Hatch, Match & Dispatch – December 2025 – Rusty Staples

Welcome to our regular look at British comics that are celebrating (or commiserating) a notable anniversary in the coming month!

Blog News:

• Not a great deal of much happening this month, folks, mostly because of work-related not-having-enough-timeness, but we do have a brand new entry in our sporadic Comics on TV series!

Standard disclaimer: unless I decide otherwise, these are only the “big” anniversaries (25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 60, 70, 75, 80, 90 & 100+ years); dates are cover-dates where known; monthly comics with no confirmed day of launch default to the start of the month; and this list is accurate only to the best of my knowledge, so do please let me know of any important errors or omissions!

Previous episodes of Hatch, Match & Dispatch:
2019: Oct, Nov, Dec
2020: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2021: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2022: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2023: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2024: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2025: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov

30 years ago:

December – SuperTed final issue.
Publisher: Marvel UK/Redan
From: 10 Mar 1990
To: Dec 1995
Duration: 5 years, 9 months
Issues: 61
Fortnightly at first, monthly from #21 (6 Dec 1990). This one might not actually be correct: #61 is the latest that’s been confirmed, but it’s possible there were more.

27 December – The Ren and Stimpy Show final issue.
Publisher: Marvel UK
From: 19 Oct 1994
To: 27 Dec 1995
Duration: 1 year, 2 months
Issues: 16
Published every four weeks.

35 years ago:

December – Sphinx launched.
Publisher:
From: Dec 1990
To: Unknown
Duration: Unknown
Issues: Unknown
It’s possible that this adult-oriented comic only lasted for one issue.

December – The Dreamstone launched.
Publisher: London Editions
From: Dec 1990
To: Aug 1991
Duration: 8 months
Issues: 6
Bi-monthly. Based on an animated show.

December – The Complete Spider-Man launched.
Publisher: Marvel UK
From: Dec 1990
To: Sep 1992
Duration: 1 year, 9 months
Issues: 24
Each issue reprinted four (fairly recent) US comics, usually from Spider-Man, Amazing Spider-Man, Spectacular Spider-Man and Web of Spider-Man.

40 years ago:

December – Conqueror Universe launched.
Publisher: Harrier Comics
From: Dec 1985
To: Dec 1985
Duration:
Issues: 2

December – Conqueror Universe final issue.
Publisher: Harrier Comics
From: Dec 1985
To: Dec 1985
Duration:
Issues: 2

December – Conqueror final issue.
Publisher: Harrier Comics
From: Aug 1984
To: Dec 1985
Duration: 1 year, 4 months
Issues: 9
Absorbed into Swiftsure.

14 December – Spider-Man Comics Weekly final issue.
Publisher: Marvel UK
From: 17 Feb 1973
To: 14 Dec 1985
Duration: 12 years, 10 months
Issues: 666
Retitled many times, mostly due to mergers with other Marvel titles. See also: Branding: Spider-Man Comics Weekly

45 years ago:

December – Walt Disney’s Puzzle Time final issue.
Publisher: IPC
From: Aug 1979
To: Dec 1980
Duration: 1 year, 4 months
Issues: 17
Absorbed into Mickey Magazine (see below)

06 December – Mickey Magazine launched.
Publisher: IPC
From: 06 Dec 1980
To: 28 Mar 1981
Duration: 3 months
Issues: 17
Relaunch of Mickey Mouse
This one was a relaunch/rebranding of Mickey Mouse (263 issues from 25 Oct 1975 to 29 Nov 1980). The numbering is contiguous so usually I wouldn’t include this as a separate publication, but it does seem to have quite radically changed its format… so for now, it’s in.

50 years ago:

20 December – Noddy Time final issue.
Publisher: Woman’s Way
From: 10 May 1975
To: 20 Dec 1975
Duration: 7 months
Issues: 33
We know that Noddy Time lasted for at least 33 issues, but the actual date and number of the final issue have not been confirmed.

60 years ago:

December – Giant War Picture Library final issue.
Publisher: Fleetway
From: Jun 1964
To: Dec 1965
Duration: 1 year, 6 months
Issues: 76

December – The Wide World final issue.
Publisher: Newnes
From: Apr 1898
To: Dec 1965
Duration: 67 years, 8 months
Issues: 805
Absorbed into Geographical Magazine.

65 years ago:

December – Confessions Library final issue.
Publisher: Amalgamated Press/Fleetway
From: Feb 1959
To: Dec 1960
Duration: 1 year, 10 months
Issues: 68
Renamed Romantic Confessions Picture Library from #45.

December – Super Detective Library final issue.
Publisher: Fleetway
From: Mar 1953
To: Dec 1960
Duration: 7 years, 9 months
Issues: 188
Renamed Super Detective Picture Library from #155

31 December – Picture Show final issue.
Publisher: Amalgamated Press
From: 03 May 1919
To: 31 Dec 1960
Duration: 41 years, 7 months
Issues: 2170 (est.)
Issue-count estimated. Absorbed Film Star Weekly, Film Pictorial, TV Mirror

85 years ago:

December – Tip Top Comics launched.
Publisher: L. Miller and Son, Ltd.
From: Dec 1940
To: Jan 1941
Duration: 1 month
Issues: 2
Not to be confused with Tip Top from Amalgamated Press or Tip Top Comic from Ransom.

90 years ago:

07 December – Week End Novels final issue.
Publisher: Amalgamated Press
From: 01 Oct 1919
To: 07 Dec 1935
Duration: 16 years, 2 months
Issues: 845 (est.)
Absorbed into Betty’s Paper. Issue-count is an estimation based on the publication’s duration and weekly frequency.

105 years ago:

December – Wolf Cub final issue.
Publisher: Pearson
From: Dec 1916
To: Dec 1920
Duration: 4 years
Issues: 48
Absorbed into The Scout.
An eight-page monthly publication.

110 years ago:

09 December – Girls’ Mirror launched.
Publisher: Shurey’s Publications
From: 09 Dec 1915
To: 22 Jan 1934
Duration: 18 years, 1 month
Issues: 948

115 years ago:

December – The New Buffalo Bill Library final issue.
Publisher: Aldine Publishing Company
From: Oct 1899
To: Dec 1910
Duration: 11 years, 2 months
Issues: 240
Relaunched as Buffalo Bill Library.
Renamed The New Buffalo Bill Library New Series from #85, Buffalo Bill Library from #205, relaunched as same title after #240

21 December – The Merry-Thought & Scraps final issue.
Publisher: James Henderson
From: 07 May 1910
To: 21 Dec 1910
Duration: 7 months
Issues: 35
Title reverts to The Merry-Thought from issue #22.

120 years ago:

01 December – Tales for Little People (1905) launched.
Publisher: Aldine House
From: 01 Dec 1905
To: Oct 1923 (est.)
Duration: 17 years, 6 months (est.)
Issues: 692
Final date estimated: the publication was relaunched in November 1923, so it seems likely that this version ended in October or November of that year.