The Amazing Three
Dec 1, 2010
You’ve heard of the Fantastic Four, but have you heard of the Amazing Three ? Me neither, until I picked up the Jackpot Annual 1982 in a charity shop. In fact I’d never heard of Jackpot either until I looked it up. It was a short-lived UK weekly comic published between 1979 and 1982 by IPC/Fleetway. As was the trend in those days, when it ceased it “merged” with Buster.
Many of the humour strips in Jackpot had diabolically “punny” titles. The Incredible Sulk, Robin Good, Angel’s Charlies, Milly O’Naire and Penny Less etc etc. As was/is the custom then/now the artists responsible for all those and the Amazing Three are not named.
PS: Click the above to enlarge.
PPS: I shouldn’t think that this Amazing Three is of any relation to the Japanese manga/cartoons of the same name.
The Magic Robot 
Dec 1, 2010 at 2:27 pm
Blue Wizard must have been late getting to the superhero costume shop – all they had left was a cowboy outfit with cape and top hat.
Dec 2, 2010 at 12:03 pm
Hi Niblet
Yes, the wacky world of British comics (and Annuals).
I admire your single-mindedness of concentrating on one particular comic (at http://cheekyweekly.blogspot.com )
Incidentally, were there any Cheeky Annuals ?
Dec 2, 2010 at 8:01 pm
Yep, the first Cheeky annual was dated 1979 (published of course in Autumn 1978), and an annual was produced every year until the issue dated 1985. In the grand British tradition, the annual outlived the actual comic, which merged into Whoopee! in February 1980. I probably won’t be featuring the annuals in any detail (although I have them all), but there are links on my blog to another site that has posted some info about them. Check out the labels list on my blog.
Dec 3, 2010 at 1:23 pm
Well – I’d forgotten about this. Thanks for another great post. However …
Minus 17 at 7.30am in my stretch of Derbyshire when I took the mutt out. There’s around 27 inches of snow, and I’ve got a 900 foot climb in less than a mile to get up and down to civilised tarmac, and 4x4s are sitting in what were once driveways disguised as snowmen right now – yep it’s stay at home time (hurrah), with the kids (boo!).
So I thought at 7.30 in the snow (having just seen deer in the village – one of life’s magical moments) I’d box burrow in the, unheated, garage and find my run of Cor!s to read as it’s been years. Then I read this, and realised I’ve got them also, but haven’t read them since they came out. Haven’t a clue which of the boxes they are in.
So if I freeze to death IT’S YOUR FAULT! and I’ll haunt you for it – although I’ve always fancied being like a Leo Baxendale type ghost, so I’m not sure it’ll be very effective as REVENGE.
Cheers! (and it’s only -11 now so I might not die)
Dec 3, 2010 at 1:30 pm
PS – as for snow on the page, well …
I thought the aged eyses had given up.
Actually it looks well cool. Nice touch
Dec 3, 2010 at 8:02 pm
Snow on the screen looks cool. I can’t take any credit for it though (apart from the ability to find it in the “options” and tick the right box !!) This much snow outside isn’t so cool unless you’re 10 years old.
I’m amazed how many grown men have kept their Cors/Cheekys/Jackpots from when they were 10 years old. I honestly hadn’t heard of Jackpot (or Cheeky) until this year… and I only have a vague recollection of Cor… was there a Gus the Monkey on the covers ??
Today this weather has suddenly brought one forgotten memory from when I was 10 or 11 years old to the surface. It would have been a xmas holiday in the late 1960s. The snow was a foot deep and I walked the mile to my favourite newsagents without ever seeing another person or passing car there or back. I imagined I was Scott of the Antarctic or the last person alive on an alien planet. At the shop I found that my usual comic (Smash ?) hadn’t been delivered so I bought a Mad magazine instead, trudged home, and read it by the open fire with tea and Chocolate Digestive biscuits and a warm feeling inside. Not an earth-shattering moment I know but thinking about it now that was probably the last time I ever felt all was well with the world…it was a time when my father was still alive and a time before decisions and responsibilities….
Dec 4, 2010 at 2:48 pm
I was in my early twenties when buying Cheeky Weekly 🙂
Dec 4, 2010 at 11:52 pm
Gosh! Thinking about what I was doing in my early twenties comics were the last thing on my mind. I was so much older then. I’m younger than that now…..next stop is eBay. I fancy some Rover or Wizard comics (whichever was the one that contained just text stories..)and I might even keep my eye out for a few Cheekies or Jackpots.