Polystyle

History: Established in 1960, Polystyle took up the licenses of TV Publications' Playland and TV Comic, revamping the latter, which had previously predominately been aimed at young children with strips based on Lenny the Lion, Muffin the Mule, Sooty and Noddy (though it had also reprinted Hal Foster's Prince Valiant), for a slightly older market, adding strips based on Gerry Anderson puppet shows, the Lone Ranger, etc. In 1964 they added a strip for popular new BBC show Doctor Who, which would run until 1971, when the strip was transferred to new Polystyle title Countdown (later TV Action), but after two years it merged with TV Comic, returning Dr. Who to its original comic home. Meanwhile it continued to produce children's comics, including Pippin, launched 1966, and Playland, launched 1969 and published until 1975. Polystyle attempted again to replicate TV Comics' success in 1978 with Target, based on crime TV shows, but after poor sales it also merged with TV Comic. Then, in 1979 Doctor Who left TV Comic when Marvel UK won the license. TV Comic continued on with new strips based on shows such as Battle of the Planets until it was finally cancelled in 1984. In 1981 the children's comic Buttons debuted, the last new title for Polystyle which would prove to have staying power; they released Beeb, a magazine based on BBC TV shows, in 1985, but it proved short lived, and their other titles gradually fell away, with Pippin ending after twenty years in 1986 and Buttons cancelling in 1989 after an eight year run.

Publications: Beeb, Buttons, Countdown, Playland, Target, TV Comic,

Characters:

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