Rupert Bear

Story

Rupert Bear is a children’s comic strip that began in 1920 and continues to this day. Most stories begin with Rupert living with his parents in a cosy cottage in Nutwood. But then something turns up – a mysterious parcel, a magical kite, a strange invention – that carry Rupert and his friends into a fantastical adventure in a faraway land.

Why we chose it

At 100 years old Rupert Bear is the longest-running children’s comic strip in the world. Publication even continued through the Second World War as it was feared that stopping would damage national morale.

Famous for his red jumper and yellow-checked scarf and trousers, Rupert is a much loved children’s character. Kind, brave and resourceful, he always helps his friends return safely home.

The little bear has had many illustrators but Alfred Bestall is the best known. Bestall developed the classic format that can be read on four levels: pictures, page headers, verses and prose. Rupert is the only comic strip without speech bubbles in the pictures.

Monty Python comedian and children’s author Terry Jones chose Rupert as his favourite story character for The Story Museum’s 26 Characters exhibition.

Where it came from

Created by Mary Tourtel, Rupert started as a children’s cartoon in the Daily Express newspaper. Rupert and his friends, Bill Badger, Algy Pug and Pong Ping gained a loyal following. When Tourtel retired in 1935, Punch illustrator Alfred Bestall took over, creating 270 adventures during the next 35 years.

Rupert was originally drawn as a brown bear but was changed to white to reduce printing costs, although is brown on the covers of the annuals.

Where it went next

Currently illustrated by Stuart Trotter, the Rupert annuals, now published by Egmont, have appeared every year since 1936. The stories have been adapted for television, films and video games.