"Clubland" has been buzzing around the back of my mind for many, many years.
Originally , long before social media , I was thinking about a series of cartoons featuring comic depictions of club comedians telling one line jokes.
These weren't going to be caricatures of real comedians , but my own creations drawn from the many I had seen live in the thriving Working Men's Clubs of South Yorkshire and elsewhere.
My home of choice for these cartoons was a monthly publication entitled The South Yorkshire Clubman's Guide , which was the must have magazine for lovers of live entertainment.
Other commitments put the cartoons on the back burner , but the idea was never fully forgotten
and a visit to Elsecar Heritage Centre last year brought it back to the front.
Elsecar is the home of Hot Metal Press , and amongst their many other activities , they still produce and distribute the club guide , Free Of Charge , to over 4000 clubs and venues in South Yorkshire.
Now known as The South Yorkshire Entertainer , you can download a free copy at the address below 1503-online.pdf (the-south-yorkshire-entertainer.co.uk)
I contacted them with my idea for a clubland based cartoon and they liked my initial gags enough to include them in the mag.
These were initially random gags and characters , but it quickly occurred to me that there is a main character , who I have given the name of Dicky Starr. He is an old fashioned all rounder. He sings, plays the guitar , tells jokes and even dabbles in magic and other speciality stuff. He can also be found offstage driving a taxi , or cleaning windows ... on a unicycle.
Around him is a potential miniverse including surly drummers , karaoke DJ's , and club officials.
Other artistes may emerge .
How long the piece of string is will depend upon the good people at Hot Metal Press and how long the ideas keep tumbling out of my head.
In the meantime , if my creations can make you smile , I'm happy
