WANTED: Your 2000AD / UK comic anecdotes for charity book!

Stegron · 08 February, 2014, 06:33:57 PM

Hi there - I'm a long-time lurker to these boards (and I mean loooong-time), but very infrequent poster. I've come out of hiding for a good cause...

Basically, I need the help of the good people of the 2000AD forums. Me and a friend are co-authoring a book called 'Scarred For Life'. It'll probably be self-published, although we have a few small publishers interested, and all proceeds will go to charity. As a further selling point, we'll be contacting lots of relevant celebrities from the worlds of TV, film, comics, music and the like to ask: what scared them as kids?

The idea sprang from a conversation in work a few years ago - one of those 'Remember that TV series / film / sweets / song / comic from when we were kids?' conversations. We realised that pretty much everything we'd been waxing nostalgic about was actually absolutely terrifying and / or shocking, and would never be allowed now. The conversation then moved onto the seemingly ever-present threat of nuclear war which seemed to loom over our young heads in the 80s, until my mate said, 'This'd make a great book!'. And it's only taken us three years to start writing... *ahem*

And, yes, we know Charlie Brooker made a TV series along these lines. It actually very nearly derailed our plans completely until we realised his focus was narrowed entirely towards scary TV programs. Our book will talk about a huge range of pop culture subjects that shaped a generation or two:

TV: Public information films, scary kids TV, creepy title sequences, the gritty dramas of the 70s and 80s such as Boys From The Blackstuff and the like, as well as those squalid 70s sitcoms like On The Buses and Love Thy Neighbour.
FILM: The video nasty scare and the rise of VHS, Red Triangle Films on Channel 4, the iconic BBC2 late-night horror double bills, etc.
FOOD AND DRINK: Yep, food and drink! Remember Horror Bags crisps? Heinz Haunted House spaghetti shapes? Dracula ice lollies? There seemed to be an awful lot of horror-themed stuff aimed at kids back then...
SOCIAL AND POLITICAL: Rabies. AIDS. Heroin. Glue-sniffing. And the threat of nuclear armageddon.

...and lots more besides (we're looking at around 500 - 600 pages). Now, we need your help! There'll be a fairly sizeable section on 70s and 80s comics. We'll be talking about Action, 2000AD, Misty, Scream!, Warrior and Tomb Of Dracula amongst others.

We'd like your anecdotes and memories about 2000AD - anything you like. Memories of buying it as a kid, anything that shocked or scared you about the stories, any scenes that stuck in your mind. Anything. The shorter the better, as we'd like to include as many as possible (and we only want to edit your contributions as a last resort!)

Actually, if you have any memories about Action or any other comics, that'd be incredibly helpful too. Don't worry about a deadline, we're still months away from completing the first draft.

Many, many thanks in advance.

SmallBlueThing · 08 February, 2014, 06:40:04 PM

Brilliant idea! Best of luck with this, and I will start putting together a little thing immediately.

SBT

Stegron · 08 February, 2014, 06:42:52 PM

Fantastic!

Thanks, SBT!

Mike Carroll · 08 February, 2014, 06:45:40 PM

Excellent idea! I'll do my best to come up with something interesting!

-- Mike

Stegron · 08 February, 2014, 07:13:05 PM

Cheers, Mike, much appreciated!

You're the first 2000AD writer we'll have had a contribution from

Emp · 09 February, 2014, 01:44:07 AM

The theme of the original Tomorrow People freaked me out as a kid. THREADS didn't help my sleep either.

Given time i'll think of a few more.

O Lucky Stevie! · 09 February, 2014, 06:43:21 AM

Gordon & Gotch distributed the UK weeklies to the colonies Down Under. Are our Antipodean terrors eligible for inclusion or, just like those cover-mounted free gifts of Hubba Bubba, will this be "unavailable to overseas readers?"

Heath C Ackley · 09 February, 2014, 10:08:57 AM

So Stegron, in what form would you like the reminiscences of a befuddled fool such as I? In a post on this thread, a pm or via the old email?

Stegron · 09 February, 2014, 01:32:11 PM

Quote from: ZippoCreed on 09 February, 2014, 10:08:57 AM
So Stegron, in what form would you like the reminiscences of a befuddled fool such as I? In a post on this thread, a pm or via the old email?

A thread post right here will do me, Zippo! Plus, it might spark some otherwise-buried memories in other forum members!

Dash Decent · 10 February, 2014, 11:27:36 AM

Quote from: O Lucky Stevie! on 09 February, 2014, 06:43:21 AM
Gordon & Gotch distributed the UK weeklies to the colonies Down Under. Are our Antipodean terrors eligible for inclusion or, just like those cover-mounted free gifts of Hubba Bubba, will this be "unavailable to overseas readers?"

The unavailable gifts were our terrors, Stevie! I still have nightmares about issue 1 of Nutty and the missing packet of Space Dust. <sobs uncontrollably>

Heath C Ackley · 10 February, 2014, 07:16:46 PM

It's strange looking back at the things that, as a child, had us cowering behind the sofa. With time and maturity, they lose their power to terrify us in that unique way where we are as excited as we are frightened. And yet there's something about a puppet that still makes me feel...

Well, on the tv side I can remember being totally freaked out by The Singing Ringing Tree. It was an East German production and as creepy as hell. It was as if Cocteau had made The Never-Ending Story while high on crack and LSD!
There's was Doctor Who of course. (I can recall freezing in terror watching Planet Of The Spiders).
Captain Black from Captain Scarlet - cool and creepy.
My Mother once said that I could watch any amount of monsters and aliens as a child but there was one show that had me running from the room;
Ken Dodd' s Diddy Men.
Pure Evil.

Bat King · 11 February, 2014, 09:15:45 PM

TV: I remember visiting family & having to miss an episode of Dr Who because my cousin (3 months older than me) was scared of it. That scarred me, missing an episode due to someone else's terrors!!!

2000ADFlesh (book 1) really engaged with me, I loved feeling a bit scared for Earl Reagan & young Joe. Old One-Eye didn't scare me but the huge spiders under the machines did!

Film There is a film that left a huge mark but I haven't seen it as an adult & can't recall the title... (anyone giving me the title will be popular) an alien being is on a train and takes the appearance of people, killing them. I was reminded of the plot by Doomlord when I read Eagle... So it was well before the Eagle reboot that I saw it... Creepy! I was convinced that if I slept with the cover over my head no such beastie could ever harm me.

I run a blog and I'm happy to publicise this project for you if you have a website, FB Page, etc. let me know.

Greg M. · 11 February, 2014, 09:44:12 PM

Quote from: Bat King on 11 February, 2014, 09:15:45 PM
Film There is a film that left a huge mark but I haven't seen it as an adult & can't recall the title... (anyone giving me the title will be popular) an alien being is on a train and takes the appearance of people, killing them.

Sounds like Horror Express.

Bat King · 12 February, 2014, 12:46:11 AM

That is it!!! Woop!

That film really scared me... no idea how old I was. Trying to remember which house I lived in but can't. My Dad was in RAF if I remember 'I lived THERE when THIS happened I can hone in on an age a bit better.

I think 1977 is a possibility, left alone in the house with 12 year old brother when I was 10... very possible... No way my Mum woulda let me watch it, Dad maybe... Dunno. But it was SCARY!

Daveycandlish · 12 February, 2014, 08:44:52 AM

Back in the 70's the BBC used to run late night horror films and once my Dad let me stay up to watch The Beast With Five Fingers (hokey B&W film about a disembodied hand). I was lying on the floor, totally engrossed in the film when he ran his fingers up my calf. My mother was not too impressed by being woken up by my scream!