and together they decided to publish, from their flat, a magazine featuring this home-grown talent along with showcasing examples of new and interesting comics from around the world.
The importance of BD
Short for Bande Dessinée, BD became the ideological anchor for Escape. Gravett wanted to apply the values of and respect attributed to French comics to his new breed of British artists. Visually this was reflected in the work of Phil ElliottPhil Elliott
Phil Elliott is a British comic book creator who was published in Escape Magazine. He was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s.-Career:...
and Rian Hughes
Rian Hughes
Rian Hughes is a British graphic designer, illustrator and comics artist, noted for his work on 2000AD, where he illustrated Robo-Hunter, Tales from Beyond Science, Really and Truly and Dan Dare, among others...
, but it also infused the whole attitude of the magazine, that some comics at least deserved be taken seriously. By identifying with the relatively exotic and beautifully produced volumes from Europe, Escape distanced itself from the action-adventure style of 2000AD
2000 AD (comic)
2000 AD is a weekly British science fiction-oriented comic. As a comics anthology it serialises a number of separate stories each issue and was first published by IPC Magazines in 1977, the first issue dated 26 February. IPC then shifted the title to its Fleetway comics subsidiary which was sold...
and the American superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
es of Marvel
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
and DC
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
and established itself not only as something new, but something important.
Pssst!
In 1981, having passed the Fast FictionFast Fiction
Fast Fiction was a market stall, magazine, mail order distributor and news sheet that played a key role in the history of British small press comics...
stall and distribution to Phil Elliott
Phil Elliott
Phil Elliott is a British comic book creator who was published in Escape Magazine. He was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s.-Career:...
and before starting Escape, Gravett was employed as promotions manager for Pssst!, an attempt to publish a British equivalent of the lavish French Bande Dessinée magazines. While disillusioned with the direction, or lack of, Pssst! was taking, his job brought him into contact with many more new and innovative cartoonists around the UK. To some of these, such as Glenn Dakin
Glenn Dakin
Glenn Dakin is a British cartoonist and author of children's books. He was a contributor to a number of British comics magazines including Escape and Deadline and was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s...
in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, he introduced the concept of self publishing small press comics and sending them out to like minded souls, thus widening the net for Fast Fiction
Fast Fiction
Fast Fiction was a market stall, magazine, mail order distributor and news sheet that played a key role in the history of British small press comics...
. Pssst! was forced to close after 10 issues leaving Gravett with a good idea of how not to run a magazine and a pool of talent.
The A5 years
The first seven issues of Escape were published between 1983 and 1985 as A5, or digest-sized, bookletsBook
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
of between 56 and 84 pages in length with black and white interiors and colour covers. The covers were wrap-around and, for the first five issues, hand-separated by Stanbury until full-process colour became viable. The smaller size was chosen to physically differentiate it from other comics around at the time with a nod to the photocopied small press comics that usually came in this format. It was also easy to put in your pocket. The first issue had a print run of 2000 and had a disproportionate reaction from the music and style media bringing in subscribers and advertising, notably the NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
and Time Out.
While the contents of each issue followed a pattern of running home grown talent alongside features on comics from around the world (with an emphasis on European BD and American "art comics") the roster of artists changed regularly with new creators being brought in every issue. Despite, or more likely, because of the wildly different styles and approaches embraced by the magazine Escape had a solid identity and loyal, if disparate, readership. As the landscape of the comics industry changed through the 1980s Escape was there to report it and try to influence where people should be looking.
The Titan years
Jacques Tardi
Jacques Tardi is a French comics artist, born 30 August 1946 in Valence, Drôme. He is often credited solely as Tardi.-Biography:After graduating from the École nationale des Beaux-Arts de Lyon and the École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs in Paris, he started writing comics in 1969, at the...
and Gary Panter
Gary Panter
Gary Panter is an illustrator, painter, designer and part-time musician. Panter's work is representative of the post-underground, new wave comics movement that began with the end of Arcade: The Comics Revue and the initiation of RAW, one of the second generation in American underground comix...
appear in issue eight and George Herriman
George Herriman
George Joseph Herriman was an American cartoonist, best known for his classic comic strip Krazy Kat.-Early life:...
's Krazy Kat
Krazy Kat
Krazy Kat is an American comic strip created by cartoonist George Herriman, published daily in newspapers between 1913 and 1944. It first appeared in the New York Evening Journal, whose owner, William Randolph Hearst, was a major booster for the strip throughout its run...
became a regular feature. The logo also changed to a bold new design with extra prongs for the E and A and the magazine took on a more professional feel. Of the twelve issues published in this format eight had covers by non-British illustrators as Escape moved away from its small press origins and fully embraced a more international, Art-based ideology.
A year later, and after protracted negotiations, Escape became the first periodical to be published by Titan Books
Titan Books
Titan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London, England's Bankside area. The Books Division has two main areas of publishing: film & TV tie-ins/cinema reference books; and graphic novels and comics reference/art titles. The...
, a graphic novel repackaging house responsible for collections of Judge Dredd
Judge Dredd
Judge Joseph Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is an American law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
and American titles such as Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing, a fictional character, is a plant elemental in the created by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson. He first appeared in House of Secrets #92 in a stand-alone horror story set in the early 20th century . The Swamp Thing then returned in his own series, set in the contemporary world and in...
. Gravett and Stanbury retained complete editorial control over the contents and direction of the magazine (despite some pressure from Titan). Despite a 60% sell through on predominantly London-based newsstands Titan were reluctant to push for wider national distribution and after two years and ten issues they parted company. A third, more ambitious, incarnation was planned but failed to find a backer and Escape folded in 1989.
Escape books
Alongside the magazine itself, Escape served as an imprint for self contained graphic novels. These included the following:- Alec by Eddie CampbellEddie CampbellEddie Campbell is a Scottish comics artist and cartoonist who now lives in Australia. Probably best known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell , Campbell is also the creator of the semi-autobiographical Alec stories collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and Bacchus , a wry adventure...
- Alec: Love and Beerglasses by Eddie CampbellEddie CampbellEddie Campbell is a Scottish comics artist and cartoonist who now lives in Australia. Probably best known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell , Campbell is also the creator of the semi-autobiographical Alec stories collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and Bacchus , a wry adventure...
- Alec: Doggie in the Window by Eddie CampbellEddie CampbellEddie Campbell is a Scottish comics artist and cartoonist who now lives in Australia. Probably best known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell , Campbell is also the creator of the semi-autobiographical Alec stories collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and Bacchus , a wry adventure...
- Doc Chaos 1 by Phil ElliottPhil ElliottPhil Elliott is a British comic book creator who was published in Escape Magazine. He was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s.-Career:...
, Lawrence GrayLawrence GrayLawrence Gray was an American actor of the 1920s and 1930s.During World War I he served in the U. S. Navy and gained a commission...
and Dave ThorpeDave ThorpeDave Thorpe is a British writer who is best known for his work on Captain Britain.-Biography:Thorpe's career began with Marvel UK's Captain Britain character in the early 1980s. He created many of the characters later used by Alan Moore... - London's Dark by James RobinsonJames Dale RobinsonJames Dale Robinson is a British writer of comic books and screenplays who is also known for his interest in vintage collectibles and memorabilia. His style is described as smart and energetic, built upon his vast knowledge of obscure continuity from the period known to fans and historians as the...
and Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson (artist)Paul Johnson is a British comic book artist.-Biography:Paul Johnson orbited the peripheries of the British comic book industry in the early Eighties, self-publishing and appearing in influential but short-lived publications such as Psst! and Escape Magazine...
(published through Titan BooksTitan BooksTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London, England's Bankside area. The Books Division has two main areas of publishing: film & TV tie-ins/cinema reference books; and graphic novels and comics reference/art titles. The...
) - The Night Of The Busted Nose by Phil Laskey
- Violent CasesViolent CasesViolent Cases is a short graphic novel written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Dave McKean. For both creators it was their first published graphic novel work in comics. Though drawn by McKean in shades of blue, brown, and grey, when it was first published by Escape Books in 1987, it was printed...
by Neil GaimanNeil GaimanNeil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
and Dave McKeanDave McKeanDavid McKean is an English illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician....
(published through Titan BooksTitan BooksTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London, England's Bankside area. The Books Division has two main areas of publishing: film & TV tie-ins/cinema reference books; and graphic novels and comics reference/art titles. The...
)
Two exhibition booklets were also produced under the Escape banner:
- Comic Iconoclasm for the "Swiped! Comics in Art" exhibition at the ICAInstitute of Contemporary ArtsThe Institute of Contemporary Arts is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. It is located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch...
in London. This was also printed in Escape issue eleven. - The Black Island for the "Britain in Bande Dessinées" exhibition at the French Institute in London.
Legacy
The influence of Escape on subsequent publications and movements is not in doubt, but somewhat hard to pin down.Publications such as Deadline
Deadline magazine
Deadline was a British comic magazine published between 1988 and 1995.Created by 2000 AD stalwarts Brett Ewins and Steve Dillon, Deadline featured a mix of comic strips and written articles targeted at older readers...
and Heartbreak Hotel shared the combination of comic strips by relative newcomers and lifestyle articles designed to reach a non-comics audience.
There are notable influences too on Fleetway
Fleetway
Fleetway, also known as Fleetway Publications and Fleetway Editions, was a UK publishing company which mainly produced comic magazines. For a time owned by IPC Media, they are now a division of Egmont Publishing....
's experiments with comics for more mature audiences. Later issues of Crisis featured Paul Grist
Paul Grist
Paul Grist is a British comic book creator, noted for his hard-boiled police series Kane and his unorthodox superhero series Jack Staff.-Biography:...
and reprinted European work while the short-lived Revolver employed Escape regulars Rian Hughes
Rian Hughes
Rian Hughes is a British graphic designer, illustrator and comics artist, noted for his work on 2000AD, where he illustrated Robo-Hunter, Tales from Beyond Science, Really and Truly and Dan Dare, among others...
and Julie Hollings amongst others.
While, with the exception of Eddie Campbell
Eddie Campbell
Eddie Campbell is a Scottish comics artist and cartoonist who now lives in Australia. Probably best known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell , Campbell is also the creator of the semi-autobiographical Alec stories collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and Bacchus , a wry adventure...
, the core group of artists associated with Escape did not necessarily go on to great riches. The magazine did publish early work by notable creators including Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
, Dave McKean
Dave McKean
David McKean is an English illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician....
, Paul Johnson
Paul Johnson (artist)
Paul Johnson is a British comic book artist.-Biography:Paul Johnson orbited the peripheries of the British comic book industry in the early Eighties, self-publishing and appearing in influential but short-lived publications such as Psst! and Escape Magazine...
, James Robinson
James Dale Robinson
James Dale Robinson is a British writer of comic books and screenplays who is also known for his interest in vintage collectibles and memorabilia. His style is described as smart and energetic, built upon his vast knowledge of obscure continuity from the period known to fans and historians as the...
and Rian Hughes
Rian Hughes
Rian Hughes is a British graphic designer, illustrator and comics artist, noted for his work on 2000AD, where he illustrated Robo-Hunter, Tales from Beyond Science, Really and Truly and Dan Dare, among others...
.
For the British small press scene
British small press comics
British small press comics, once known as stripzines, are comic books self-published by amateur cartoonists and comic book creators, usually in short print runs, in the UK. A "small press comic" is essentially a zine composed predominantly of comic strips. The term emerged in the early 1980s to...
Escape, along with Fast Fiction
Fast Fiction
Fast Fiction was a market stall, magazine, mail order distributor and news sheet that played a key role in the history of British small press comics...
, had been an important focal point both artistically and socially. This continued into the 1990s with the magazine holding a pivotal place in the history of the scene.
International distribution brought Escape artists American exposure, most notably to the cartoonists informally known as the Highwater Books
Highwater Books
Highwater Books was a small but influential independent comic book publisher based in Somerville, Massachusetts, noted for its arty editorial direction and production values under publisher Tom Devlin...
scene. Highwater publisher Tom Devlin
Tom Devlin
James Thomas S. "Tom" Devlin was a Scottish professional footballer who made 17 appearances in the Football League playing for Birmingham, Preston North End, Swindon Town, Walsall and Oldham Athletic. He played as an inside forward.Devlin was born in Bellshill, North Lanarkshire...
and cartoonist Tom Hart
Tom Hart (comics)
Tom Hart is an American comics creator best known for his Hutch Owen series of comics.-Career:Tom Hart began making mini-comics while living in Seattle in the early 1990s...
both cite Escape, and Glenn Dakin
Glenn Dakin
Glenn Dakin is a British cartoonist and author of children's books. He was a contributor to a number of British comics magazines including Escape and Deadline and was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s...
in particular, as influential in forming their attitudes towards comic art. Canadian cartoonist Seth
Seth (cartoonist)
Seth is the pen name of Gregory Gallant , a Canadian comic book artist and writer. He is best known for comics such as Palookaville.Born in Clinton, Ontario, Seth attended the Ontario College of Art in Toronto...
has recently written about the influence Chris Reynolds
Chris Reynolds
Chris Reynolds is a Welsh DJ.-Career:Reynolds began his career as a technical operator at 103.2 & 97.4 Red Dragon, later becoming a Programming Assistant.In July 2005 he left the station and joined 96.4 The Wave to present overnights....
had on him.
It should, however, be remembered that Escape was part of a wider and at the time quite vibrant environment in British comics and that artists did move freely from publication to publication. While the magazine did carve out an important niche and break new ground, the work of Knockabout and Warrior
Warrior
A warrior is a person skilled in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based society that recognizes a separate warrior class.-Warrior classes in tribal culture:...
and aspects of the Harrier Comics
Harrier Comics
Harrier Comics was a British comic book publisher active in the mid-to-late 1980s. Harrier was notable for putting out black-and-white comics in a mold more similar to American comics than typical British fare...
line should be taken into account.
The Escape artists
The core group of artists featured in Escape came mainly from the British small pressBritish small press comics
British small press comics, once known as stripzines, are comic books self-published by amateur cartoonists and comic book creators, usually in short print runs, in the UK. A "small press comic" is essentially a zine composed predominantly of comic strips. The term emerged in the early 1980s to...
and Underground comics scenes of the late 70's and early 80's.
- John Bagnall
- Eddie CampbellEddie CampbellEddie Campbell is a Scottish comics artist and cartoonist who now lives in Australia. Probably best known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell , Campbell is also the creator of the semi-autobiographical Alec stories collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and Bacchus , a wry adventure...
- Glenn DakinGlenn DakinGlenn Dakin is a British cartoonist and author of children's books. He was a contributor to a number of British comics magazines including Escape and Deadline and was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s...
- Phil ElliottPhil ElliottPhil Elliott is a British comic book creator who was published in Escape Magazine. He was part of the British small press comics scene in the 1980s.-Career:...
- Hunt EmersonHunt EmersonHunt Emerson is a cartoonist living and working in Birmingham, England. He was closely involved with the Birmingham Arts Lab of the mid-to-late 1970s, and with the British underground comics scene of the 1970s and 1980s...
- Paul GristPaul GristPaul Grist is a British comic book creator, noted for his hard-boiled police series Kane and his unorthodox superhero series Jack Staff.-Biography:...
- Myra Hancock
- Rian HughesRian HughesRian Hughes is a British graphic designer, illustrator and comics artist, noted for his work on 2000AD, where he illustrated Robo-Hunter, Tales from Beyond Science, Really and Truly and Dan Dare, among others...
- Shaky Kane
- Bob LynchBob LynchBob Lynch is a British small press comics artist who produced minicomics during the 1980s and 1990s. His self-published work produced through Bob Comics includes the Sav Sadness stories and Behold The Hamster...
- Woodrow PhoenixWoodrow PhoenixWoodrow Phoenix is a British comics artist, writer, editorial illustrator, graphic designer, font designer and author of children's books.He was a contributor to a number of British comics magazines including Escape, Blaaam! and Blast! and was part of the British small press comics scene in the...
(aka Trevs Phoenix) - Ed PinsentEd PinsentEd Pinsent is a British cartoonist, artist and writer born 1960 in Liverpool.-Biography:Pinsent has written and drawn his own small press comics since 1982, including characters such as Primitif, Henrietta and Windy Wilberforce...
- WarrenWarren PleeceWarren Pleece is a British comics artist. He is best known for his work at the DC Comics imprint Vertigo.-Biography:With his brother Gary Pleece, he wrote and drew four issues of a self published comics magazine called Velocity between 1987 and 1989...
and Gary Pleece - Chris ReynoldsChris ReynoldsChris Reynolds is a Welsh DJ.-Career:Reynolds began his career as a technical operator at 103.2 & 97.4 Red Dragon, later becoming a Programming Assistant.In July 2005 he left the station and joined 96.4 The Wave to present overnights....
- Savage PencilSavage PencilSavage Pencil is a comics artist, and is the nom de plume of English music journalist Edwin Pouncey.-Biography:...
- Carol Swain
Return
In a late 2009 interview Gravett described his plans for 2010 which involve launching Escape Books followed, eventually, by a return of the magazine:External links
- Long interview with Dylan Horrocks - reprinted from The Comics Journal issue 244. His time with the Escape "gang" is about a third of the way down.
- Kingly Books - Publishers of recent works by Escape artists Ed PinsentEd PinsentEd Pinsent is a British cartoonist, artist and writer born 1960 in Liverpool.-Biography:Pinsent has written and drawn his own small press comics since 1982, including characters such as Primitif, Henrietta and Windy Wilberforce...
, John Bagnall and Chris ReynoldsChris ReynoldsChris Reynolds is a Welsh DJ.-Career:Reynolds began his career as a technical operator at 103.2 & 97.4 Red Dragon, later becoming a Programming Assistant.In July 2005 he left the station and joined 96.4 The Wave to present overnights.... - Interview with John Bagnall