The Mariane School of Ballet in Dorlington - including Gaye Farrel and her friends Dave, Bob, Sylvia, Joe, Jill and Laurie - prepare to put on a ballet to remind the young people of the new town about the charms of its older institutions.
Trudy Lomax is secretary to Professor Simpson on an expedition to search for a Romangalley in the South Seas, and soon becomes fascinated with the strange native boy Daron.
Mayberry School pupils Candy Duncan and Sheila Lang find an errand to pick up old bikes for a charity event quickly becomes complicated when a motorcyclist begins leaving them cryptic notes.
In the 1880s, Carol Wayne returns to her hometown of Redwood after a year at boarding school, finding that her luckless grandfather has built up a mountain of debt. She resolves to raise money to prevent his beloved Honeysuckle Ranch being sold.
Cherry Bryant looks after siblings Sue and Tim - as well as Boxer the dog - while her mother works at a cigarette factory, keeping them all safe despite the quartet always getting into scrapes.
Newly arrived at Alpine School, Cherry Lee soon receives a mysterious music box and some unusual instructions to decipher. Soon she has a whole group of friends helping her crack the case - before the sinister Vincent Van Dorn can.
In ancient Egypt, talented musician Charmion is taken under the wing of the kind Queen Cleopatra, but has to deal with jealous maid of honour Tharna and her scheming father.
Realising his daughter Betty Lou is turning into a spoilt brat, California millionaire Harvey Q. Wilchester hires a nice English girl to keep her on the straight and narrow.
Famous ballet star Madame Irina is framed for stealing a ruby and goes into hiding. Trained by a masked expert at Falconburg Castle, Janice Shaw soon realises her teacher is none other that Irina, and vows to keep her secret and clear her idol's name.
Visiting Egypt to see her Uncle Mark, Denise Fraser is entrusted with a scarab ring which soon sees her targeted by the so-called Moon of the Desert; thankfully, the heroic Sheik Haroun is on hand to keep her safe.
Scatter-brained schoolgirl Dilly frequently gets the wrong end of the stick and causes good-natured confusion.
A long-running one-page humour strip. After the merger with Girls' Crystal the strip was renamed "Dilly Dreem's Schooldays" and printed in colour on the back cover. Also in Schoolgirls' Picture Library #267 and #279.
Ella Saunders finds some refuge from her miserable foster-mother Mrs. Leech when she befriends Carol Cunliffe, who invites Ella around to her spacious and beautiful gardens. However, Mrs. Leech's brother steals Carol's necklace, and Ella resolves to get it back for her friend.
Julie Roger is excited enough at becoming an air stewardess, and finds her first flight has the former president of Cartania on board. Things then become even more dramatic when the plane is hijacked.
Left in charge of Four Winds Ranch in Oklahoma after her father's premature death, Shiree Hudson stands firm against those who would try to drive her off.
When Lisa Borrelli's dance school is hit by lightning and burns down, four of her pupils renovate a dilapidated theatre to raise funds to buy her a new site.
Nona Lorne's dreams seem to come true when she meets a stray dog that takes an instant shine to her; however, she must keep the animal secret from her uncle, who is prejudiced against dogs after an accident which killed his wife.
During the height of the English Civil War, the noble Cavalier Sir Geoffrey Deepwood is sent on a vital mission for King Charles. After Sir Geoffrey is injured, his resourceful daughter Valerie must get a vital sword past the Roundheads.
Reprinted as "The Sword of Freedom" in Princess in 1967. Also in Schoolgirls' Picture Library #84 as "Valerie and the Sword of Freedom", redraw by Artur Horowicz.
Two families compete to find treasure on an Italian island - but children Nina Gasperi and Carlo Albanesi find they have common ground, and want to avoid the bitter competition.
Jill Blair and young friend Sally become marooned on Paradise Isle, and make fast friends with native girl M'Lani, a leopard called Katzi and a parrot called Polly. Awaiting rescue, they soon find out that not all passing ships are helpful.
Initially introduced in 1950's "Jill Crusoe, Castaway", Jill and her friends went on to become one of School Friend's most popular features, returning in "Friends of Paradise Island" the following year. In 1952 this became the long-running "Jill Crusoe and the Mystery Schooner", which morphed into "Jill Crusoe and the Land of the White Queen" into 1953. "Jill Crusoe and the Golden Bell" ran from 1954 to 1955, and in 1959 it was "Jill Crusoe and the Stranger from the Sea".[1][3] The story also featured in Schoolgirls' Picture Library #36 and #45.
Joining her uncle's expedition to the African jungle searching for a lost ancient city, Dinah Meredith becomes fascinated by a primitive local boy called Jon.
Judy Malvern wants to become a champion swimmer, but must keep her training from her uncle who is embittered after his wife died in a bathing accident.
Julie's School at Silver Creek
Published: 28 March to 7 November 1953
At the tail end of the 19th century, Julie Crawford travels to Buffalo Springs to take up a post as school mistress, but soon gets caught up with dashing outlaw Kit Kennedy.
With her family's ranch at risk of takeover by the evil Crowley, Katy Jackson resolves to master the wilful horse Duke and win the Grand Prix to alleviate the financial concerns of herself, her brother Tommy and her little sister Dodo.
Modified and reprinted as "Judy of Juniper Creek" between 30 May and 16 November 1964.
Hired as a governess by affable Cornishman Mr. Farnfield, Sandra Mayhew soon gets involved in intrigue when the household's scheming butler Crichton gets amiable tutor Roderick fired. The sacked academic then writes to Sandra, telling her of a mysterious link to King Arthur which explains Crichton's odd behaviour.
Living with her cold guardian Uncle Matt in Wyoming, Mandy Morgan finds a weak orphaned foal she names Lonesome and secretly tries to nurse him back to health.
Living in the old Cornish cottage at Falcon's Nest, Lorna Penhale spots suspicious activity through her telescope, centred on a mysterious island and naturalist Frank Hemsley.
In 1750s England, Amy Lyndon's father is accused of being a notorious highwayman and he is forced to go on the run. Amy soon finds their home at the Grange attracting the attention of all sorts of unsavoury characters.
As her widowed mother works hard to put food on the table, Lucinda Ursula Cynthia Kate Yolanda Smith - or just Lucky for short - keeps the house in order. On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of her 11th year, she wishes her doll comes to life - and it does.
Actress Avril Claire is not popular in Occupied France, as she performs for the German troops. But what nobody knows is that she is in fact Mam'selle X, a member of the French Resistance.
Orphan Mary Marlow travels to Kingston, Jamaica to live on the plantation of Olivia Fairfax - who she soon finds is being exploited by the local governor. Hope is at hand, however, due to the dashing Masked Pirate.
Fiona Starr desperately tries to find the secret of the ruined Castle Kildair before the greedy Denvers family can buy it, and gets help from a mysterious dog called Faithful.
Doreen Calvert emigrates to Mexico to live with her father, only to find he is living a double-life as the Masked Shadow, a wanted outlaw pursued by Tony Graham. Doreen works to clear her father's name before he is captured.
Pam Robins enrols in an exclusive private school among the mountains of picturesque Switzerland. However, as well as making chums she has to decipher the mystery of a letter her father sent her regarding 'The Sign of the Edelweiss'.
Pat Summers is a gifted swimmer and diver, and soon becomes world famous putting on shows with dolphins.
Patsy's Circus Days
Published: 26 July 1952 to 14 February 1953
When Duval's Circus arrives in town, Patsy Leyland applies for a job - and soon finds out there are rum goings-on aplenty when it is targeted by the enigmatic Seventh Clown.
Unusually for a British comic of the time, Patsy narrated the action "in her own words". Patsy Leland later returned in "Rivals of the Circus" (5 December 1953 to 5 June 1954) and "Mystery Member of the Circus" (c.1954 to 1955). Also in Schoolgirls Picture Library #70 and #117, and Princess Picture Library #112.
After her uncle leaves her a riding stable on the south coast, Penny Lane is delighted - though the dilapidated Maywood Stables will need some work to be the place she has dreamed of all her life.
Penny of Pine Ridge
Published: 9 December 1961 to 22 September 1962[1]
Penny West runs a small riding school in Pine Ridge, a countryside estate near Landale, but must balance training young jockeys against those who would ruin the idyllic area.
Shirley Wells opens a dance school with immediate success - until a sinister neighbour begins making a nuisance of himself. Shirley gets aid from an unlikely source - a spectral ballet dancer who appears in her school.
Published: 25 September 1954 to 5 March 1955; 10 September 1955 to 10 October 1964[1]
Crown Princess Anita of Sylvanberg returns from boarding school after the death of her parents, only to find her uncle Arch-Duke Michael has eyes on making his regency permanent with the aid of Anita's cruel governess Countess Helga, finding an ally in peasant girl Gerda.
After winning back her crown in the first serial "Anita, Princess in Disguise", Princess Anita returned for a long regular stint. Also in Schoolgirls' Picture Library #105, #123 and #174.
Princess Lola
Published: 21 May to 24 September 1960; 11 March 1961 to c.1963[1]
Count Radek hopes to depose Princess Gina of Rosania and install himself on the throne, but she escapes. Making friends with a peasant girl called Hansi and aided by the Masked Black Shadow, Gina sets about exposing Radek's treachery.
In 1754, Anne Bellew arrives to stay with her uncle at Beacon Heights, and soon begins he might be involved in piracy. Given that he is called Cap'n Jonas Darke, Anne may well be onto something.
Later reprinted as "The Mystery of Beacon House" in June.
Touring Cornwall, Bob and Brenda Richmond receive an ivory figurine from their father Colin, a secret agent, and soon find a group led by the sinister Miss Soong will stop at nothing to get hold of it.
English girl Gwen Waring arrives at the beautiful Silver Lake School in Switzerland, but soon makes an enemy in the form of the unsporting Olga Lisette. Gwen must use her wits to win the skiing competition - aided by the gallant Masked Watcher.
When White Towers School pupils Gwen Edwards and Zoe Burne find their mistress Maryon Sinclair's fiancé Paul Westerman has been framed as a coward and fired from his job as a mountain guide the pair resolve to clear his name.
Crossways School pupils Joy Ridley and Aileen Dexter are put in charge of greeting an exotic new pupil, Arabian noble Rozana. They soon find themselves inveigled in their new friend's complicated life.
Front cover strip. The first serial (3 August 1957 to 1 February 1958) was named "That Amazing Schoolgirl from the East".
The adventures of the good-natured dog Scamp, owned by a girl named Fay.
The character of Scamp - whose stories were 'put into words for him' by Ida Melbourne - a pseudonym for L.E. Ransome[7] - had previously appeared as text stories.
Secret Enemy of the Pets Club
Published: 14 August to 13 November 1954
Josie Gray and Hazel Robins set up a pets club with their friends of Suncove School, only for local ne'er do well Spencer Carson to attempt to shut them down.
After their sports mistress Miss Dale is fired due to the machinations of spoilt prefect Imogen Kirby, Abbotsfield pupils Heather Croft and Kay Richards work together to undo the injustice.
In 1751 Prue Nightingale works for her kind mistress at Highwood Hall, but an encounter with the suave highwayman Captain Fortune involves her in the machinations of Jabez Starke, amoral leader of the Bow Street Runners.
Peggy Simon is forced to put her acting ambitions on pause and take a job working behind the scenes at a theatre after her family's fortunes take a turn for the worst. Her talent means she soon lands a role in the play, but one of her co-stars is less happy and attempts to sabotage her.
Published: 20 May to 30 September 1950; 19 May to 8 December 1951; 16 May to 19 December 1953; c.July to December 1955; 24 November 1956 to 27 July 1957; c.June to October 1959; 17 September 1960 to c.1961; c.1963 to 1964
Three schoolgirls at St. Kit's boarding school — Betty Roland, Joan Derwent and Peggy West — band together as a secret society against the tyranny of the head prefect.
The characters debuted in 1950's "The Silent Three at St. Kits" before returning in 1951's "The Silent Three at Island School", 1953's "Secret Member of the Silent Three", 1955's "The Silent Three's Highland Quest", 1956-57's "The Silent Three in Switzerland", 1959's "The Silent Three at Clock House" and 1960-61's "Spy Hunt for the Silent Three".[1] Flinders retired in 1959.[9] Also in Schoolgirls' Picture Library #58, #87, #120 and #300.
After the nefarious Pierre Lacoste tricks the people of the remote Canadian settlement of Oster Creek into believing local wolfhound Solak is a violent threat, plucky Judy Denham works to keep the dog from cruel punishment.
Susan Webster lands a job in the circus thanks to her friend, tightrope walker Julie Byrd. However, soon after she starts at the circus it looks like she is causing trouble.
Norma Hollis goes to stay with her Uncle Marcus as his overgrown Storm Manor in Cornwall, and soon sees that there may be reasons behind the superstitious outlook of the locals.
Good-natured private detective Terry Brent helps people with minor problems. Later investigations saw Terry joined by his tomboy niece Paddy McNaught.
Similar to "Bruce Kent" and "Zip Nolan", readers were encouraged to spot the solution to each strip's mystery before it was revealed. In an inversion of Zip Nolan, this was later dropped in favour of straightforward adventure stories.
Tracy Jones breaks through into modelling; later, she and the other girls from her agency are invited to exotic Abbia by the country's king, who hopes his female subjects will begin following Western fashions.
Living in Baghdad with her overbearing merchant uncle Haroun Bey, Yasmin leaps at the chance to act as a guide to English siblings Pat and Dave Hunter.
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Girls' Crystal was a British weekly fictional anthology publication aimed at girls. Published by Amalgamated Press and later Fleetway Publications from 26 October 1935 to 18 May 1963. Uniquely for an Amalgamated Press title, Girls' Crystal began as a story paper before transforming into a picture comic between editions, with the new format debuting on 21 March 1953. It ran for a combined total of 1432 issues before merging with School Friend in 1963.
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School Friend was a British weekly girls' comic anthology published by Amalgamated Press and Fleetway Publications from 20 May 1950 to 23 January 1965. Considered the first British girls' comic and bearing the same name as a popular story paper previously published by Amalgamated Press, School Friend was a huge success and effectively kickstarted the genre in British publishing.
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