EXTRACTS: The Art of Commando (illustrators special) © 2019 The Book Palace (144 PAGES in Full edition)

68 time. And they found out to their dismay that they had let too many people go. They were so keen to off-load staff and save wages and salaries. After some months they realised that they’d cut it just closer to the bone than they should have done. However that was some years ago now. Well, all these guys that worked on Commando , they worked on The Victor and when that died the death three, if not four of them came to Commando . And all credit to DCThomson, they never sacked anybody, they never made anybody redundant. The only way you could lose your job with them would be to steal the lead off the roof or attack the bosses with a baseball bat. But they still are a very good old- fashioned family values company—a rare thing these days! PR: I’m looking at number 323, ’Operation Castaway’ came out in 1968… GL: Is it one of mine? Tell me what’s on the cover? PR: OK. It’s a chap and he’s holding onto a submarine periscope and he’s looking in the direction of a Japanese motor launch. GL: Do you like that? That was number 323? I’ve got them all Peter, all the ones I did and I finished up with about 372. But occasionally the names do ring bells, but when you said the guy hanging onto the periscope. PR: The periscope is broken…but presumably you had a real ball doing these covers. In terms of investing his characters with real personality, Gordon Livingstone was in a league of his own and nowhere was this more apparent than when it came to his depiction of children. Having been absent from Commando cover duties for the best part of 20 years he created some beautiful work for the series from 1990 to 1997 and 'Raiders From The Sea' is no exception.