Category Archives: 1966

Puffin Post no.1 back cover

Here it is! The final installment of the first copy of Puffin Post. The answers to the picture quiz will put some of you out of your misery – it wasn’t easy! Some of the titles have been out of print for some time!

The cheery band of puffins are singing what was to become the first verse of the the Puffin Song, which has further verses and a score that was shared with early puffineers. If I can get round to it, I’ll post that as well. (It’s a bit cheesy, but very much of its time) If someone out there is musically minded, they might like to try and record it – or not.

Coming up in the final Tuesdays before Christmas, I will post some seasonal covers and/or illustrations to cheer us up in these hard times!

Once again, a big thank you to Ruth for sharing her archive with us – it’s been a joy to breathe new life into these little gems!

Image from the collection of Ruth – Founder member 1487 – Restored S. Hassan Dec 2008

Puffin Post no.1 pages 13 and 14

Not a lot to add to this! Apart from opportunity to see the pre-TV animation artwork of Paddington. It’s easy to forget that Paddington and the other famous furry animated figures, the Wombles, both had a a very different look before they made it onto the small screen.

If you can find a copy of the original versions of these classic books, you are going to be surprised.

I had to order a copy of the first Wombles book when I attended Primary school (from the Red House Book shop as I recall) – I expected the familiar faces from my teatime viewing! What a shock!! A load of teddy bears!!

Since posting this, I received a comment that I felt I had to share – “The book ’22 Letters’ obviously had a big budget! A trip to the Mediterranean! What were they paying him?” I’m afraid I have no idea – but at that time (though it may be hard to believe for younger readers) Lebanon was the playground of the rich and famous. As a young child I knew Beirut during the early ’70’s, and even though we were under constant threat of attack from all factions, it was still a very glamorous place to be, with an amazing sense of its ancient history present in every day life.
I like to think that a budget was found to allow the illustrations to be researched in this way – it couldn’t happen today!

Image from the collection of Ruth – Founder member 1487 – Restored S. Hassan Dec 2008

Puffin Post no.1 pages 11 and 12

Slightly ahead of schedule again! This is the first part of a really nice article that is particularly of interest to visual artists – it’s not often that you can get an insight into how an artist works (well alright, Quentin Blake was on BBC4 recently talking to Mark Lawson, but that was a rare insight! You can’t count SMart any more, thanks to the BBC decision not to screen anything featuring Mark Speight ever again – don’t get me started!!)

Anyway, back to business: This is the longest of the features in this first copy of Puffin Post. It certainly paved the way for future features. The only thing that is missing is the call for young readers to send in examples of their own work! I actually miss it!

Image from the collection of Ruth – Founder member 1487 – Restored S. Hassan Nov 2008

Puffin Post no.1 pages 7 and 8

Here is the correspondents page – well, letters to Kaye that became the first letters to Puffin Post. The comments could have been made yesterday! (Apart from the lack of reference to the internet, mobile phones and JK Rowling!). The facing page is the first of three pages to tease and test the avid reader of 1966. Can you identify who the first three are?

I’m pleased to say that I scored rather well, as did my daughters.

Image from the collection of Ruth – Founder member 1487 – Restored S. Hassan Nov 2008

How rare is this?

Very rare! This is the cover of the very first Puffin Post – pre Puffin Club – which was circulated in selected books in 1966. We are very lucky that Ruth saved this amazing piece of history. As you would expect, it hasn’t escaped some wear and tear, but it has been kept very well and restoring this has proved less eye-crossing than most.

To view the ENTIRE contents of this slice of Puffinalia, return to this blog in the weeks leading up to Christmas and I will endeavour to get it posted fairly regularly.

Thanks again Ruth!

Image from the collection of Ruth – Founder member 1487 – Restored S. Hassan Oct 2008