Roger Mahoney biography

Roger Mahoney (1933 - 5 November 2022; Portsmouth, UK)

Roger Mahoney was a British cartoonist who has worked on a great many newspaper strips. He was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire in 1933, and from 1947 to 1951 studied art at the Southern College of Art, Portsmouth.

He began freelancing as a cartoonist while working as a professional musician – a drummer – and sold his first drawings to the Daily Sketch and Daily Mirror. In 1954 he sent some of his cartoons to Barry Appleby, creator of the “The Gambols” cartoon strip in the Daily Express. Appleby encouraged him and became a lifelong friend, introducing him to Lancaster, Giles and Artie…

Mahoney created his first strip (“Mopsy”) for the weekly Fleetway Publications magazine Princess, and afterwards contributed strips and jokes to a number of publications including the Scottish Daily Record (“Agony Is” and “Sammy the Caterpillar”), Woman's Realm (“Mum”), Daily Mirror (“Millie”, “The Greens”, and “Mandy Capp”), Sunday Express (“L”) and Daily Star (“What's in a Name?” and “Last of the Summer Wine”)…

On Barry Appleby's death in 1996 Mahoney took over the writing and drawing of “The Gambols” for Express Newspapers, taking a comical look into life in suburbia. In the following years Roger compiled, laid out and drew The Gambols annuals numbers 46-48, published from 1997 to 1999.

After the death of Reg Smythe in 1998 Roger Mahoney also took over drawing “Andy Capp” for the Daily Mirror, along with writer Roger Kettle and they have been credited since 2004.

See ROGER MAHONEY ART.