DANDY To Be Cancelled?

This morning I woke and there were five phone calls one after the other.  All from journalist (radio and newspaper).  Why?  Well, the news that D.C.Thomson is to cancel the Dandy comic.  According to one journalist: “I tried calling other comic artists but they all told me they could not comment as it might effect future work but they all told me ‘Terry Hooper at Comic Bits Online has been predicting this for a couple years now’ and gave him my details.


Same story with the other journalists.  I know who the professional cowards were who refused to comment but that is their shame.

In fact, I’ve been saying for five years that sales were getting worse and worse (the last figure I had was of sales around 6,650) and that editorial policy (if there was one) was to blame -and that management should have moved in sooner.

The Dandy could have been saved. I pointed this out privately to Thomson editors but was simply told to **** off.  And creators working on the title…..

Thomson has always been in the position that it could launch a big or very decent selling comic but has refused to do so or listen. The only inference is that Thomson wanted out of comics and allowed this to go on so that it now has an ‘excuse’ to quit.

Everyone seems shocked (?) but as David Gordon posted on his FaceBook page this morning:

Dave Gordon

Well that’s a shock…The Dandy is closing as it’s circulation was less than eight thousand copies a week…well, not really, it hadn’t changed or adapted to fit the changing times, and the idea of sticking a toy to the front to sell it was never going to work. Too many businesses have the (mistaken) idea that their name will save them…it won’t. Some learn from the experience of a turn down in sales and some -clearly- do not, they just trudge on into the darkness of financial doom. Terry Hooper-Scharf has for a long time now prophesised just this scenario for the publishers of the Dandy. Adapt and survive…or carry on stick your head in the sand and hope for the best(>:))

 

 

In fact, I heard that the title was folding three weeks ago though there was a very strong rumour of cancellation just over a month back…in my article on Panini if I remember rightly.

 

Hey -I’m forecasting events with 100% accuracy now!

 

And does that make me happy in this case?  No. No it does not.

 

I would really hope that Thomson get their act together and, for the first time ever, I am going to write openly: make me the new editor and I’ll get you up-to-date with a good seller!  (I write that realising that is as likely as my winning a gold medal in the 2012 Olympics…which have ended).

Rest in peace Dandy.

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I’ve just checked and I did mention the likelihood of The Dandy being cancelled in my piece “Bleak Days For Panini” (July) and “I’ve ordered The Headstone” (June!!).  So, if anyone was bothering to read these items they would not be shocked!

And, in fairness, I’ve seen what the journalists are basing their news on and it is official though seems to be played down. According to the Belfast Telegraph:

Comic favourite Dandy faces closure


Tuesday, 14 August 2012

The future of the UK’s longest-running children’s comic is being reviewed by its publisher.

The Dandy, best known for cartoon character Desperate Dan who can “lift a cow with one arm”, could face closure following a huge drop in circulation.

Dundee-based DC Thomson said it was reviewing all of its magazine titles due to the “challenges” being faced by the publishing industry, but added that no final decision has been made.

It is understood The Dandy, which launched in 1937 and is now in its 75th year, will continue to be available online even if the hard copy of the comic is taken off shelves.

The review was prompted by falling circulation numbers, with only about 8,000 copies of The Dandy being sold a week, down from more than two million during its peak in the 1950s. The Dandy has featured characters such as Bananaman, Korky the Cat, Cuddles and Dimples and Beryl the Peril.

Fans took to social networking site Twitter to air their concerns over the potential closure. Scottish comedian Robert Florence said: “Let’s all buy The Dandy this week. You with me? You got kids? Buy The Dandy. Let’s see if we can save something worth saving.”

Father Ted writer Graham Linehan posted: “Very sad. UK’s longest-running comic, Dandy, to close.”

A bronze statue of Desperate Dan stands in Dundee city centre, alongside Minnie the Minx, from The Dandy’s sister title, The Beano.

A DC Thomson spokeswoman said: “We are carrying out a review of our magazines business to meet the challenges of the rapidly-changing publishing industry. Throughout 2012, DC Thomson is continuing to develop its magazines operation and portfolio to create an efficient business model that will build on the strength of our existing brands and products.

“There are many challenges within the industry at present but we’re excited that the digital revolution has also given us an opportunity to innovate and develop. We’re celebrating the fact that The Dandy has been in print for 75 years and we’ve a lot of planning to do to ensure that our brands and characters can live on in other platforms for future generations to enjoy.”


Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/uk/comic-favourite-dandy-faces-closure-16197642.html#ixzz23W9fedEw
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So, is Thomson thinking of the same material but online?  Online comics are NOT doing well as they once did.  Like IPC Media selling off its print titles to go “digital” it seems Thomson is considering the same.


But let’s ask one final question here: if comics in Europe are going from strength-to-strength why is it that a company like Thomson cannot keep one title from failing so badly?