Princess II, #12, 10 December 1983

• Cinders on Ice (artist unknown)
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story) – final episode
• Atchoo! (artist Bob Harvey) – final episode
• True Friends for Tansy
• Alice Spring is Missing! (photo story)
• Suzy and Snowdrop (artist Peter Wilkes) – first episode
• Sadie-in-Waiting (artist Joe Collins)

“Cinders on Ice” is the cover story this week. I can’t identify the artist. If anyone can from the cover above, it would be most appreciated. Ella is progressing so well at secret skating that she is going to take part in an ice panto. It’s “Cinderella on Ice”, and guess who’s got the role of Cinderella? Then disaster strikes when Mum unwittingly throws out Ella’s skates, and the dustman has just arrived.

“Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit”, the last remaining story from the first Princess lineup, comes to an end. They finally get the magic right and free Mr Evans from the spell that had turned him into a rabbit. After that the other loose ends get tied up for a completely happy ending – except when Mr Evans is served salad for hospital food, just when he thought he’d finally got away from lettuce. Its replacement next week is a ballet story, and it’s about time Princess had one too.

Princess starts a horse story this week, and it’s about time she had one of those too. Suzy Crandall returns from school camp to an unpleasant surprise – her favourite horse Snowdrop has been sold. When Suzy tracks Snowdrop down she finds he is being forced upon a terrified girl who is being forced to ride by her demanding aunt.

In the final episode of “Atchoo!”, Jenny has resorted to disguising herself as Hannah Hyde for the sake of her classmates after losing the power to actually change into Hannah. This leads to valuable and surprising lessons in self-confidence for Jenny, and she also gains friends and respect after they discover the disguise and assume Hannah was Jenny in disguise all along. Well, it’s not too far from the truth when you think about it.

In “True Friends for Tansy”, even Dad is getting sick of the deception he is putting Tansy through, but he is still not ready to let Tansy tell her friends whose daughter she is. Now those friends want to attend one of his concerts, which they end up doing by trying to sneak in – but security guards catch them.

Carrie and Alice finally manage to escape from the train – only to find the kidnappers right behind them!

Sadie and Cook have to be extra-nice to Grovel – nurse’s orders after he has too many accidents, which come from being the resident comic villain. But their uncharacteristic kindness takes Grovel so much by surprise that he faints, so the nurse has to *groan* tend to him yet again.

Princess II, #11, 3 December 1983

• Atchoo! (artist Bob Harvey)
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story)
• Farthings’ Flight (artist Hugo D’Adderio) – final episode
• True Friends for Tansy (artist unknown)
• Alice Spring is Missing! (photo story)
• Cinders on Ice (artist unknown)
• Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
• Princess Diana Pinup

In our cover story, Jenny discovers the power of the formula has worn off. She can no longer change into Hannah Hyde when she sneezes, and there is no more of that formula. But the school needs Hannah Hyde at the netball match, so Jenny hits on a crazy, desperate idea – disguise herself as Hannah Hyde! She has the looks all right, but can she bring off the same confidence and prowess? We find out in the final episode next week.

Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit finally has the spell book to change him back into a man, but reversing the rabbit spell proves more complicated than anticipated. Something goes wrong and he grows to giant rabbit proportions!

The Farthings’s story ends this week. Allgold’s exploitation of Grandfather comes to an end. Allgold reckons he’s wrung all he can out of the deteriorating old man who’s losing his power, so he’s only too happy to let Lizzie’s kindly rich lady buy Grandfather out. Allgold has no idea the power is about to pass to another – guess who?

The Murder on the Orient Express – sorry, kidnapping on the train to Scotland – continues in “Alice Spring is Missing”. The people in Alice’s compartment are still holding her prisoner, and she can’t convince anyone of what’s going on except one girl named Carrie, who actually sees what’s going on. The trouble is, Carrie can’t convince anyone else either and soon she’s being held prisoner too.

Princess Bee wants Sadie and Grovel to learn judo, and Grovel gets the flip. However, the judo instructor meets her match in Cook, who clonks her with a chop – a meat chop, that is.

Tansy grows fed up with living the lie and wants to come clean with her friends that her father’s a famous pop star, but Dad won’t allow it. So Tansy is still stuck with the deception she hates, which is causing more complications. And how much longer can she keep it up anyway?

Cinders on Ice manages to skate for help for the injured lady, Miss Thorburn. This has the unexpected but welcome reward of Miss Thorburn giving her free admission to the new skating rink – she’s the new owner – and proper coaching in skating. The trouble is, the two nasty girls Cinders is trying to keep the secret from are about to try out the rink.

Princess II, #10, 26 November 1983

• Farthings’ Flight (artist Hugo D’Adderio)
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story)
• Atchoo! (artist Bob Harvey)
• True Friends for Tansy (artist unknown)
• Alice Spring is Missing! (photo story)
• Cinders on Ice (artist unknown)
• Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
• Princess Diana pinup

I do not have Princess #9 (maybe one of these days), so I continue with #10.

Allgold finally succeeds in getting the Farthings into his power and milking Grandfather’s ability to talk to animals for all its worth. It’s taking its toll on Grandfather; he’s in such a state of collapse and giving up that he isn’t even trying to escape, though Lizzie sees a chance to do so. Then a trip to the soup kitchen gives Lizzie hope for an ally who could rescue them.

Mr Evans’ health is also taking a dangerous downturn. He was badly injured from a trap and now he’s developed a heart condition that he can only get treatment for if he is changed back into a man; as a rabbit the only treatment for him is euthanasia. Now they need the book of spells more than ever, so they are advertising for it, but where the *$!^%*!# is it? Jenny gets her answer when Dad gives it to her for a birthday present. So it was right under their noses the whole time. It would be!

Jenny’s power, which depends on sneezing, really makes things complicated for her this week, including getting into trouble in a supermarket. It’s either sneezing at the wrong moment or waiting ages for one. And that’s the problem Jenny is left with by the end of the episode. She is stuck outside the house as Hannah Hyde and has to wait for a sneeze to turn her back into Jenny. By the time that happens, Dad will probably have Scotland Yard out looking for her and ready to read out the riot act.

Concealing that her father’s a pop star is still causing problems for Tansy. Among them are friends who think she is open and honest with them, which makes her feel ashamed.

“Cinders on Ice” returns to the Cinderella story, which had been prevalent in IPC titles during the 1970s but had faded by the 1980s. In this case it is not relatives or stepparents who make a Cinderella out of our heroine but a nasty employer and her two daughters. Ella’s reaction to their cruelty is secretly teaching herself to skate and calling herself “Cinderella on Ice”. She has only just got the hang of skating when her first big test comes – skating to get help for a woman who has been in a car crash.

Alice Spring suspects the people she is travelling with on the train are up to no good. Yes, it’s a kidnapping plot, and they don’t do anything much to do it except blackmail Alice into going with them. No chloroform, gag or bonds in sight. She tries to slip a message for help, but the recipient does not believe it. First hope dashed.

Sadie in Waiting wonders why Grovel is not feeling the cold when the heating is busted, which is something he is normally the first to grumble about. The answer is soon revealed, and it backfires on him in the end, of course.

Princess II, #8, 12 November 1983

• Atchoo! (artist Bob Harvey)
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story)
• Ring of Feathers (artist Santiago Hernandez) – final episode
• True Friends for Tansy (artist unknown) – first episode
• Stairway to the Stars (photo story) – final episode
• Farthings’ Flight (artist Hugo D’Adderio)
• Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)

 

This issue farewells two stories from Princess’s first lineup: “Ring of Feathers” and “Stairway to the Stars”. The pupils’ stage performance of course keeps the school open, but the euphoria fades a bit when the pupils learn the school exams are about to begin. Oh well, that’s part of any school. In “Ring of Feathers”, Cheryl manages to save the woods with the help of the ring and is also freed from her evil uncle, who is now in well-deserved trouble with the police.

New story “True Friends for Tansy” starts. Tansy Jones starts at a new school with a secret: she must not let anyone know her father is a famous pop star, otherwise she won’t know who her friends are. The trouble is, keeping the secret is interfering with friendships too and affecting Tansy’s popularity. I am having trouble identifying the artist. It looks a bit like John Johnston, but I am not sure. If anyone can help, it would be most appreciated.

Jenny now realises she has grabbed the wrong rabbit, which messes up a ventriloquist performance she attempts to do. Meanwhile, Mr Evans breaks out of his cage and is now hiding in a hole, which could make it difficult for Jenny to find him again.

Grovel’s personality changes for the better after a bump on the head and he starts treating Sadie kindly. But of course it is too good to last. Sure enough, he returns to normal when Cook clonks him over the head with a frying pan.

Grandfather Farthing’s gift for communicating with animals exposes a groom who was mistreating horses and he is dismissed. But once the groom finds out Allgold is after them, he seizes his chance for revenge. Will this enable Allgold to capture the Farthings next week?

Jenny’s new double life as Hannah Hyde is bringing her the friends, popularity and confidence she had never known before. The trouble is, only sneezing can bring Hannah on, and you can’t just sneeze whenever you feel like it. Moreover, an unexpected sneeze can take Hannah away again, which can be at the worst possible moment. So this double life is proving very awkward for Jenny while her classmates are puzzled by the odd comings and goings of Hannah Hyde.

Princess II, #7, 5 November 1983

• Farthings’ Flight (artist Hugo D’Adderio)
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story)
• Ring of Feathers (artist Santiago Hernandez)
• Miranda’s Magic Dragon (artist Carlos Freixas) – final episode
• Stairway to the Stars (photo story)
• Atchoo! (artist Bob Harvey) – first episode
• The Princess Diana Story
• Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
• Princess Diana Pinup

It’s the Guy Fawkes issue, and it’s Sadie in Waiting who does the honours. Poor Grovel is still in the doghouse after the Halloween fiasco he unwittingly caused last issue. Princess Bee won’t let him attend her fireworks display, but she would have been better off doing so. Grovel decides to have his own fireworks display – which messes up Princess Bee’s!

It’s the last episode of “Miranda’s Magic Dragon”. Miranda puts all the mixed-up magic right after she finally figures out how the magic pendant works – it only works as it should when the intention is good; otherwise things go wrong for the person using it. Pity nobody told Mordac that; he finds out the hard way when Miranda deliberately lets him have it, knowing full well that his intentions will be anything but good. It’s his downfall, of course.

“Atchoo!” starts today. You have to decide whether this one is a completely bonkers story or just plain silly. A weedy girl, Jenny Jeckyll, finds herself turning into a completely different and confident person – Hannah Hyde – after accidentally receiving a dose of her father’s new compound that can turn weeds into roses. The change occurs when Jenny sneezes, and another sneeze changes her back.

Mr Evans has gotten mixed up with a bunch of rabbits that look just like him. As a result, Jenny now has the wrong rabbit!

It’s now official in “Stairway to the Stars” – the council is closing the school down, in one fortnight. The pupils decide they might as well put on their end-of-term show on now then. A surprise turn of events has this turning it into their one chance to keep the school open – by performing it in front of the council. The trouble is, they have only one fortnight to get ready for a performance that was meant to take three months to prepare.

Allgold’s manages to catch up to the Farthings despite the distance they put between him and them. Then grandfather’s power takes a hand and birds attack Allgold’s flunkies. Bird power is also taking a hand in “Ring of Feathers”. The birds help Cheryl to reassemble the real deed her uncle tore up and prove the one he has is a fake. Now Cheryl is racing against her uncle and pouring rain to get the deed to the expert in the village.

Princess II, #6, 29 October 1983

• Their Darling Daughter… (artist Bert Hill) – final episode
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story)
• Ring of Feathers (artist Santiago Hernandez)
• Miranda’s Magic Dragon (Carlos Freixas)
• Stairway to the Stars (photo story)
• Farthings’ Flight (artist Hugo D’Adderio) – first episode
• The Princess Diana story part 6
• Mini Princess Diana Pinus
• Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
• Fun Fair (puzzles)

Ever since #1, Princess had used selections of letters from her sister comic Girl for her letters page. From this issue she stops saying she is using Girl letters, so she must have been receiving enough letters to start printing her own.

It’s the Halloween issue, but only Sadie in Waiting honours it. Princess Bee is hosting a fancy dress party for Halloween. Grovel is grumbling because he hates Halloween. He hates it even more after he mistakenly attacks Princess Bee (dressed as a gorilla) as SuperGrovel and does mountains of washing up as a punishment.

“Their Darling Daughter” is the cover story, probably because this is the final episode, making it the second to be ejected from Princess’s first lineup. For some reason the title has ellipsis points, which it did not have in the other episodes. Perhaps it’s because of how everything resolves. Up until this point the impression was Mrs Crooks was plotting against Sylvie out of loyalty to the late Rachel. But then Sylvie finds out the real reason: Rachel was really Mrs Crooks’ daughter and Sylvie is really the Townes’ daughter. Mrs Crooks had switched them at birth so Rachel would lead an aristocratic life. Once discovered, Mrs Crooks goes fully insane and sets out to burn the whole house down while taking herself and the bound and gagged Sylvie in it!

In “Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit” Dad’s too overcome with grief over his wife to do a show. Jenny calls upon Mr Evans to help out, but he refuses to do so after the bad experience he had with the other children who captured him after he became a rabbit.

Nasty Uncle John has stolen Cheryl’s ring of feathers, but a bird friend helps her to get it back. She has also discovered Uncle John’s whole plan to destroy the woodlands, and only the ring of feathers can help her stop it. Meanwhile, Mum is hospitalised because Uncle John worked her too hard.

“Farthings’ Flight” starts, and it is Princess’s first period story, set in Victorian times. We meet Lizzie Farthing, whose grandfather has a power over animals and birds. Silas Allgold discovers grandfather’s power, and tries to force them into joining his freak show. Allgold is even going as far as to threaten violence against anyone who employs or shelters the Farthings, so they will have no choice but to crawl to him. Lizzie won’t give in to such blackmail, hence the flight of the Farthings, but how far will they get from Allgold? He looks extremely determined to get them, and he has the money and heavies to back him up.

In “Miranda’s Magic Dragon”, Liz is thrilled to meet King Arthur in person, but then the evil Mordac captures her. Meanwhile, a hint is dropped before Miranda that Paula has stolen her magic pendant, but will Miranda catch on?

In “Stairway to the Stars”, poor Terry is expelled after getting in a fight with bullies who call him “cissy”. But after intervention from Sandy, Terry’s father, who had disapproved of Terry attending stage school, changes his mind about it so much that he persuades the school to reinstate Terry.

Princess II, #5, 22 October 1983

• The Incredible Shrinking Girl! (artist Hugh Thornton-Jones) – final episode
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story)
• Ring of Feathers (artist Santiago Hernandez)
• Miranda’s Magic Dragon (artist Carlos Freixas)
• Stairway to the Stars (photo story)
• Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
• Their Darling Daughter (artist Bert Hill)
• The Princess Diana story part 5
• Princess Bright Ideas Box: Pretty as a Picture!

“The Incredible Shrinking Girl!” is the cover story this week. It is only fair, because this is the final episode; the incredible shrinking girl returns to normal size after being hit by fly spray. This was the first story to be ejected from Princess II’s first lineup, after five episodes. The short run should not be taken as a reflection of its popularity, or lack of. As Princess II progressed, many of her serials had short runs, running at 5-6 episodes.

In “Their Darling Daughter”, Sylvie can’t convince her foster parents that Mrs Crooks is pulling nasty tricks to get rid of her. And now Mrs Crooks has turned extra nasty after Sylvie scores her first triumph over her with help from Ben the dog. Mrs Crooks is taking advantage of Sylvie being left alone with her for the weekend by saying it’s going to be her last. Now what can the old bat mean by that? Whatever it is, it sure sounds like she’s knocking off the fancy stuff now and just going in with her big guns blazing at full throttle.

In “Ring of Feathers”, Cheryl discovers her Uncle John is out to destroy the woodlands, and with it the birds’ habitat. But there’s a loophole in his deed of ownership that says the woodlands must be left intact. Looks like the woodlands are safe after all, but Cheryl doesn’t realise her uncle is plotting to destroy the deed and make a forgery. And now Uncle John is stealing the ring of feathers – which will take away Cheryl’s power to get help from the birds.

Things really get in a pickle in “Miranda’s Magic Dragon” this time. Miranda from Camelot is stuck in 1983, and now a mistake on behalf of the evil Mordac whisks Miranda’s 20^th century friend Liz away to Camelot – along with her house! Meanwhile, sly Paula is still hiding Miranda’s magic pendant, and without it Miranda is powerless.

Mr Andrews has been desperate to make a meal out of Mr Evans the talking rabbit, not realising he really is a human turned into a rabbit. But this week he pulls a hat trick – literally – to save Mr Evans when his unpleasant owners come in search of him.

Sandy’s audition fails in “Stairway to the Stars”, though she does get handy advice afterwards. Meanwhile, it’s not just Dad who’s calling Terry’s dancing “cissy” – bullies in the street are now doing it as well.

For once Grovel does “Sadie in Waiting” a good turn. Princess Bee is imposing early morning keep fit jogs on the staff, much to Sadie’s consternation. But when it’s imposed on Grovel (much as he needs it), the results put Princess Bee off the idea completely, to Sadie’s great relief.

Princess II, Issue 1, 24 September 1983

Contents

• Ring of Feathers (artist Santiago Hernandez) – first episode
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit! (photo story) – first episode
• Their Darling Daughter (artist Bert Hill) – first episode
• Miranda’s Magic Dragon (artist Carlos Freixas) – first episode
• Stairway to the Stars! (photo story) – first episode
• The Incredible Shrinking Girl! (artist Hugh Thornton-Jones) – first episode
• The Princess Diana Story (part one) – feature
• Sadie in Waiting (artist Joe Collins) – first appearance
• Princess Diana pinup (feature)

We start the Jinty blog entries for 2018 with the first issue of Princess, which I was fortunate to find while on holiday. No, not the Princess that later became Princess Tina. This is the start of the second Princess series, which used Princess Diana pictures and life story to sell the comic – sadly, not enough, because it merged into Tammy after 28 issues.

Although Tammy was the title Princess II merged into, she started off as calling herself a sister comic to Girl II, IPC’s photo story comic. Indeed, Princess II was the same type of comic as Girl II, including the same newsprint and page size. She had her own photo stories, though she only ran two at a time, so there was more room for picture stories. There were also more colour pages, which must have made her more attractive to buy. One photo story was in full colour while the other was black-and-white, while the photo stories in Girl were all black and white. Later in her run Princess II switched to the same newsprint and style as Tammy and dropped the photo stories altogether. This must have been why Princess II merged with Tammy instead of her sister comic.

In fact, the letters page of Princess II used letters from Girl as she had not received any of her own yet. The winning letter was the one that made sulky old Grovel grin. Readers must have wondered who Grovel was as they did not see his strip, the resident cartoon strip “Sadie in Waiting”, until the last page. Grovel is the villainous (but humorously so) butler of the piece. Grovel is alway sucking up to his employer, Princess Bee (hence his name), and is a bully and a schemer into the bargain, but Sadie the maid was always on the alert to his game. Princess Bee doesn’t think much of his grovelling either, so we have to wonder how on earth he holds onto his job. I wonder if this cartoon drew inspiration from Molly Mills in Tammy.

The first story, which starts off on the cover, is “Ring of Feathers”. Cheryl and her mother move to Scotland to live with Uncle John. He soon makes it clear to them that he’s a mean type, and we’re soon getting hints that he is criminal as well. Meanwhile, birds have been hanging around Cheryl in an odd manner ever since she was given a ring of feathers as a parting gift.

The first photo story, “Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit!”, is the one that appears in colour, and unlike most photo stories it has been remembered. Mr Andrews has lost heart as a kids’ entertainer ever since his wife died, which is not bringing in money for the rent and they’re on the verge of being evicted. While out on an entertainment job, daughter Jenny is very surprised to encounter a caged rabbit that can talk, and it doesn’t appear to be her father’s ventriloquism. But we don’t find out what’s going on until next week.

In “Their Darling Daughter”, Lord and Lady Towne foster Sylvie, a girl in a children’s home, while still grieving for their daughter Rachel. There’s some mystery as to how they actually came across Sylvie and why they fostered her, but there’s one person who is determined to get rid of her. No, it isn’t a spiteful stepsister or cousin, which is usually the case. It’s Mrs Crooks the housekeeper, who worshipped Rachel and doesn’t want anyone taking her place. Unlike most of these types of schemers, Mrs Crooks does not keep her campaign secret from her unsuspecting victim. She tells Sylvie straight off that she wants her out, and why. This story is also unusual for using Bert Hill, an artist who was seen frequently at DCT, but not at IPC.

“Miranda’s Magic Dragon” is not a real dragon. It’s a magic dragon pendant that Merlin bequeathes to his granddaughter Miranda before he dies. Unfortunately Miranda has not got the hang of its magic yet, and her first disaster is to be transported from the days of Camelot into the year 1983. Talk about a fish out of water! Meanwhile, Merlin’s enemy Mordac is after the pendant, and we are getting hints that he is about to make his presence felt in 1983. Gee, what’s he going to make of that time period? Miranda has almost been hit by cars as well as culture and time shock.

Oddly for a girls’ comic’s first lineup, there is no ballet story. Still, we get plenty of dancing in the second photo story, “Stairway to the Stars!”, which is the black-and-white photo story. It is set in a stage school and has a soap opera feel to it. So we get a school story into the bargain.

Clare Humphreys is recruited to test a range of products. She feels it is unhealthy because they are so full of chemicals, but she does not realise how right she is until they start making her shrink.

Towards the end we start seeing Princess Diana herself. It’s part one of her life story, and on the back cover we get the first Princess Diana pinup.

 

Princess (series 2) #4, 15 October 1983

• Ring of Feathers (artist Santiago Hernandez)
• Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit (photo story)
• Their Darling Daughter (artist Bert Hill)
• Miranda’s Magic Dragon (artist Carlos Freixas)
• Stairway to the Stars (photo story)
• The Incredible Shrinking Girl! (artist Hugh Thornton-Jones)
• The Princess Diana Story – Feature
• Sadie-in-Waiting (artist Joe Collins)
• Princess Diana Pin-up – Feature

Here we continue the theme of more context around Jinty’s family tree at IPC. As I do not have #1, I present #4, which is the earliest issue in my collection, to represent Princess. Updated to add: I now have Princess  #1, and its entry is here.

Princess (not to be confused with the 1960s Princess, later called Princess Tina) ran from 24 September 1983 to 31 March 1984, and then it merged into Tammy on 7 April 1984. It was riding on the popularity of Princess Diana, and included pinups of Diana and the story of Diana’s life. It lasted for 28 issues and, unusually for IPC girls’ titles, numbered its issues. Up until #18 it had a lot of colour pages and two photo stories, one in black-and-white and the other in colour. But it had fewer pages than Tammy, which was printed on cheaper newsprint than Princess. From #19 Princess dropped the photo stories and colour pages and switched to the same newsprint, format and number of pages as Tammy. This is similar to the pattern that Penny followed three years earlier before it merged into Jinty.

Princess also reprinted several serials from Tammy and Jinty: “Horse from the Sea”, “Stefa’s Heart of Stone” (completed in the merge with Tammy), “Rowena of the Doves” and “The Dream House”. These changes and reprints are signs that Princess was not doing well. Ironically, the reprints in Princess enabled some original Jinty artwork to survive the cavalier manner in which IPC handled original artwork.

Princess stories were not particularly memorable or well remembered, and some only lasted a few episodes. One, “The Incredible Shrinking Girl!”, looks like it is on its penultimate episode, and it is only #4.

Other Princess stories were a bit unconventional, such as the photo story “Mr Evans the Talking Rabbit”. Mr Evans has turned himself into a rabbit after messing around with a magic book. Unfortunately the change has not improved his disagreeable character and he is still the “miserable old so-and-so” that his wife does not miss one bit. Nonetheless, Jenny Andrews continues to help him find the book and change back – trouble is, the book has been sold and they need to track it down. This is the colour photo story, which makes it stand out more.

The black-and-white photo story, “Stairway to the Stars”, is a bit of a mix between a soap opera and a serial at a stage school. Right now, the school is now being threatened with closure, just because one mother (who unfortunately has influence with the council) thinks it is not doing anything for her daughter and would rather close the school down than have people think her daughter is a failure. She does not realise her daughter was doing badly on purpose because she wanted to be taken away.

“Their Darling Daughter” comes from the long line of stories where a spiteful schemer tries to get rid of a foster girl/cousin. In this case it is a housekeeper in an aristocratic household, who idolises the parents’ late daughter and does not want foster-girl Sylvie taking her place. Unusually for this type of serial the victim has an ally – her dog!

“Ring of Feathers” is the abusive guardian story, except that heroine Cheryl Gibson does not fully realise how cruel her Uncle John is. Her mother does, though – Uncle John makes her work like a slave for hardly any money and now he has started hitting her. Meanwhile, Cheryl is given a ring that gives her strange powers with birds. We eagerly wait to see how that is going to work against nasty Uncle John.

In “Miranda’s Magic Dragon”, Merlin’s granddaughter Miranda has travelled in time to 1983 to escape the evil sorcerer Mordac. There she makes friends, and also an enemy out of greedy Paula, who has stolen her magic pendant. This could get Paula into an awful lot of trouble with Mordac, who is after it too. But where’s the dragon? It’s the emblem on the magic pendant.

“Sadie-in-Waiting” is the resident cartoon strip and would carry on in the merger, replacing Tammy’s Joe Collins strip “The Crayzees”. As with Molly Mills, it is a maid vs. a devious butler, but played for weekly laughs.

 

Jinty & Penny 25 July 1981

(Cover artist: Mario Capaldi)

• With Best Wishes… – text story (artist Mario Capaldi)
• Dracula’s Daughter – (artist Mario Capaldi)
• Holiday Hideaway – (artist Phil Gascoine) – first episode
• The Veiled Threat – Gypsy Rose (artist Tony Higham)
• Gaye’s Gloomy Ghost – (artist Hugh-Thornton Jones)
• Happy Ever After – special feature
• Tansy of Jubilee Street (artist Peter Wilkes)
• Angela’s Angels (artist Leo Davy)
• The Sweet and Sour Rivals (artist Carlos Cruz) – first episode
• Worlds Apart (artist Guy Peeters)

This is the last Jinty to feature the Penny logo. It would return, but be reduced to a smaller size, before being dropped shortly before the merger with Tammy. In this issue, Jinty commemorates the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer on 29 July 1981. So the issue is big on the wedding theme. The text story, “With Best Wishes”, brings us a story based on the royal wedding. For this reason, the text story is on the first page of this issue, which is very unusual for a text story. Jinty also has a competition to honour the wedding, with Kodak cameras as top prizes, and the back cover gives instructions for making party pieces for your own royal wedding celebration. And there is “Happy Ever After”, a feature telling us about the things to use to wish for happiness and good luck in a marriage.

Good luck is lacking in Gypsy Rose’s wedding themed story, “The Veiled Threat”. Liz is getting married, and her Aunt Vicky tells Liz how her mother forced her to marry a man for money although she couldn’t stand him and protested loudly at the wedding. When Liz wears Aunt Vicky’s veil (and there seems to be a black cloud hanging over it), she starts acting the same way Aunt Vicky did at her wedding. Is it wedding nerves or the veil? In the end, Liz gets happily married – without the veil. (By the way, this was a reprint of another Strange Story, and I have the original to prove it.)

Tansy of Jubilee Street also celebrates, with the family and friends determined to go to London to see the wedding. But they run into transport problems, including being diddled with a gypsy wagon – which they end up pulling themselves after the horse collapses. But everything works out even better than Tansy imagined when they catch the attention of a television crew.

“The Sweet and Sour Rivals” starts. It is one of the more rare stories that features ethnicity, because it stars a Chinese girl. Also starting is “Holiday Hideaway”, about a family who hide in the house and pretend to be on holiday, just because Dad is too embarrassed to let the neighbours know they can’t afford the real thing after his business failed.