The DFC
Encyclopedia
The DFC was a weekly British children's anthology comic
, published by David Fickling Books
(an imprint of Random House
). The first issue was published at the end of May 2008
. The title stood for David Fickling Comic.It is set to restart under the name of The Phoenix on 7th January 2012
Unlike the vast majority of comics in the current market, The DFC was funded entirely by subscriptions, without any commercial advertising. It was fully coloured on all 36 pages.
announced the comic two and a half years before the launch and at the time was quoted as saying, "I'm not really interested in reviving comics, I'm much more interested in restoring them to where they should be."
Some stories were previewed in, and formed the main part of, The Guardian
Comic. The comic, part of the Saturday Guardian's 'family' section, premiered strips on a rotating basis that were later featured in the DFC itself.
It folded with issue 43, when Random House withdrew financial backing.
At the 2009 Frankfurt Book Fair
, David Fickling Books announced they would be releasing the collected editions
of Spider Moon, Good Dog, Bad Dog and Mezolith in spring 2010. Follow-up titles in winter 2010 will be Mo-Bot High, Monkey Nuts and Vern and Lettuce. If the series continues, the 2011 list has now been announced as starting with Baggage by the Etherington brothers. This is original content as distinct from the other books which are all reprints.
to webcomic
s to manga
, as well as people from outside the field, including authors, concept art
ists and illustrators.
The big name in the initial line-up was novelist Phillip Pullman. Pullman's story, The Adventures of John Blake, was illustrated by John Aggs, who won the UK and Ireland Rising Stars of Manga
and writes and draws another DFC strip, Robot Girl and another with his mother, Patricia.
Other creators included Nick Abadzis
who has worked at Marvel
, DC
and 2000 AD
and recently won awards for his graphic novel Laika
. International comics writer Tony Lee
, best known for his Doctor Who
comics for IDW
teamed up with Hope Falls and The Gloom
collaborator Dan Boultwood to create the weekly strip The Prince Of Baghdad. Another graphic novelist was Simone Lia
, known for her previous project Fluffy. With them were writers and artists who are known from the small press
to webcomic
arena, like Garen Ewing
and Neill Cameron
. From outside the comics field there were Ben Haggarty (an oral storyteller
), Adam Brockbank (concept art
ist), Paul Stewart
(children's author), Dave Morris
(game designer) and Chris Riddell
(illustrator).
Strips that were announced (or those that ran initially in The Guardian, and were scheduled to appear in the DFC) include:
.co.uk, as a month's subscription.
Comics anthology
Comics anthologies collect works in the medium of comics that are too short for standalone publication.- U.S. :- UK :British comics have a long tradition publishing comics anthologies, often weekly...
, published by David Fickling Books
David Fickling Books
David Fickling Books is an imprint of Random House which has published books by authors including Philip Pullman, Mark Haddon, John Boyne, Nick Ward and Linda Newbery.-List of Books Published:-References:...
(an imprint of Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
). The first issue was published at the end of May 2008
2008 in comics
-January:*January 9: Teen Titans: The Lost Annual, delayed since 2003, is published.*January 23: Hellblazer #240, marking the 20th anniversary of the series, is released.-February:...
. The title stood for David Fickling Comic.It is set to restart under the name of The Phoenix on 7th January 2012
Unlike the vast majority of comics in the current market, The DFC was funded entirely by subscriptions, without any commercial advertising. It was fully coloured on all 36 pages.
Publication history
David FicklingDavid Fickling
David Fickling is an English children's book editor and publisher based in Oxford. Fickling runs David Fickling Books, an imprint of Random House, which has published books by authors including Philip Pullman, Mark Haddon, John Boyne and Linda Newbery....
announced the comic two and a half years before the launch and at the time was quoted as saying, "I'm not really interested in reviving comics, I'm much more interested in restoring them to where they should be."
Some stories were previewed in, and formed the main part of, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
Comic. The comic, part of the Saturday Guardian's 'family' section, premiered strips on a rotating basis that were later featured in the DFC itself.
It folded with issue 43, when Random House withdrew financial backing.
At the 2009 Frankfurt Book Fair
Frankfurt Book Fair
The Frankfurt Book Fair is the world's largest trade fair for books, based on the number of publishing companies represented. As to the number of visitors, the Turin Book Fair attracts about as many visitors, viz. some 300,000....
, David Fickling Books announced they would be releasing the collected editions
Trade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
of Spider Moon, Good Dog, Bad Dog and Mezolith in spring 2010. Follow-up titles in winter 2010 will be Mo-Bot High, Monkey Nuts and Vern and Lettuce. If the series continues, the 2011 list has now been announced as starting with Baggage by the Etherington brothers. This is original content as distinct from the other books which are all reprints.
Creators
The DFC drew its creators from across the British comics field, from mainstream to 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...
to webcomic
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
s to manga
Original English-language manga
Original English-language manga or OEL manga is the term commonly used to describe comic books or graphic novels in the "international manga" genre of comics whose language of original publication is English...
, as well as people from outside the field, including authors, concept art
Concept art
Concept art is a form of illustration where the main goal is to convey a visual representation of a design, idea, and/or mood for use in films, video games, animation, or comic books before it is put into the final product. Concept art is also referred to as visual development and/or concept design...
ists and illustrators.
The big name in the initial line-up was novelist Phillip Pullman. Pullman's story, The Adventures of John Blake, was illustrated by John Aggs, who won the UK and Ireland Rising Stars of Manga
Rising Stars of Manga
Rising Stars of Manga was an English-language comic anthology published by TOKYOPOP from 2002 to 2008, and a contest held by the same company. It was originally semi-annual, but switched to annual beginning with the 6th volume....
and writes and draws another DFC strip, Robot Girl and another with his mother, Patricia.
Other creators included Nick Abadzis
Nick Abadzis
Nick Abadzis is a British cartoonist, comic book writer, and graphic novelist. He currently lives in New York, having moved from his previous home in London in 2010.-Early life:...
who has worked at 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...
, 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 2000 AD
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 recently won awards for his graphic novel Laika
Laika (comic)
Laika is a graphic novel by Nick Abadzis that gives a fictionalized account of the life and death of the eponymous dog, the first living creature launched into outer space....
. International comics writer Tony Lee
Tony Lee
Tony Lee is a British comics writer, screenwriter, audio playwright and novelist.-Early life:Lee was born in Hayes, Middlesex in England...
, best known for his Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
comics for IDW
IDW
IDW may refer to:* IDW Publishing , a U.S. comic book publisher* Inverse distance weighting, a mathematical method for surface fitting* Investigative Data Warehouse, an FBI surveillance database...
teamed up with Hope Falls and The Gloom
The Gloom
The Gloom is a comic book by writer Tony Lee and artist Dan Boutlwood, originally released through the publisher APC. It was created as a 5-issue mini-series, but despite some critical attention the title was canceled before it was finished due to the publisher going out of business.In 2020 it was...
collaborator Dan Boultwood to create the weekly strip The Prince Of Baghdad. Another graphic novelist was Simone Lia
Simone Lia
Simone Lia is an English cartoonist and author.She has created a number of children's books including Billy Bean's Dream, Follow the Line and Little Giant; and comics such as Golden Lions and Monkey and Spoon....
, known for her previous project Fluffy. With them were writers and artists who are known from the small press
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...
to webcomic
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
arena, like Garen Ewing
Garen Ewing
Garen Ewing is an illustrator, designer and most notably a comic creator, being the writer and illustrator of The Adventures of Julius Chancer - The Rainbow Orchid....
and Neill Cameron
Neill Cameron
-Biography:Cameron started out in British small press comics, most notably drawing Bulldog Empire, which also appeared in the small press section of Judge Dredd Megazine and was reprinted in the first volume of ILYA's Mammoth Book of Best New Manga....
. From outside the comics field there were Ben Haggarty (an oral storyteller
Storytelling
Storytelling is the conveying of events in words, images and sounds, often by improvisation or embellishment. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and in order to instill moral values...
), Adam Brockbank (concept art
Concept art
Concept art is a form of illustration where the main goal is to convey a visual representation of a design, idea, and/or mood for use in films, video games, animation, or comic books before it is put into the final product. Concept art is also referred to as visual development and/or concept design...
ist), Paul Stewart
Paul Stewart (writer)
Paul Stewart is a writer of children's books, best known for the bestselling The Edge Chronicles, the Free Lance novels and the Far Flung Adventures series which are written in collaboration with the illustrator Chris Riddell...
(children's author), Dave Morris
Dave Morris
Dave Morris is a British author of gamebooks, novels and comics and a designer of computer games and role-playing games.-Biography:Dave Morris is a graduate of Magdalen College, Oxford where he read Physics from 1976-79....
(game designer) and Chris Riddell
Chris Riddell
Chris Riddell is a British illustrator and occasional writer of children's literature, and a political cartoonist for The Observer. He has won the Kate Greenaway Medal twice and the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize seven times....
(illustrator).
Titles
Strips appearing in the DFC included:- The Adventures of John Blake (by Phillip Pullman and John Aggs)
- Mezolith (by Ben Haggarty and Adam Brockbank)
- Mirabili (by Dave MorrisDave MorrisDave Morris is a British author of gamebooks, novels and comics and a designer of computer games and role-playing games.-Biography:Dave Morris is a graduate of Magdalen College, Oxford where he read Physics from 1976-79....
and Leo Hartas) - Super Animal Adventure Squad (by James Turner)
- The Boss (by John Aggs and Patricia Aggs)
- Monkey Nuts (by The Etherington BrothersThe Etherington BrothersRobin and Lawrence Etherington are British comics creators who work together as The Etherington Brothers, Robin writing and Lorenzo illustrating...
) - Vern & Lettuce (by Sarah McIntyre)
- The Spider Moon (by Kate Brown)
- Mo-Bot High (by Neill CameronNeill Cameron-Biography:Cameron started out in British small press comics, most notably drawing Bulldog Empire, which also appeared in the small press section of Judge Dredd Megazine and was reprinted in the first volume of ILYA's Mammoth Book of Best New Manga....
) - Good Dog, Bad Dog (by Dave Shelton)
- Robot Girl (by John Aggs)
- That's a Horse of a Different Colour(by 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...
) - Sausage and Carrots (by Simone LiaSimone LiaSimone Lia is an English cartoonist and author.She has created a number of children's books including Billy Bean's Dream, Follow the Line and Little Giant; and comics such as Golden Lions and Monkey and Spoon....
) - Crab Lane Crew(by Jim Medway)
- Violet (by Emma VieceliEmma VieceliEmma Vieceli is a professional British comics artist of Italian-English heritage. She is currently a resident of a small village in Cambridgeshire, England.-Biography:...
) - Little Cutie (by Gary NorthfieldGary NorthfieldGary Northfield is a British comic artist and writer, most famous for his comic character, Derek the Sheep published in DC Thomson's The Beano and BeanoMAXGary graduated from Harrow College University of Westminster with a degree in Illustration in 1992...
) - Bodkin and the Bear (by Wilbur DawbarnWilbur DawbarnWilbur Dawbarn is a British comics artist and cartoonist based in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. He has drawn cartoons for publications such as Punch, The Times, Private Eye, The Spectator, and comic strips, including Mr. Meecher, the Uncool Teacher, and Rocky's Horror Show for The Dandy, and...
) - The Prince Of Baghdad (by Tony LeeTony LeeTony Lee is a British comics writer, screenwriter, audio playwright and novelist.-Early life:Lee was born in Hayes, Middlesex in England...
) - Fish-head Steve(by Jamie SmartJamie SmartJamie Smart is a British comic artist and writer, most famous for his ten-issue comic series, Bear. He has also had his comic My Own Genie published in the popular children's magazine The Dandy....
) - Donny Digits(by 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...
) - Frontier (by Jason Cobley and Andrew WildmanAndrew WildmanAndrew Wildman is a British artist, best known for his work in comics, mainly for Marvel Comics. Wildman cut his teeth on Marvel UK's titles in the late 1980s, including Galaxy Rangers, Thundercats, The Real Ghostbusters and, perhaps most notably, Transformers...
)
Strips that were announced (or those that ran initially in The Guardian, and were scheduled to appear in the DFC) include:
- Charlie Jefferson and the Tomb of Nazaleod (by Garen EwingGaren EwingGaren Ewing is an illustrator, designer and most notably a comic creator, being the writer and illustrator of The Adventures of Julius Chancer - The Rainbow Orchid....
) - Cora's Breakfast (by Nick AbadzisNick AbadzisNick Abadzis is a British cartoonist, comic book writer, and graphic novelist. He currently lives in New York, having moved from his previous home in London in 2010.-Early life:...
) - The Ridiculous Adventures of Toxic Toad and Sheep Dip
- Dead Pets' Society (by Faz Choudhury)
Availability
Since the announcement by Random House that the DFC was to close, subscriptions are no longer available. The DFC was available from AmazonAmazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
.co.uk, as a month's subscription.