Still laughing at the world, Beano at 80

THE Beano will continue to laugh at the world from ‘a kid’s-eye view’ as it celebrates its 80th birthday.

The comic, home to characters such as Dennis the Menace, Minnie the Minx and The Bash Street Kids, first hit news stands on July 30, 1938, as a companion to The Dandy, which went on sale eight months earlier.

Created by publisher DC Thomson in Dundee, it sold almost two million copies weekly in the 1950s and is still popular with children today.

Very few first issues of the Beano remain, with one selling for more than £17,000 at auction in 2015.

A series of events have been staged to mark the anniversary, with Dundee’s McManus museum renamed the McMenace for a Beano exhibition.

It includes original artwork, a first edition of the comic, fan club memorabilia, and a history of DC Thomson, with visitors encouraged to dress up as their favourite characters.

Dennis the Menace is the longestrunning character to appear in the comic, making his debut on March 17, 1951.

Mike Stirling, editorial director of Beano Studios, said: ‘It’s all underpinned by our philosophy of laughing at the world via a kid’s-eye view.’

Actor David Walliams guest edited a commemorative issue marking the anniversary, pictured. He said: ‘What I always loved about the Beano was that it felt naughty. It was a comic that you should read under the duvet with a torchlight.’