Reg Smythe, Creator of Andy Capp

Reg Smythe, creator of Andy Capp, was considered by journalist and broadcaster Paul Slade to be the greatest British newspaper strip cartoonist of the 20th Century – second only to Peanuts’ Charles Schulz. Reg wrote and drew every line of his strip himself, achieving a standard which he kept up for over 40 years. He was certainly the first British cartoonist to break into the American market – amazing for a character who Reg would call ‘an ‘orrible, stroppy little beggar like Andy!’

This deeply personal biography charts his impoverished childhood and formative relationships, through to international recognition and his last years as a semi recluse in the North of England. It gives a revealing insight into the man behind the cartoon, often in Reg’s own words, and features never before seen early drawings and sketches.