Terry THOMAS

Royston Warner Wilson was one of the most important British comic artists during the so-called Golden Age, the 1930s. Born in Kettering, Northamptonshire, he attended the Norwich School of Art. In a pub in Norwich, he luckily made the acquaintance of Don Newhouse and became the assistant on this artist's comics for the Amalgamated Press, such as 'Monk and Jaff', 'Cuthbert the Carpenter' and 'Tickle and Tootle'. Wilson's specialty became animal comics. Some of his finest and funniest cartoon animals are 'George the Jolly Gee Gee' and 'Chimpo's Circus'. During the 1930s, Wilson was the leading artist for AP humour comics like Butterfly, Funny Wonder, Merry & Bright, Crackers, Jingles, Sparkler, Jolly and Golden. However, Wilson was only allowed to sign 'Chimpo's Circus' with his own name, the comic that appeared on the front page of Happy Days from 1938. During this same decade Wilson also met Dutch comics legend Marten Toonder who was still a mostly unknown artist at the time. He gave Toonder some tips on how to draw in a more dynamic style, which had a profound impact on his illustration work. During World War II, he was with the Home Guard, and he captured his experiences in the comic strip 'Private Muggins', that was published in Wonder. In the 1940s his work continued to appear in titles like Radio Fun ('Stymie and his Magic Wishbone') and Tip Top ('Happy Andy').