Dave Thorpe

Last updated
Dave Thorpe
Born1954 (age 69–70)
United Kingdom
OccupationComic book writer, novelist
Nationality British
Period1981 -
Genre Science fiction, superhero
Notable works Captain Britain
Hybrids
Website
davidthorpe.info

Dave Thorpe (born 1954, died April 2024) was a British writer who is best known for his work on Captain Britain .

Contents

Biography

David Thorpe's career began when he joined Marvel UK in 1980 as an assistant editor and art assistant. He soon started writing Captain Britain , helping to revamp the character with Paul Neary and Alan Davis in Marvel Superheroes issue #377. He created many of the characters later used by Alan Moore and wrote the character till issue #386 (Moore took over the writing duties from issue #387). Thorpe and Davis (both doing some of their earliest professional comics work) created Mad Jim Jaspers and wrote the story that would lead into the Jaspers' Warp storyline. The political commentaries in Thorpe's stories ignited conflicts with his editors, leading to his being taken off the series; Davis later commented, "Dave's departure was the result of months of petty politics and very unpleasant." [1] Thorpe's material was reprinted in 1995, in the X-Men archives: Captain Britain limited series, and later trade paperbacks.

Davis credits Thorpe with coming up with the term Earth-616, the designation for the main universe in the Marvel Multiverse. He says it was based on 616, a variation on the Number of the Beast, because "Dave Thorpe, who wasn't a fan of the modern superhero genre, was responsible for most of the more madcap or satirical elements — such as recording his opinion of the Marvel Universe with the designation 616." [2] Thorpe himself argues that he was always a confirmed fan of superheroes.

Thorpe's next work of note was Doc Chaos (1985–1990). Doc Chaos was a commissioned TV series, two comics series, and a novella. Limehouse Productions commissioned scripts, which were co-written by Thorpe with Lawrence Gray. A comics version achieved a cult following. The first series was serialised by Rob Sharp's AntiMatter Comics, then collected into books by Paul Gravett's Escape. In North America it was published by Vortex Comics, with cover designs by Rian Hughes. The scripts were adapted into comics by artists Phil Elliott, Duncan Fegredo, and Steve Sampson.

A novella, Doc Chaos: The Chernobyl Effect, was published in 1988 by Hooligan Press, with illustrations by comics artists Simon Bisley, Brian Bolland, Brett Ewins, Duncan Fegredo, Rian Hughes, Lin Jammett, Pete Mastin, Dave McKean, Savage Pencil, Ed Pinsent and Bryan Talbot. An e-book version, with an added story: Doc Chaos: The Last Laugh, was published in 2012 by Cambria Books.

He was a co-founder of the London Screenwriters Workshop in 1983, pursuing a freelance script writing career, and a co-founder of the successor to The Leveller magazine, Monochrome Newspaper, a free, left-wing/anarchist street newspaper which he co-edited and for which he wrote from 1983–1988. During the 1980s he also worked as a comics writer or editor with Marvel Comics, Titan Books, Vortex Comics, Eclipse Comics (writing The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union trading cards), Escape (magazine), Spiderbaby Grafix and Alan Moore's Mad Love comics, also with MacdonaldFutura, HarperCollins, Oxfam (How the World Works) and Greenpeace. Various cartoon strips in journals have also been published. Thorpe conceived, commissioned, and edited a series of titles on behalf of Macdonald-Futura matching best-selling literary authors with notable comics artists, a project forced to be abandoned upon the suicide of that publisher's owner, Kevin Maxwell. One title in the series was taken up by another publisher: Doris Lessing's Playing the Game, published by HarperCollins.

In the 1990s, until 1999, Thorpe founded and managed the Publications arm of the Centre for Alternative Technology, which commissioned and published approximately 90 titles under his supervision. The most well-known of these is The Whole House Book, written by Cindy Harris and Pat Borer.

Thorpe was the winner of the 2006 HarperCollins/Saga Magazine contest to find the "new J.K. Rowling" with his novel Hybrids, published by HarperCollins in May 2007. In it, a virus causes teenagers to merge with technology in a terror-filled near-future world. "Hybrids" is “a stunningly clever novel” - The Times.

Thorpe is now a consultant, speaker and author in the fields of carbon-free energy and sustainable development.

David Thorpe is a founding member of the One Planet Council (2014), Special Consultant on Sustainable Cities Collective, and was from 2000–2013 the (part-time) News Editor of Energy and Environmental Management magazine, on which website he also had a weekly op-ed column. He is the author of several books and hundreds of articles on related subjects.

David Thorpe died in April 2024.

Bibliography

Non-fiction

Comics

Novels

Notes

  1. ↑ Lowrey, Nigel (August 2008). "The Saga of Captain Britain". Back Issue! (29). Raleigh, North Carolina: TwoMorrows Publishing: 39–41.
  2. ↑ Earth 616, Tom Brevoort's blog at Marvel.com (May 29, 2007).

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Excalibur (comics)</span> Marvel Comics superhero group

Excalibur is a fictional superhero group appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are depicted as an offshoot of the X-Men, usually based in the United Kingdom. Conceived by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer Alan Davis, they first appeared in Excalibur Special Edition #1 (1987), also known as Excalibur: The Sword is Drawn. Stories involving this team have featured elements of both the X-Men and Captain Britain franchises, frequently involving cross-dimensional travel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Captain Britain</span> Marvel Comics fictional character

Captain Britain is a title used by various superheroes in comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with Excalibur. The moniker was first used in publication by Brian Braddock in Captain Britain #1 by writer Chris Claremont and artist Herb Trimpe, and is currently held by Brian's twin sister, Betsy Braddock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meggan (character)</span> Comics character

Meggan Puceanu is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, usually as a supporting character in stories featuring Captain Britain, and the X-Men. A mutant empath and shapeshifting elemental, she was created by writer Alan Moore and artist Alan Davis, and first appeared in Mighty World of Marvel #7, which was published in the United Kingdom by Marvel's British publication arm, Marvel UK. Her first appearance in an American Marvel publication was in The New Mutants Annual #2 (1986). She eventually chose the codename Gloriana, a name of victory coined by the demons of Hell.

In the fictional Marvel Comics multiverse, Earth-616 is the primary continuity in which most Marvel Comics titles take place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Davis</span> English artist and writer

Alan Davis is an English artist and writer of comic books, known for his work on titles such as Captain Britain, The Uncanny X-Men, ClanDestine, Detective Comics, Excalibur, JLA: The Nail and JLA: Another Nail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marvel UK</span> Imprint of Marvel Comics that has become defunct since 1995

Marvel UK was an imprint of Marvel Comics formed in 1972 to reprint US-produced stories for the British weekly comic market. Marvel UK later produced original material by British creators such as Alan Moore, John Wagner, Dave Gibbons, Steve Dillon, and Grant Morrison.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fury (Marvel Comics)</span> Marvel Comics supervillain

The Fury is a fictional android character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, initially in the UK and later in the US. The character is usually depicted as an adversary of Captain Britain and the X-Men. The character was created by writer Alan Moore and artist Alan Davis, and first appeared in Marvel Super-Heroes #387.

Young Allies is the name of three superhero teams appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Time Variance Authority</span> Fictional organization appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics

The Time Variance Authority (TVA) is a fictional organization appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is depicted as a group of timeline monitors tasked with preventing certain timelines that are deemed too dangerous to the Multiverse from existing.

Michael Anglo was a British comic book writer, editor and artist, as well as an author. He was best known for creating the superhero Marvelman, later known as Miracleman.

<i>The Daredevils</i> Comic book series

The Daredevils was a comics magazine and anthology published by Marvel UK in 1983. Aimed for a more sophisticated audience than typical light superhero adventures, The Daredevils featured Captain Britain stories by Alan Moore and Alan Davis paired with reprints of Frank Miller's Daredevil stories. It has been speculated this was in response to Dez Skinn's new anthology Warrior.

<i>The Mighty World of Marvel</i> Comic book series

The Mighty World Of Marvel was a British comic book series published first by Marvel UK and then by Panini Comics. Debuting on 30 September 1972, it was the first title published by Marvel UK and ran until 1984. The series was revived in 2003 by Panini Comics, who are licensed to reprint Marvel US material in Europe, and was published monthly until November 2019.

Duncan Fegredo is a British comic book artist.

Opal Luna Saturnyne is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Dave Thorpe and Alan Davis for their Captain Britain stories. Formerly the servant of Roma, she is currently the Omniversal Majestrix and rightful Ruler of Otherworld, charged with the safety of the Omniverse.

<i>Jaspers Warp</i> Comic book storyline

Jaspers' Warp, sometimes referred to as Crooked World, is a superhero comic book storyline from the British Captain Britain strip printed across several Marvel UK titles between 1981 and 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Special Executive</span> Fictional comic book group

The Special Executive is a fictional group of time-traveling mercenaries appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters were decpicted in comic strips published by Marvel UK. The initial incarnation was created by Alan Moore and David Lloyd for Doctor Who Monthly; Alan Davis later expanded the line-up when they appeared in Captain Britain.

Dark Angel, originally Hell's Angel, is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics under their imprint Marvel UK. Created by Bernie Jaye and Geoff Senior, the character first appeared in Hell's Angel #1.

Bernie Jaye is a British writer, editor, colorist, and letterer in the comic book industry. She was editor-in-chief of Marvel UK in the early 1980s, and is the co-creator of Dark Angel.

Brian Braddock is a superhero appearing in British and American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created in 1976 by writer Chris Claremont and artist Herb Trimpe, with later contributions from Alan Moore and Alan Davis, he first appeared in Captain Britain Weekly #1. He is the first character in publication to use the Captain Britain moniker, later adopting the title Captain Avalon.

Captain Britain is a British comic feature published by Marvel UK - the British division of Marvel Comics between 1976 and 1985, in various anthology magazines.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.