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Chris Donald (born 25 April 1960 in Newcastle, England) is the founder of, and one of the principal contributors to, the British comic magazine Viz .
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Chris Donald (born 25 April 1960 in Newcastle, England) is the founder of, and one of the principal contributors to, the British comic magazine Viz .
Donald attended West Jesmond Primary School, [1] and then Heaton Comprehensive School, where he failed his A-levels. His Arts teacher John Dixon, who Donald recalls as never being present during art lessons, claims to have seen the original draft Viz cartoon drawings and advised Chris "to give it up, and find a proper job!" The forerunner of Viz was in fact a series of small comic booklets, titled "The Fat Crusader", drawn on the back of Esso Blue invoice pads and secretly circulated around classrooms at Heaton School – first amongst pupils, and later penetrating the staff room – between 1976 and 1978. In October 1978, having failed to achieve sufficient qualifications to continue his "education", Donald began work as a clerical officer at the DHSS central office in Longbenton, Newcastle.
Donald, together with his brother Simon and a schoolfriend Jim Brownlow, set up Viz in December 1979 from a bedroom in Jesmond, Newcastle. [2] He was editor (or head of the "editorial cabinet") for many years but retired from day-to-day duties in 1999, and now only contributes occasional cartoons. He has since written a personal history of Viz magazine entitled Rude Kids.
In an interview on Channel 4 News, Donald paid tribute to Spike Milligan on his death and cited him and Monty Python as the two major influences on Viz.
During the latter years of his tenure as the editor of Viz, Donald opened a hugely unsuccessful restaurant at a former railway station at Ilderton in Northumberland. It opened in 1994 and closed three years later than it should have done, in 1997.
Between 2002 and 2008, Donald worked as a shop assistant, and later shop manager, at Barter Books in Alnwick, Northumberland. At around this time he was also Fixtures Secretary of the Belford & District Pool League, as well as editor of the annual Powburn Agricultural Show programme.
In 2016 he became a top soul DJ on BBC Radio Newcastle and BBC Radio Tees, presenting a weekly show, "Chris Donald’s Soul Club". In 2020, the show was taken off air during the pandemic. Since late 2020 he has presented "Chris Donald’s Imaginary Soul Club" on Nova Radio North East.
Viz is a British adult comic magazine founded in 1979 by Chris Donald. It parodies British comics of the post-war period, notably The Beano and The Dandy, but with extensive profanity, toilet humour, black comedy, surreal humour and generally sexual or violent storylines. It also sends up tabloid newspapers, with mockeries of articles and letters pages. It features parody competitions and advertisements for overpriced 'limited edition' tat, as well as obsessions with half-forgotten kitsch celebrities from the 1960s to the 1980s, such as Shakin' Stevens and Rodney Bewes. Occasionally, it satirises current affairs and politicians, but it has no particular political standpoint.
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located on the River Tyne's northern bank opposite Gateshead to the south. It is the most populous settlement in the Tyneside conurbation and North East England.
Simon Donald is a co-founder and former co-editor of the British comic magazine Viz.
Sid the Sexist is a character from the British satirical comic Viz, first appearing in issue 9 in October 1982. The strip was created and mostly drawn by Simon Donald until he left the magazine in 2003, when Paul Palmer took over as artist.
Student Grant is a cartoon strip created by Simon Thorp for the British comic Viz. Grant first appeared in 1992 and became popular, featuring regularly for the rest of the decade. The character is a university student named Grant Wankshaft, attending the fictional Spunkbridge University, one of the former polytechnics which became universities in 1992. Grant is pretentious, lazy, smug and conceited, and peppers his speech with the word "actually". He does little or no work for his degree.
Zit was an adult British comic that was published by Humour Publications UK, beginning with a free sample issue in January 1991, then issue number 1 the following month. The final issue, number 143, was published in May 2002.
Byker is a district in the east of the city and metropolitan borough of Newcastle upon Tyne, in the county of Tyne and Wear, England. Home to the Byker Wall estate, made famous by TV series Byker Grove, Byker's population was recorded at 12,206 in the 2011 census. Byker is bordered by Heaton to the north and by Shieldfield to the north east. Until 1974 it was in Northumberland.
Newcastle upon Tyne East was a constituency of the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. It was held by Nick Brown, an independent formerly of the Labour Party, from its recreation in 2010 until its abolition for the 2024 general election.
Heaton is a district and suburb in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, in Tyne and Wear, England, two miles east of the city centre. It is bordered by the neighbouring areas of Walkergate to the east, Jesmond to the north west, Byker to the south, and Sandyford to the west. The name Heaton means high town, referring to the area "being situated on hills above the Ouseburn, a tributary of the River Tyne." The area is divided into South Heaton, and High Heaton, representing the north, respectively. For city council elections, the area is split between three wards: Heaton, Manor Park and Ouseburn. Until 1974 it was in Northumberland.
Kev F. Sutherland is a Scottish comedian, caricaturist, and comic strip creator. He has drawn for a variety of publications, including The Beano. He has produced several shows at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, including The Sitcom Trials and The Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre.
Graham Dury is a British cartoonist. He is known for his work with Viz, having contributed to the magazine from its early years. He co-conceived and personally created The Fat Slags, one of the magazine's most famous strips.
Jesmond Park Academy is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form located in Heaton, Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
Wavis O'Shave is a surreal English musician and comedian, who regularly appeared on Channel 4's music show, The Tube (1982–1987).
Jesmond is a suburb of Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England, situated north of the city centre and to the east of the Town Moor. Jesmond is considered to be one of the most affluent suburbs of Newcastle upon Tyne, with higher average house prices than most other areas of the city.
Christopher Alfred Goode, better known as Chris Cross, is an English magician, escapologist, and former contortionist. He has performed worldwide and appeared on British television.
Terrence St John "Terry" Fuckwitt is a recurring character in the British comic Viz, in a strip subtitled "the unintelligent cartoon character".
William Gillies Whittaker was an English composer, pedagogue, conductor, musicologist, Bach scholar, publisher and writer. He spent his life promoting music. The University of Durham, where he once studied and taught, called him one of "Britain's most influential musicians during the first half of the twentieth century". An autodidact, he was a prodigious creator of Gebrauchsmusik.
Frank West Rich was an English architect who mainly worked in the Newcastle upon Tyne area.
Sandyford House is a large office development on Sandyford Road in Sandyford, Newcastle upon Tyne. It was the offices and meeting place of Tyne and Wear County Council from its formation in 1974 until it was abolished in 1986.
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