EXTRACTS: PIRATE TALES Fleetway Picture Library Classics © 2020 Book Palace Books * 272 PAGES IN FULL EDITION

FLEETWAY PICTURE LIBRARY ™ CLA SS IC S 8 (real name, Joan Whitford), it relates the adventures of a Cornish gentleman who, through a trick of fate, becomes a Barbary pirate. Incidentally, the classic 1940 Errol Flynn film of the same name bears no relation to Sabatini’s novel. Robert Forrest was a master at conveying all periods of history with utter accuracy while at the same time never allowing authenticity to get in the way of the action. Many would say that his best work were the three ‘Victorian Gothic’ strips he drew later for the Library : ‘The Picture of Dorian Grey’, ‘The Mystery of the Red Barn’ and ‘Jack Thurtell, Gentleman Thief ’. In these stories Forrest revels in the contrast between the high class homes of the gentry and the ill-lit streets and filthy alleyways of fog-shrouded London. In the late fifties, Forrest drew three more classic stories of terror for Top Spot , a short-lived paper aimed at teenagers: ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ by Robert Louis Stevenson, ‘Lord Arthur Saville’s Crime’ by Oscar Wilde and ‘The Queen of Spades’ by Alexander Pushkin. However, the quality of these classic ‘horror’ strips must not allow us to overlook his other fine work. In later issues of the Thriller Picture Library (as it was re-named) he drew a number of full-length adaptations of western novels, convincingly displaying his rapport with all the essential elements of the genre. In 1964 Forrest painted his first full colour strip, ‘The Story of Abraham’, for the short-lived Bible Story and then began contributing a number of adaptations of classic stories to Look and Learn , including Shakespeare’s ‘Julius Caesar’ and Conan Doyle’s ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’. In late 1968, shortly before his death, Forrest began work on his first colour strip for Look and Learn , ‘The Life and Death of Richard III’. The strip is full of drama, horror and pageantry but, sadly, he was unable to finish the very last episode, which was painted by Eric Parker. It is pleasing that Forrest’s last work for comics should be of such a high standard, containing all the elements of his art which made it so unique: historical accuracy, action and movement, a great feeling for atmosphere and, when required, a powerful sense of menace and horror.