The creator of Beano’s Bash Street Kids has passed away at the age of 89. The editor of the children’s comic Beano referred to David Sutherland as “the single most influential illustrator in Beano history.”
Mr. Sutherland, a native of Invergordon in the Highlands, began illustrating the Bash Street Kids in 1962 after spending more than 60 years with Beano.
In the New Year’s Honours list, he received an OBE for services to illustration.
Mr. Sutherland’s final pictures, done at the end of last year, will be featured in the upcoming issue of the comic.
Mike Stirling, creative director of Beano Studio, stated on BBC Scotland’s The Nine that the illustrator was hired after entering a competition held by DC Thomson, the comic’s Dundee-based publisher.
Mr. Stirling stated,
“He really placed third in the competition, but he has become our most beloved artist ever.”
“And in my opinion, one of Scotland’s best creators overall, not just in terms of comics.”
Between 1970 and 1998, he worked on some of the most popular Beano strips, including almost a thousand Dennis The Menace stories.
But it was with the Bash Street Kids, whom he drew weekly for sixty years, that he established his legacy.
When the V&A design museum in Dundee first opened, one of his comic strips was one of the initial exhibits.
Mr. Stirling stated,
“That was going directly into high culture, and David deserved it.”
Beano’s official statement announcing Mr. Sutherland’s death on Thursday hailed the artist for “so many lols, chuckles, grins, and guffaws throughout the years.”
Margaret, his wife, stated that her husband “just stopped writing last month when he became ill.”
“Drawing was his life; it caused us to forget his age.” We never realized that he was getting older,” she continued.
The editors remained satisfied with his work as he continued to produce it.
Mr. Sutherland stated, following the announcement of his OBE in December,
“When I joined the DC Thomson painting competition more than six decades ago, I had no idea where it would go.”
“I’ve been so fortunate to be able to perform what I love for a job and to collaborate with so many amazing writers whose words have brought these characters to life.”
Mr. Sutherland’s contribution to the comic and British comic history, according to editor John Anderson, can never be surpassed.
“No one will ever duplicate what David accomplished over a period of 60 years. He was unique and an authentic legend. “An era has ended,” he stated.
David, who began his career in 1959 and has been illustrating The Bash Street Kids since 1962, is the most influential illustrator in Beano history.
Nigel Parkinson, the current illustrator for Dennis and Gnasher, stated,
“The nation and its children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren have enjoyed David Sutherland’s joyful, exuberant, bursting-with-life, and humorous paintings in Beano practically every week for the past six decades. He has moved the hearts, amused the wits, and delighted the eyes of millions.”
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