Foppish hair, round glasses...no wonder Beano says Rees-Mogg’s copying Walter the Softy!
ONE has distinctive round glasses, a bookish appearance and an aristocratic air. And so does the other.
In fact, the resemblance between Jacob Rees-Mogg and Walter the Softy from The Beano is so startling that one is now claiming the other has infringed his ‘intellectual property rights’.
Yet it’s not the Tory MP taking action, but the fictional character – or more accurately, the comic’s publisher.
Mike Stirling, the head of Beano Studios Scotland, has sent a formal ‘cease and desist’ letter to the politician highlighting the striking similarities he shares with Dennis the Menace’s long-standing rival.
His tongue-in-cheek correspondence lists alleged infringements of the Beano’s copyright, including Walter’s hair parting, round glasses, vintage apparel and enjoyment of classical music.
Mr Stirling even claimed the Eurosceptic MP had copied Walter’s ‘snootiness’ and his efforts to stop others having fun.
The letter concludes: ‘A swift response on this matter would be greatly appreciated to avoid getting Teacher involved’ – a reference to the long- suffering teacher of the Bash Street Kids.
Mr Stirling said that the similarities between Walter and Mr Rees-Mogg had been spotted by young readers of the Beano, the longest-running children’s comic in Britain, and its website.
He added that it was clear Walter had devised his trademark style first – he first appeared in the Beano in 1953, 16 years before Mr Rees-Mogg’s birth in 1969.
Mr Stirling said: ‘We were flattered when we discovered Jacob Rees-Mogg has dedicated his life to impersonating one of my favourite Beano characters, young Walter.
‘Nonetheless, as a hard-working British media company, we would prefer the public gets its Walter fix in the pages of our comics and on Beano.com, rather than played out on the political stage. In other words, bog off Rees-Mogg.’
Studious and bespectacled, Walter wears a bow tie, follows the rules, always completes his homework and is easy prey for Dennis and his canine sidekick Gnasher.
Responding to the letter on Twitter, Mr Rees-Mogg said: ‘I am flattered to be accused by the Beano’s legal eagles of imitating Walter the Softy, whose powerful physical prowess is so much greater than my own.’
He is not the first politician to be compared to a Beano character. David Cameron was frequently mocked as Lord Snooty, while Owen Smith was also compared to Walter when he challenged Jeremy Corbyn for the Labour leadership in 2016.
‘I’m flattered to be accused of imitating him’