D is for Dan

Thinking about what D's had made any sort of impression upon me gave rise to a certain amount of head scratching. Donald Duck didn't really seem to be quite right, but Dan Dare, Pilot of the Future was surely worthy of a mention. Now it has been a long time since I gave this character any thought, in fact probably not a great deal since the 1950's when in Britain it was almost compulsary for 8 to 12 year olds to read his weekly adventure in the Eagle comic. I think I almost believed in little green men at the time and would never have been surprised to meet the Mekon.


Dan Dare

Dan Dare was certainly the most popular fictional character in British history during the 1950's, and helped the Eagle to sell around three-quarters of a million copies each week and with an unprecedented amount of merchandise produced (rivalling the likes of, say, Star Wars in the modern era). During the 1950's he even had his own voice-acted radio show on Radio Luxembourg (the first sort of pirate radio station, and television had hardly arrived in Britain at this time, and radio was still the number one source of in-home entertainment). Dan Dare and the Eagle were also exported to many countries around the world during this period, with local editions produced in countries including France, Holland, Croatia and Australia.

These are just a few links I found which may be a nostalgia trip for some, or a new experience for others.
Dan Dare Pilot of the Future
Dan Dare - Pilot of the Future
Dan Dare - Home Page


Another Dan from the past is Desperate Dan who appeared in the Beano, and later the Dandy, and is still around today, although I don't think that the is impact is very noticeable now. In 1999 the Dandy became the worlds longest running comic, after having been in existence for more than 60 years and thus made it to the Guinness Book of Records. He was as politically incorrect as it was possible to be, unlike Dan Dare who was what every young boy dreamed of being. Maybe there were even some who aspired to be like Desperate Dan and live on cow pie and have adventures nearer to home.

Dandy is king of the comics
Beano strips
The Hound - September 2004


Desperate dan