Thomas Williams (British cartoonist)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Watson Williams (October 17, 1940 – May 8, 2002), was an English
cartoonist
.
Born in Stockton-on-Tees
, Tom Williams attended art college in Newcastle in the early 1960s. He became an animator for leading British animation studio Halas & Batchelor shortly after leaving college.
In the early 1970s he left the world of cartoon animation & began illustrating in the hugely popular British comics published by Fleetway
.
Amongst the titles he illustrated were Shiver and Shake
, Whizzer and Chips
, Cor!!
and Monster Fun
where he drew one of his most celebrated characters Creature Teacher.
Towards the end of the Seventies Williams moved to IPC rivals, D.C. Thomson
where he worked on all the famous titles including of course The Beano
& The Dandy
.
An extremely versatile & talented cartoonist he was able to copy the styles of many of the regular artists & produce strips for publications like the Beano Annual & the fledgling mini comic books that were emerging at the time.
He was heavily involved in the launch of Nutty
where he drew the Peter Pest & Stevie Starr strips.
In a long & varied career he also produced cartoon strips for the British Girl Guide Magazine, many of the UK local & tabloid newspapers & football programmes. He was also often commissioned to produce cartoons for advertising purposes.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
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...
.
Born in Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in north east England. It is the major settlement in the unitary authority and borough of Stockton-on-Tees. For ceremonial purposes, the borough is split between County Durham and North Yorkshire as it also incorporates a number of smaller towns including...
, Tom Williams attended art college in Newcastle in the early 1960s. He became an animator for leading British animation studio Halas & Batchelor shortly after leaving college.
In the early 1970s he left the world of cartoon animation & began illustrating in the hugely popular British comics published by 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....
.
Amongst the titles he illustrated were Shiver and Shake
Shiver and Shake
Shiver and Shake was a British comic published every Monday by IPC Magazines Ltd. It ran from 10 March 1973 to 5 October 1974, when it merged with Whoopee!. As in the tradition of British comics many names of strips were a play on popular television programmes and films of the time...
, Whizzer and Chips
Whizzer and Chips
Whizzer and Chips was a British comic magazine that ran from 18 October 1969 to 27 October 1990, when it merged with the comic Buster. As with most comics of the time, Whizzer and Chips was dated one week ahead....
, Cor!!
Cor!!
Cor!!, a British comic book Was launched in June 1970 by IPC , their sixth new comic in just over a year. Cor!! was edited by Bob Paynter....
and Monster Fun
Monster Fun
Monster Fun was a British comic for young children . It ran for 72 issues from 14 June 1975 to 30 October 1976, when it merged with Buster to form Buster and Monster Fun. Its strips included Mummy's Boy and X-Ray Specs. Artists included Robert Nixon, Tom Williams and Trevor Metcalfe...
where he drew one of his most celebrated characters Creature Teacher.
Towards the end of the Seventies Williams moved to IPC rivals, D.C. Thomson
D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd
D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, is a publishing company based in Dundee, Scotland, best known for producing The Dundee Courier, The Evening Telegraph, The Sunday Post, Oor Wullie, The Broons, The Beano, The Dandy and Commando comics...
where he worked on all the famous titles including of course The Beano
The Beano
The Beano is a British children's comic, published by D.C. Thomson & Co and is arguably their most successful.The comic first appeared on 30 July 1938, and was published weekly. During the Second World War,The Beano and The Dandy were published on alternating weeks because of paper and ink...
& The Dandy
The Dandy
The Dandy is a long running children's comic published in the United Kingdom by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd. The first issue was printed in 1937 and it is the world's third longest running comic, after Detective Comics and Il Giornalino...
.
An extremely versatile & talented cartoonist he was able to copy the styles of many of the regular artists & produce strips for publications like the Beano Annual & the fledgling mini comic books that were emerging at the time.
He was heavily involved in the launch of Nutty
Nutty
Nutty was a British comic that ran for 292 issues from 16 February 1980 to 14 September 1985, when it merged with The Dandy. Published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, Nutty was an attempt to create a more lively and chaotic comic compared to many on sale at the time. Its strips included:* Bananaman as...
where he drew the Peter Pest & Stevie Starr strips.
In a long & varied career he also produced cartoon strips for the British Girl Guide Magazine, many of the UK local & tabloid newspapers & football programmes. He was also often commissioned to produce cartoons for advertising purposes.