David Haldane (born 10 November 1954; Blyth, Northumberland, UK)
David Haldane is a highly prolific British satirist, cartoonist and illustrator whose career spans decades and who has a national and international profile.

Born in Blyth, Northumberland, he studied graphic design at Newcastle-upon-Tyne Polytechnic. After graduation he started working for Northern Press newspapers based in South Shields, and began cartooning in his spare time. In 1978 he tried sending some cartoons to Punch, and although they were rejected he was invited to the Punch office, and on his second attempt six months later his work was accepted, leading to regular appearances in the magazine. In 1981 he became a freelance cartoonist.

After writing for Spitting Image, Haldane contributed daily cartoons to the Daily Mirror and the Sun, and jokes, pocket and strip cartoons to Punch from 1979 to 1992 – including covers and the weekly strip Agent Orange.

From 1989 to 1991 he also contributed to the Guardian - including the strip Wild Child.

David Haldane joined the Times as a daily pocket cartoonist in the late 1990s where he stayed for over twenty years.

Haldane has also contributed to a wide range of other publications including The Daily Express, Sunday Times, Mail on Sunday, Oink! (a Viz “type magazine from Manchester), Countryside Magazine, Spectator, Observer, and Private Eye and other satirical publications.

Haldane has produced greetings cards for Camden Graphics, drawn advertising for companies including Asda, Cellnet, and Pedigree Chum, written scripts for Central TV’s Spitting Image and lectured in graphic design at Northumberland College.

"He works entirely from home in Northumberland", a colleague wrote in 1998: "He steers clear of computers. He says that they would slow him down. He is much happier dashing off a cartoon and putting it straight on to the fax machine."

David Haldane's new work is a cheerful look back into the recent past evoking memories of trips to the seaside, countryside and cinema. The images are created with a dipping pen and finished with brush using ink wash. They are deliberately bright and colourful, drawing on a fine tradition of illustrations reflecting British life.

David Haldane has travelled widely and has a particular interest in cityscapes. Although more traditional in style than his humorous works, these pen and ink pictures still display a lightness of touch documenting his visits to New York, London and Verona.
Source: University of Kent British Cartoon Archive; Illustration Art Gallery