Managed to have a look and here is the full run down of 'The Space Kids' strip as it appeared in the Beezer.
As already mentioned the original series ran from No 457(17/10/64) (the issue when Beezer had its major 1960's overhaul and leapt from 12 to 16pgs) to No 557 (17/9/66).
Then in 1976/1977 this 101 issue series was partially reprinted in a run of 56 issues in issues 1044(17/7/76) to 1099(5/2/77).
The issues that were reprinted were as follows -
1044-1086 reprinted 457-499
1087-1092 reprinted 502-507
1093-1094 reprinted 518-519 (the 1965 Xmas story)
1095-1099 reprinted 553-557
Digi is correct in his reprint history as it applied to the 1976 reprint series. The full reprint history being as follows
Classics 170 reprinted 1044/1045 (457/458)
Classics 171 reprinted 1046/1047 (459/460)
Classics 172 reprinted 1048/1085/1086 (461/498/499)
Classics 173 reprinted 1087/1088 (502/503)
Classics 174 reprinted 1089 (504)
Classics 175 reprinted 1090 (505)
Now while it is true that, after the strip published in the final issue of Classics, the series still had nine issues to run in 1976/1977 this doesn't mean that you would need to collect all nine instalments to see how the particular story left unfinished with the closure of Classics ended. This particular Space Kids adventure having reached its denouement in issue No 1092(18/12/76) only two issues after the final Classics episode.
I've checked a number of the obvious sources to see if they have copies of the two Beezers in question (1091/1092) available and 30th Century Comics does have issue 1091 for sale but sadly not 1092. However someone on ebay is selling the Beezer issues where the strips both originally appeared (506/507) with a starting bid of £2.99 each Thanks to Kashgar
'The Gobbles' (which I remember as being surprisingly similar to Reg Parlett's 'The Crows' in Valiant ). As I've still got that issue to hand here's Leo's other page from the same copy of The Beezer, including a 'Banana Bunch' story which actually takes its theme for that week from the vultures' cactus home.
loved the way that Beezer and Topper used to make sure you got your fourpenceworth by filling up every spare corner of their oversized pages with different marginal features like this (though the adventure stories made full use of the extra space). They may have only had twelve pages to play with but I can clearly remember feeling that the contents of a Beezer (preferably combined with a bag of sweets) could be relied upon to keep me happy for hours on end! Especially if the package included a free gift as well!!
- Thanks Phil Rushton
Three Eggs in a Basket: artwork by RON SMITH/ 'TOPPER, 1966 Thanks to Spy see link for more gems from The Beezer and Topper..
To be honest I'd completely forgotten that Baxendale had drawn the first ten episodes of this strip. Here's the introductory installment from January 11th 1964 (no.417) which, though quite tame by his standards, is particularly intriguing in that it may well be the last new series he worked on for DC Thomson before jumping ship to create Wham! just a few months later: Thanks to Phil Rushton= philcom55
Both Topper and Beezer used their tabloid, colour pages to the full in the late 1950's and early 1960's whether it was for sci-fi, adventure or war-time strips like 'The Heroes of Paradise Road' or the great viking quest saga 'The Dragon's Teeth' both drawn by Ron Smith. In fact Ron Smith, to me, never bettered the work he did for the Thomson tabloid titles. Try to track down examples of either of the above or his adaptation of Jack London's 'White Fang' or his pirate strip 'Blood Brothers of the Spanish Main' and see what I mean! from Kashgarfrom comicsuk forum..
Gerald "Ron Smith- Back from Zero Topper 1961":
This reminds me of a 1968 Topper serial featuring a lost land where dinosaurs still live. It recounts the adventures of a father and son who go there and must brave tropical poisons, volcanoes and other hazards, as well as the dinosaurs, as they try to get back to civilisation. Another of Ron Smith's, perhaps?...
More information about Rons other work in the latest issue.
