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==== '''Origins''' ====
 
==== '''Origins''' ====
'''Characters'''
 
   
'''• Garth'''
+
==== '''Characters''' ====
 
First Appearance: "Garth"
 
 
As a small child the man who would become Garth was washed ashore in the Shetlands in a tiny coracle (this origin not revealed in "The Saga of Garth"). Pulled out of the sea by an elderly couple who then adopted him, Garth grew up to be incredibly strong. He became a Navy Captain, but his boat was torpedoed and the shipwrecked Garth was washed up from the sea on a wooden raft, amnesiac from his experiences, coming to land on a small island. There. he is discovered by Gala, a native girl, who introduces him to her people, and who he later saves from a despotic tyrant.
 
 
In "The 7 Ages of Garth", we discovered Garth could relive his pat incarnations - effectively travelling through time and space.
 
 
In the 1970s story "Journey into Fear" it was revealed Garth had extra-terrestrial origins. His great-grand father, Space Exploration Commander Wolfen from the planet Saturnis, fell in love with an Earth woman and Garth was the result of their relationship.
 
 
'''• Professor Lumiere'''
 
 
First Appearance: The 7 Ages of Garth
 
 
Professor Lumiere is Garth's friend and mentor, who psycho-analysed Garth and took him back through his previous incarnations in "The 7 Ages of Garth" - the first instance of Garth travelling through time and space.
 
 
'''• Astra'''
 
 
First Appearance:
 
 
Garth's true love Astra is the last of a race of ancient god-like entities dating back to ancient civilisations some 5000 years ago who had conquered the natural world and were virtually eternal - but who could not let emotions like love take hold of them, for fear of being turned to evil. A number of stories feature Astra (known to the Romans as the goddess Venus). Her nemesis is '''Baal''', the fallen Apollo who has aligned himself with the Dark Forces of Nature.
 
 
'''• Baal'''
 
 
<span>First Appearance: </span>
 
 
One thing the immortals Garth encounters could not do was fall in love, because it drove them mad. Baal became evil after his mortal sweetheart had died.
 
 
'''• Madam Voss'''
 
 
<span>First Appearance: </span>
 
 
Madam Voss used a machine to exchange brains between bodies. Her brain ended up in Garth’s body and his in her body, but eventually Garth managed to restore his mind to his own body. She would return to battle him on a number of occasions.
 
   
 
==== '''Publication''' ====
 
==== '''Publication''' ====

Revision as of 13:39, 17 August 2015

Garth is an adventure character created by Stephen Dowling whose stories across time and space ran once in the Daily Mirror (now, simply The Mirror). The strip features in the newspaper as reprints, coloured by Martin Baines.

Contributors down the years included Frank Bellamy while Peter O’Donnell of Modesty Blaise fame contributed some stories.

Origins

Characters

Publication

Daily Mirror Story Checklist

Garth - Norwegian Publication Checklist

Garth has also been re-published in France, India and Australia.

Collections

In spite of the acclaimed talent that worked on the strip, until the Noughties just five official dedicated Garth books have appeared over the years; a flip book (with Romeo Jones on the reverse) in horizontal format in the late 1950s or early 1960s; The Daily Mirror Book of Garth (1975; a softback annual with Frank Bellamy art which had topless girls censored/bikini tops added, and also in 1976; a horizontal format, Frank Bellamy art uncensored, nipples aplenty) and two Titan Books collection in the late 1980s, Cloud of Balthus and Women of Galba.

John Dakin also reprinted some great Steve Dowling/ John Allard/ Frank Bellamy complete strip collections in the 1970s.

Web Links

• Garth on the Mirror web site