Judy & Tracy 19 January 1985, #1306

Cover artist: Norman Lee. Judy is on the left. Tracy and her budgie Elton are on the right.

• Big ‘n’ Bertha – cartoon
• Sandra of the Secret Ballet (artist Paddy Brennan) – first episode of a reprint
• Little Amy
• Georgie and the Dragon (artist Robert MacGillivray)
• Junior Nanny (artist Oliver Passingham) – first episode of a return appearance
• Twin Trouble (artist Paddy Brennan) – first episode
• Microgirl (artist Hugh Thornton-Jones) – first episode of a sequel
• Hard Times for Helen (artist Bert Hill)
• Debbie at the School for Horses (artist Oliver Passingham)
• Find the Hidden Headphones Competition
• Harvey – Go Home!

Here’s another dip into DCT. This time we are going to take a look at the issue where Tracy merged with Judy on 19 January 1985. Judy is also celebrating her 25^th Jubilee, which makes the issue even more significant. Her competition is being run because of the Jubilee, not because of the merger. It is not surprising that Judy is also looking back on her past. This week she begins to repeat one of her very first stories, “Sandra of the Secret Ballet”. She also brings back another established Judy favourite: “Junior Nanny”.

The merger is unusual in that the merger issue came out the same week Tracy published her final issue. Well, at least Tracy readers didn’t need to wait a week to see their stories continue in the merger. Or rather, more than a week, considering that Tracy came out on Saturday and Judy on Thursday. Perhaps it was done out of consideration to the readers.

However, one odd and annoying thing about the last issue of Tracy is that she began a new story in it, “Little Amy”. Why the first episode of Amy couldn’t wait until the merger issue so all readers could read the serial in its entirety is something I don’t understand.

Other Tracy stories that came over were: “Harvey – Go Home!”, where a lost dog has adventures while trying to find his owner; “Georgie and the Dragon” a humour story about a baby dragon; and “Microgirl”, which is a sequel to an earlier Tracy story about an evil scientist who can shrink people. Tracy’s budgie, Elton, also came over, and he appeared on Judy’s covers for quite some time.

Judy also begins a completely new story, “Twin Trouble”. The trouble is about an accident girl who causes trouble for her twin sister because she blames the twin for the accident – quite wrongly, of course. Judy’s other stories are “Hard Times for Helen” and “Debbie at the School for Horses”. In the former, Helen Shaw suffers not only from the fallout of an over-busy mother but also from bully teachers who constantly compare her unfairly with the mother and make unjust accusations of bad behaviour against her. In the latter, Debbie Marsh is on a steep learning curve on how to look after horses at a riding school.

Tammy Annual 1985

• The Button Box (artist Mario Capaldi)
• Bessie Bunter
• Animal Magic
• The Town Crier – Strange Story (artist John Johnston)
• Fun Time
• Animal Magic
• Molly Mills and the Festive Season (artist Douglas Perry)
• Are You Really Nice to Know? (quiz)
• Animal Magic
• Bella (artist John Armstrong)
• The Indian Blanket – Strange Story (artist Maria Dembilio)
• The Price of Fame – text story (artist Tony Coleman)
• The Crazyees (artist Joe Collins)
• Wee Sue (artist Robert MacGillivray)
• Stick with Us! (feature)
• Fun Time
• A Girl Called Steve (artist Diane Gabbot)
• Be a “Wise Owl” and Decorate a Plant Pot (feature)
• Christmas Exchange – text story (artist Douglas Perry)
• Bessie Bunter
• Lend a Helping Hand (feature)
• Choose Chocolate (feature)
• Who’s a Pretty Boy, Then? (feature)
• Odds and Ends (feature)
• Polar Bears and Arctic Hares – feature (artist John Johnston)
• Fun Time
• Animal Magic
• Bessie Bunter
• Be a Cover Girl! (feature)
• Hidden Melody – Strange Story (artist Tony Coleman)
• Wee Sue (artist Robert MacGillivray)
• Pam of Pond Hill (artist Bob Harvey, writer Jay Over)

Continuing the theme of Pam’s appearances in the Tammy annual, this Pam story takes a break from the Christmas theme where everything’s gearing up for a Christmas celebration but fate threatens to throw a Grinch into the works. Instead, the story focuses on exam nerves. It’s the history exam that’s the biggest worry of all for Pam, and considering that she has never been strong academically, what will the results be?

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This annual is the last Tammy annual to have Bessie Bunter. One story has a guest appearance from Billy Bunter (below), so at least Bessie ends on a high. Meanwhile, this is the first annual to have The Button Box, and the button Bev selects tells an anti-fox hunting story and a harsh squire who is shocked into changing his ways after his fox traps nearly kill his own niece.

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The serial reprinted for the 1985 annual is the 1979 story, “A Girl Called Steve” (short for Stephanie). It’s a mystery story, but is unusual in that Steve gets two mysteries to solve, one after the other. The first comes when Steve joins her father’s archaeological dig in the caves at Clambourne Bay. Even on the journey up there, it becomes blatantly obvious that there are some very sinister types out to scare her away. Things get even worse when the superstitious locals tell Steve that the Acum (a monster said to haunt the cave) has cursed the village in retaliation for the archaeological dig, and they join the campaign to get rid of Steve and her father. But is there really a monster behind it all, or is whatever in the caves more to do with human greed? Once the Clambourne mystery is solved and Steve returns home, she soon embarks on mystery number two when the council wants to bulldoze the old tram lines and weird things start happening there.

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In the Bella story, Jed and Gert embark on one of their most idiotic dodges to make money – Gert running aerobics classes, despite the fact that she is overweight, out of condition, has no training or qualifications, and is no spring chicken. But it’s poor Bella who ends up carrying the can and fleeing the angry aerobics class once they realise they’ve been conned. However, this is Christmas, so the Bella story has to resolve that way.

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The text stories are new, but the reprints increase. The Christmas-themed Molly story is a repeat. It looks like nowhere for the Stantons to have Christmas because Pickering wrecked the hall by lighting a match in a kitchen full of gas. Claire suggests London’s East End where Molly’s family are, but are the Stantons too posh for a Cockney party? The Wee Sue stories and Strange Stories are more repeats. And it could be the cover is a reprint as well, possibly taken from Princess Tina, as the Katy covers were. Still, the annual and its content are solid and can be read again and again.