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Old Beano edition inspires Jubilee masthead for sister weeklies

An editor has revealed how a 45-year-old edition of The Beano inspired a special masthead for his newspapers.

Wokingham Today and Reading Today’s Phil Creighton credited the children’s comic after inserting a Union Flag into his papers’ titles ahead of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

In a Twitter thread about the move, Phil recalled seeing the same thing as a child on The Beano’s front cover during the Silver Jubilee period in 1977.

Like in the ‘O’ of ‘Beano’ 45 years ago, he opted to put the flag design inside the ‘O’ of ‘Today’ on his papers’ mastheads.

Reading Beano

Wrote Phil: “It’s funny the things that stay with you. Back in 1977, when flares were big and silver jubilees were lovely jubbly, we could get the Beano and some sweets and still have change from 10p.

“Looking back, I’ve always been interested in graphic design, as the way they played with the masthead has been a source of fascination. Bear in mind this came out when I was still in nappies.

“This week, we’ve made a small tweak to our mastheads of Wokingham Today and Reading Today to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee – the union flag sits in the circle of the ‘O’ in ‘Today’, and it will remain there until after the Jubilee.

“The idea is not new, as this small thread shows but, like our festive mastheads, it’s a little way to acknowledge something special, a little moment in time.

“And who knows, someone else in nappies might see it and be inspired to mark a future similar significant event. Oh, and everyone we know loves The Beano – well worth buying your small people one of the best British inventions ever.”

The Jubilee will chiefly be celebrated over the course of a special Bank Holiday Weekend from 2 to 5 June.

Speaking to HTFP, Phil said:: “As a child, seeing newspapers and comics update mastheads for special occasions was always a thing of wonder and helped me get the newspaper bug – not just for the words and pictures, but for typography and graphic design, all of which form an important part of making a newspaper unique.

“I hope by doing the same, future generations of readers will be inspired.

“This little nod to the past is also a way of us acknowledging a very significant moment in our nation’s history.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what other newspapers do in the run-up to Jubilee weekend.”

The Beano edition that inspired Phil

The Beano edition that inspired Phil