Join Dennis, Minnie the Minx and the rest of the Bash Street Kids at a new exhibition at London's Somerset House.
In recent years, Somerset House on London’s Strand has hosted some fabulous exhibitions dedicated to the heroes of comic art.
It honoured the work of the American cartoonist Charles M. Schulz, creator of Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the Peanuts gang and also the artistry of Belgium’s Hergé and his boy journalist Tintin.
Now it’s the turn of some of Britain’s most-loved and enduring comic creations: Dennis the Menace, Roger the Dodger, The Bash Street Kids, Billy Whizz and Minnie the Minx.
The gang’s all here in an exhibition called Beano: The Art of Breaking the Rules.
This colourful new show explores and celebrates the mischievous world of The Beano, charting how the comic evolved since its early days and tracing the development of its most memorable characters.
It is Somerset House’s first major exhibition since lockdown – and the only one planned before Covid that wasn’t knocked off course by the pandemic.
See how The Beano has influenced art and popular culture and explore the ways the comic has tapped into the British psyche.
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Cultural influence
There’s a fabulous section devoted to The Beano’s impact on musicians and music. David Bowie cited it, along with Madame Bovary, as a major influence. There’s the sleeve of Eric Clapton’s 1966 album, Blues Breakers, in which the rock guitarist is seen reading the comic.
There’s also Beanotown’s very own record shop with a jukebox filled with a playlist created by Bob Stanley of indie dance band Saint Etienne.
Remember The Specials? Well, there’s also a reworking of David Hockney’s famous A Bigger Splash by the band’s bassist and founding member, Horace Panter. His shirtless Dennis dives into a Los Angeles swimming pool alongside his loyal Abyssinian wire-haired tripe hound, Gnasher.
The show takes aim at the art world with an ingenious Beanotown’s Museum of Modern Art, where actual Beano-esque artworks by real artists are displayed, overseen by cut-out museum guards.
No restrictions
As any Beano fan will tell you, the comic was always about rallying against the rules imposed by adults.
In keeping with the comic’s anti-authoritarian leanings, a computerised catapult game invites young visitors to pelt great works of art with virtual tomatoes.
Visitors can also add their own statement to British contemporary artist Peter Liversidge’s collection of placards with statements like Never Go to Bed and No More Rules.
“In many ways I started working on this show since I was eight years old,” says exhibition curator, artist and lifelong Beano fan, Andy Holden.
Holden’s personal archive of Beano strips and sketches joins a wealth of exhibits from the archives of DC Thomson, the Dundee publisher that created The Beano just before the Second World War. Aptly, the exhibition catalogue takes the form of a comic.
Visitors can also learn about the writers and artists who created these iconic comic characters, like the late, great Leo Baxendale and his Bash Street Kids drawings.
“Minnie was one of my favourite characters when I was growing up,” says Laura Howell, The Beano’s first-ever woman story artist. She draws today’s Minnie, who first appeared in the comic in 1953.
“Creating Minnie today is about striking a constant balance. Between respecting what’s come before and bringing your own quirkiness to the strip.”
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Reflecting the times
Fascinating facts and quirky anecdotes are on tap throughout the show.
Learn how The Beano helped the propaganda campaign against Hitler – and how artist Dudley Watkins, who drew the top-hatted toff Lord Snooty, was exempted from military service during the Second World War because his work was deemed essential for national morale.
Be sure to check out a moving video interview with British novelist Alex Wheatle. He explains how The Beano was a lifeline to him while growing up in Shirley Oaks children’s home in south London.
The Somerset House show also charts how the comic has adapted to reflect changing times, including scenarios and portrayals not acceptable today. Dennis the Menace and Roger the Dodger are no longer given the slipper as a punishment for bad behaviour. Bash Street’s Fatty was recently renamed Freddy to stop school kids using the name as an insult.
Another section explores The Beano’s preoccupation with food, which of course, also means frequent food fights.
Rationing was introduced not long after the comic launched in 1938, and its first readers were the food-starved youngsters of post-war, austerity Britain.
Beano characters were often seen scoffing unfeasibly large plates of sweets and cakes. And then there was Dennis the Menace’s favourite dish: mounds of mashed potato studded with sausages.
Where to stay
For your own feast of bangers and mash, head to One Aldwych, the luxury Covent Garden hotel, just a stone’s throw from the exhibition. The hotel is offering guests a special Beano package for the duration of the exhibition.
You will be warmly welcomed, not least by Spencer, the hotel’s beloved pop-art paper mâché dog made from old Beano cartoons.
More information
Beano: The Art of Breaking the Rules is at London’s Somerset House until 6 March 2022 (£16 adult, £12.50 children & concessions).
The One Aldwych Beano Experience package includes accommodation for two or four guests (£489 for two in a Classic Bedroom; £832 for four in a Classic Suite), tickets to the Somerset House exhibition, breakfast and parking, and Beano-inspired cocktails and mocktails in the hotel’s Lobby Bar.
Other places to tickle your funny bones
Check out these permanent museums dedicated to comic art and cartoons, designed to spark childhood memories.
The Cartoon Museum, London
This collection, near Oxford Circus, features mostly cartoon and comic art by British artists, from the mid-18th century to the present day. It includes work by famous wartime cartoonists like David Low and modern satirists such as Ralph Steadman and Gerald Scarfe.
Donald McGill Postcard Museum, Isle of Wight
The comedic world of innuendo and double entendres of the artist Donald McGill dates back to the classic English music-hall tradition. His saucy seaside postcards are wholly politically incorrect for many but an integral part of childhood and English social history to others. Decide for yourself at this small museum in Ryde dedicated to him.
Heath Robinson Museum, London
Housed in a little pavilion in Pinner Memorial Park, northwest London, this museum is dedicated to the peculiar genius of illustrator and cartoonist William Heath Robinson, renowned for his absurd inventions and curious contraptions. He originally trained as a serious artist at the Royal Academy and only turned to humorous drawings to pay the bills. The museum is only open from Thursday to Sunday but features hundreds of the artist’s drawings and comic illustrations.