Cover date 5 April 1980: Speed
Cover dated 5 April 1980, here’s the seventh issue of the fast-burning Speed comic, starring cheeky motorcycle stunt rider Eddie Topps.
Art, I think, by Osvaldo Torta.
Eddie’s Topps on Two Wheels seems to have been one of the most popular serials in Speed – top billing with Blake Edwards’ Death Wish, perhaps, as both strips survived the comic’s merger into Tigerlater in 1980, and continued to run there for a few more years.
Aged 9, I thought Speed, my first step up to ‘adventure’ comics after reading just the funnies, was great. Not that I was especially into ‘speedy’ things but it had a diverse range from stories - sports, sci-fi, western, war - and a cast of really strong, interesting characters.
Death Wish was the astonishing story of a man so hideously disfigured in an accident that he wanted to end his life, but only im the throes of some exploit more fast and dangerous than anyone had ever achieved before. Art by Vanyo.
Journey to the Stars was my favourite story - a Lost in Space homage drawn by the brilliant Ron Turner.
The £1,000,000 Challenge was an audience participation story. Readers were invited to write in with speed challenge suggestions for grumpy millionaire Bullet Slick and the chance to win a pretend million-pound cheque. Art by Carlos Pino.
Quick on the Draw was another favourite of mine. A kid vows to track down and kill each member of a gang that killed his family, and is helped by Luke Cassidy, the West’s fastest gunslinger. Art by John Gillatt.
The Fastest Footballer on Earth placed a fleet-footed young man raised on a remote island into the first eleven of Mudport United, a struggling fourth division football team. Art by Vanyo.
Baker’s Half-Dozen was a Battle Picture Weekly-style serial about a disparate company of allied soldiers led across North African desert territory by a hard-bitten sarge with a secret. Art by Mike Western.
Finally, Speedboy was a more everyday tale of a modern-day schoolboy who wanted to be fastest at everything. He ended up joining Billy Dane’s school team in Billy’s Boots when Speed was folded into Tiger. Art by Mike White.
