Lion #1
Lion #1, dated 23 February 1952, marks the launch of one of the most significant and long-running boys' adventure weeklies in British comics history — a title that would run for 1,156 issues across 22 years. Its most enduring contribution to the medium is the first appearance of Robot Archie (introduced as 'The Jungle Robot'), a remote-controlled mechanical hero who became one of British comics' most recognisable characters and whose afterlife stretched from 1960s European reprints to Grant Morrison's postmodern 2000 AD epic 'Zenith'. The issue also marks the debut of cover star Captain Condor — Amalgamated Press's direct answer to Eagle's Dan Dare — and schoolboy serial 'Sandy Dean's First Term', establishing Lion's foundational mix of science fiction, war, and school-life adventure that would define it for two decades.
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The title came into being through an internal Amalgamated Press competition in 1952: AP editor Reg Eves, responding to orders from senior management who wanted a rival to Hulton Press's enormously successful Eagle, ran a contest for the best new comic concept. Bernard Smith — a company veteran since 1922 who had worked on AP's Young Britain and The Champion — won with the Lion proposal, received a £5 prize, and was appointed the title's first editor. Eves, who had no personal interest in science fiction but was under orders to counter Dan Dare, commissioned writer Frank S. Pepper — already a seasoned boys'-paper hand — to create Captain Condor as Lion's cover feature; unusually for AP's work-for-hire culture, Pepper was allowed to retain ownership of that character. The first issue blended comic strips, illustrated text stories, factual features, and a reader competition, closely mirroring Eagle's mixed format but produced more economically on cheaper newsprint.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Cover date: 23 February 1952; published by Amalgamated Press, London.
- First appearance of Robot Archie, introduced in the strip 'The Jungle Robot', written by Ted Cowan (full name Edward George Cowan) and drawn by Alan Philpott; the robot is a remote-controlled mechanical man built by Professor C. R. Ritchie and entrusted to his nephew Ted Ritchie and Ted's friend Ken Dale.
- First appearance of Captain Condor in 'The Outlaw of Space', written by Frank S. Pepper and drawn by Ron Forbes; Condor served as Lion's cover star and Amalgamated Press's deliberate counter to Eagle's Dan Dare.
- The issue also launched 'Sandy Dean's First Term' (writer Barry Nelson), World War II strip 'The Lone Commandos' (writer Edward R. Home-Gall), and detective strip 'Brett Marlow — Detective', alongside multiple prose stories and factual features.
- 'The Jungle Robot' ran for only six months (concluding August 1952), but the character returned in 1957 as 'Archie the Robot Explorer' and was later renamed 'Robot Archie'; Ted Kearon took over as artist from 1957 and illustrated the strip for roughly 17 years until Lion's final issue in May 1974.
- Robot Archie was subsequently reprinted in the Netherlands (in Sjors, from 1959), France, India, and Spain; Grant Morrison revived him as 'Acid Archie' in 2000 AD's 'Zenith' Phase III (Prog 627, 1989), and he later appeared in the WildStorm/DC miniseries Albion (2005–06), plotted by Alan Moore.
- Rebellion Developments acquired the rights to Robot Archie (along with most IPC/Fleetway pre-1970 characters) in 2018 and began publishing collected reprints via the Treasury of British Comics imprint from 2024.
- Lion incorporated or absorbed Sun (1959), Champion (1966), Eagle (1969), and Thunder (1971) before itself merging into Valiant on 18 May 1974 after 1,156 issues.