A complete issue · 396 pages · 1847
The Mysteries of London; or, Revelations of the British Metropolis
A complete, restored issue of Penny Dreadfuls from 1847 — all 396 pages of cheap serialized Victorian sensation fiction — crime, horror, and lurid melodrama, free to page through at ComicBooks.com.
A complete issue · 396 pages · 1847
The Mysteries of London; or Revelations of the British Metropolis presents a serialized adventure narrative translated from the French by K. Stephenson. Chapter I introduces Captain Paddy O'Chrane, an Irish waterman frequenting the Crown Arms tavern on the Thames, alongside the peculiar Tyrrel the blind man and the aloof maid Susannah. After departing with a gang of sailors, O'Chrane orchestrates a smuggling operation, directing three boats laden with contraband merchandise (perfumed bales, possibly gentlemen's valises) to land beneath Temple Gardens at night. The illicit enterprise employs coded signals and trap-door systems, but fails when revenue officers intercept the flotilla near London Bridge. O'Chrane's crew employs a collapsible boat mechanism to evade capture and scatter the cargo, allowing the captain to escape and return to the tavern, where domestic conflict continues with the resilient Susannah.
Each page has its own page — the cartoon, who’s in it, and what the satire means.