Comic Boom - Comics in Education

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In this episode Lucy is joined by writer, influencer and comics fan Claire Linney.

Claire Linney is a children’s author and book influencer. A lifelong reader she is passionate about advocating for more diverse representation in literature for children and teenagers. After working in marketing for over twenty years, she stumbled across Black Tudors: The Untold Story, which inspired her to want to bring the hidden stories of Black British history to life for the next generation. Her debut children's book Time Tub Travellers and the Silk Thief won the Ink Book Prize 2024, the Reader's Choice for The Diverse Book Awards 2025 and was Highly Commended in the Selfies Book Awards 2025

Claire's Recommendations from the episode:
Lightfall by Tim Probert
The work of Neill Cameron (catch Neill's episodes here and here)
Supanova by Chante Timothy
Blue, Barry and Pancakes by Dan Abdo, Jason Patterson
Squid Happens by Isabel Roxas
Rex Power by Ramzee and Claude T.C
Squire by Nadia Shammas and Sara Alfageeh (catch Sara's episode here)
Brooms by Jasmine Walls and Teo DuVall
Luna Boy by Jes and Cin Wibowo

Lucy's recommendations:
I love this part by Tillie Walden
Unicorn Boy by Dave Roman
Unfairies by Huw Aaron
Making Non-fiction Comics by Eleri Harris and Sarah Mirk

Follow Claire:
Insta: @claire_linney

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Bluesky: @comicboom.bsky.social

Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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In this episode Lucy is joined by Helen Jones and Hannah Lee Miller, the Co-Driectors of Yo Comics - a Comics Fair for and by Kids, run in South London at Stanley Arts.

Helen Jones is a lecturer in Primary Education at UCL Institute of Education and a PhD candidate at Goldsmiths. Alongside Lucy Starbuck Braidley, she has written a soon to be published book about comics in the classroom. Helen edited the book Children’s Literature In Action and has published her work academically.

You can access her previous episode on Comic Boom, where she discusses her research further here.

Hannah Lee Miller has worked for many years in chidlren's television production, including shows like Peppa Pig and Hey Dugee. She is also an artistwho creates her own comics and has organised multiple events including comics fair. 

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Hannah's Recommendation:

Spiral Bound by Aaron Renier

Helen's Recommendation:

Comic in the Classroom by Helen Jones and Lucy Starbuck Braidley

Lucy's Recommendation:

Delicious in Dungeon by Ryoko Kui

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Bluesky: @comicboom.bsky.social

Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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In this episode I chat with award winning comics creator, Neill Cameron.

Neill Cameron is a cartoonist and writer, creator of the comic books Mega Robo Bros,   Since 2011 his work has appeared in the weekly children’s comic The Phoenix. In 2016 Mega Robo Bros and Tamsin and the Deep were both shortlisted for the British Comics Awards. In 2017, Mega Robo Bros won the Excelsior Award Jr, a national comic award voted for by school and library reading groups across the UK. In 2018 Mega Robo Bros was chosen as one of the best children's comics of the year by both the New York Public Library and the Schools Library Journal.

MOre recently Neill has become known for the brilliant Donut Squad Series, run as a series of comic strips in The Phoenix, and later collected in books.

This interview first appeared as a written article in Books for Keeps, the Uk's leading, independent children's book magazine.

Neill's recommendation from the show: Go Man! by Hamish Steele

Lucy's recommendation from the show: Raised by Ghosts by Briana Loweinsohn

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Follow Neill on Insta  @neillcameron

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Bluesky: @comicboom.bsky.social

Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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Following on from the last episode, in which Lucy chatted to writer Hannah Tunnicliffe and illustrator Erica Harrison, creators of Detective Stanley and the Mystery at the Museum. This episode - part two of the double bill - follows the journey of creation of a graphic novel from commission right through to sales and marketing.

Lucy is joined by:

Fay Evans – Editorial Director

Kate Manning – Head of Sales

Hannah Kettle – Head of Marketing & Publicity

Helena Maratheftis – Digital Marketing Co-Ordinator

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Lucy's recommendation:
Frog in the Fall (and later on) by Linnea Sterte Peow

- I got the Slip case edition from Gosh Comics! 

Flying Eye's recommendations:

Rune : Tales of a Thousand Faces by Carlos Sanchez
Luna Boy by Jess and Cin Wobowo
Ditching Saskia by John Moore and Neetols
Froggy: A Pond Full of Pals by Paige Walsh
Young Hag by Isabel Greenberg

Connect with Flying Eye:
Insta: @flyingeyebooks 
X: @flyingeyebooks
BlueSky: @flyingeyebooks

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Bluesky: @comicboom.bsky.social

Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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In this episode Lucy chats to writer Hannah Tunnicliffe and illustrator Erica Harrison, creators of Detective Stanley and the Mystery at the Museum.

This episode is the first in a two part special focusing on the Flying Eye title Detective Stanley Mystery at the Museum. In this, the first episode we’ll meet the creators of the book themselves and in the second the marketing, sales and editorial team at Flying Eye to talk about the other side of bringing a book into the world.

The book is from a New Zealand based creative duo - Hannah Tunnicliffe and Erica Harrison. Hannah is an author, essayist, podcaster, speaker, and mental health advocate, she has written fiction for adults. Detective Stanley and the Mystery at the Museum is her first book for children. It’s a graphic reader with illustrations by the very talented, Erica Harrison, who also joins us for this episode. Erica is a  designer, illustrator and printmaker with decades of experience designing and illustrating children's fiction.

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Lucy's recommendation:
Unicorn Boy by Dave Roman
Erica's recommendation:
 Myths and Monsters and Mayhem in Ancient Greece by James Davies 

Connect with Hannah and Erica:
Insta: @hannahtunnicliffe.author
Insta: @supercrafti

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Bluesky: @comicboom.bsky.social

Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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In this episode Lucy chats to comic book artist, writer and illustrator Jamie Smart

It feels he needs no introduction! I celebrate 50* episodes of comic boom, with the one, the only, Jamie Smart. Jamie’s characters and the colourful worlds they inhabit have graced the pages of many a national institutions; The Dandy, The Beano, The DFC and The Phoenix. His long running weekly strip 'Bunny Vs Monkey' is still going strong in The Phoenix and is collated into the hugely popular, best selling and multi-award winning  Bunny vs Monkey books. 

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

*Actually 49...ooops! #notthe50thepisode

Lucy's recommendation:
Anzu and the Realm of Darkness by Mai K. Nguyen

Connect with Jamie:
X: @Jamiesmart
Bluesky: jamiesmart

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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In this episode Lucy chats to illustrator Yiting Lee and writer  Swapna Haddow about their latest titles with publishers Magic Cat, Little Dinosaurs, Big Questions. 

Little Dinosaurs, Big Questions, features ten fictional comic strip stories with supportive tools to help understand the difficult things about life. Designed for grown-ups to read with children.

 Yiting is a children’s book author and illustrator from Taiwan, based in England. Yiting graduated from MA Children's Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art in 2012. She focuses on picture books, and whimsical and unpredictable stories are something she always loves to deliver. She likes to keep the story simple and the illustration full, because she knows children love looking into those details like she did. In her illustration, she mainly uses watercolour, gouache, ink, colour pencils and whatever she newly discovered. 

Swapna Haddow is the multi award-winning children’s author of the Dave Pigeon series, published by Faber & Faber. The Dave Pigeon series has received rave reviews since first publishing in 2016 and went on to win three regional awards in the UK and was shortlisted for the prestigious Sainsbury’s Children’s Book Award. Swapna loves to write about boisterous animals that cause mayhem and is working with Faber & Faber, Magic Cat, Scholastic, Oxford University Press and Macmillan to make sure mean cats, grizzly bears and big-hearted little rabbits find their place on the bookshelves. Friendship and humour are always at the heart of what she loves to write.

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Yiting’s Recommendation:

Spike and Suzy by Willy Wandersteen

Swapna’s Recommendation:

This Land by Mark Abnet

Lucy’s Recommendation:

Ditching Saskia by John Moore and Neetols

Follow the podcast:

Insta: @comic_boom_podcast

Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley

Bluesky: @comicboom.bsky.social

Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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In this episode Lucy chats to Edinburgh based comic book artist, writer and illustrator Edward Ross.

With an early and obsessive interest in cinema and comics, it wasn’t until after studying Film at university that he managed to combine these two interests in the form of his self-published Filmish comics. Well received by both movie fans and academics, Edward released four issues of the series between 2009 and 2013, before beginning work on Filmish – A Graphic Journey Through Film for SelfMadeHero. The book won a YASLA 2017 Great Graphic Novels for Teens award and has been translated into eight languages.

His second graphic novel Gamish – A Graphic History of Gaming  (for Penguin) explores the amazing history of games. A love-letter to gaming in all its forms, the book sheds light on why games fascinate and compel us.

His latest book is Graphic Novel Builder: The Illustrated Guide to Making Your Own Comics, a fun and accessible guide to creativity for ages 11+.

Edward has also worked on a number of science themed comics in collaboration with Dr. James Hall for universities, museums, charities and research bodies. He often runs comic classes and workshops.

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Edward's recommendation:
I Shall Never fall in Love by Harry Connor

Lucy's recommendation:
Rune: The Tale of a thousand Faces by Carlos Sanchez

Connect with Edward:
www.edwardross.co.uk
Instagram: @filmishcomic
X: @edward_ross
Bluesky: edwardross

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

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In this episode Lucy chats to UK Comics Laureate Bobby Joseph.

Bobby Joseph is an acclaimed South London comic creator whose work has often
challenged and inspired its readers. His early work includes the creation of cult
comic classic Skank magazine, where his best-known strip, “Scotland Yardie”, first
featured, and was later published by Knockabout Press.

He has written for The Guardian newspaper, Dazed and Confused, and Vice.com.
His comic work was a prominent feature at the Anarchy in the UK comic exhibition
at the British Library in 2015 and was seen by over 60,000 visitors.

Since the beginning of his career, he has been a vocal advocate for diversity and
representation in comic books. His graphic novel, Scotland Yardie, published by
Knockabout Comics in 2017, was the first diverse graphic novel to be studied as a
module on an English Literature MA course at King’s College, London.  He is the
first POC to become Comics Laureate for the UK.

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Find our more about the Lakes International Comics Art Festival here.

Bobby's recommendations:
American Splendor by Harvey Pekar
Maus by Art Spiegelman
Alpha by Jens Harder

Bobby's recommended reading lists can be found here.

Episodes linked to Bobby's lists
Sayra Begum
Pedro Martin
Emma Reynolds
Mark Bradley

Lucy's recommendation:
Here's the comic strip 'Are Comics Serious Literature?' that I referenced, it's by Michael Kupperman and make me laugh!

Connect with Bobby:
Instagram: @bobbyjosephcomics

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

All content © 2024 Comic Boom - Co

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In this episode Lucy chats to illustrator and graphic novelist Isabel Greenberg.

Isabel is a London based illustrator and writer and the author of three acclaimed graphic novels; The Encylopedia Of Early Earth (2015, Jonathan Cape, Little Brown), The One Hundred Nights Of Hero (2017, Jonathan Cape, Little Brown.) and her latest Glass Town (2020, Jonathan Cape, Abrams Books.)
She is the illustrator of a number of children’s books including One Hundred Billion Trillion Stars, Power Up and The Ocean In Your Bathtub (written by Seth Fishman. Greenwillow Books). As well as several history books with her sister Imogen published by Bloomsbury. 

Isabel studied illustration at the University of Brighton and an MA in animation at the Royal College of Art.

She is an associate lecturer at Camberwell College of Arts, UAL

This episode of Comic Boom is sponsored by ALCS, The Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

Find our more about the Lakes International Comics Art Festival here.

Isabel's recommendations:
Roaming by Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki

Lucy's book post included:
A selection of titles from Scholastic:

My Big Fat Smelly Poo Diary by Jim Smith
Nina Peanut - Mega Mystery Solver by Sarah Bowie

Connect with Isabel:
Instagram: @isabel_greenberg

Follow the podcast:
Insta: @comic_boom_podcast
Twitter/X: @Lucy_Braidley
Contact: [email protected]

Music by John_Sib from Pixabay

All content © 2024 Comic Boom - Co