Day 7: Jingle Bells?

Oh dear. Not a great time for toy rodents. First the safety of the Go Go Hamster is called into question for apparently containing dangerous amounts of antimony, and now it seems a toy mouse has been recalled after complaints that it was singing a word not usually found in the tune 'Jingle Bells'. What is that word? Well you can listen to the tune on here on the BBC News site.
Is it actually saying that? I'm not sure. I think it's just a really crappy recording, but it certainly does sound dodgy...

Day 5: Manger Stranger

An inspired clip from the Christmas episode of Mr. Bean...

Day 2: When up on the roof there arose such a clatter...

Day 1: The Ghost of Christmas Past...

It's the first of December and officially the run-up to Christmas, which means the launch of the 'Too Close For Comfort' Advent Calendar Blog! Each and every day from now until the 25th there'll be a festive post to get you in the mood for mistletoe and mince pies. There'll be Christmassy Cartoons, a seasonal 'Rob's Random 5', jokes, recipes, music and mullings, plus a sack full of other great stuff.

To start off, here's a Christmas message that was made and posted last year. A lot of people liked it so I thought I'd put it up again. Closer to the big day there'll be a new Christmas message that I'm hoping will have more than just me in it (I think I'll have to make it an annual thing, like the Queen's Speech. Except not dull). So pour yourself a mug of cocoa, sit by the freshly-decorated tree, and enjoy watching me in a silly hat...

Don't forget to return tomorrow for Day 2's treat!

COMING SOON...

What secret project have the Smedley Bros. been working on in the secret project bunker hidden 300 feet beneath the village post office? What dastardly plans for world domination do they have? Is it true that they have a death ray and a tank full of man-eating lemurs in their lair? And what will their next move be in this terrifying game of - you know what, I'll just tell you.

We've been building a website. Not just any website, oh no, but a 'Too Close For Comfort' website - a place where the cartoons here and not here are available as greetings cards, postcards, prints and (soon) mugs. It's my creativity meets Richard's technical skill, all wrapped in one little family business and it's rather exciting. The website is nearly done (I had to draw most of it in order for it to look like an interactive comic so naturally it's taken quite a while) and once it's up and running - by next week - it'll look spiffing. You'll be able to look around and see what's on offer, although that'll be all. The shopping basket will be sorted by the week after. There is a dedicated section of Fun Stuff as well, where you can play games, see new cartoons and link through to the Wordpress blog (see I told you I had a plan for that) where stuff about the site will be put up. This blog won't change a bit.

So now you know what the secret project is. I hope you like it when you see it. And should you choose to buy anything from it then there will of course be lovely discounts for friends. There'll be an update post next week telling you the address and all about the site so you can cruise around it then, but until that point I'll whet your appetite with a look at a section of a page to give you an idea of what the whole thing will look like... The idea was to make the whole site look as fun and cartoony and generally as 'un-website-like' as possible, so the whole thing is laid out like a comic strip, with characters popping up and about as you click on the comic panels. In short, it'll be fun, whether you're buying cards or just looking around.

Right, well I'd best be off. I have some final pages to draw. Hope you've enjoyed this brief glimpse, and I hope you'll enjoy the finished site even more. It'll be coming very soon indeed.

I hear those mandibles are fake...

The Ladybirds of Bangkok...

First up, a very happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends! (and even if you're not American, have a great day anyway. You deserve it).

And unless you've ever spent a Thanksgiving in Thailand watching a group of transvestites put on a stage show, this cartoon has absolutely nothing to do with the esteemed American holiday of thanks and friendship.

I must point out I have never been to Thailand, or indeed ever seen such a show (and really, nor would I ever want to. Ever.), but everyone I've ever encountered who has seen one enthuses about it and tells me that the productions values are very high and the show very entertaining. Still, no thanks. I'll stick to traditional theatre. Anyway, from information garnered from their anecdotes, this is the tamest cartoon I could come up with that would adequately convey the joke. Really, some of the stuff I've heard has put me off my dinner. And, weirdly, ever playing ping-pong again...

They play a great tune, and the Monster tap-dances...

The Pianos of Frankensteinway & Son...

Ahh, wordplay...how I love thee.

Those with long memories may remember this from way back when I first started out and this blog was a measly three posts long. I'm particularly proud of it, but the original (which I imagine you could find easily if I was the kind of man who labelled his posts), like a lot of the stuff from back then, now looks so shoddy and faded that it demanded a re-draw. It's a joke that's worth it I think. Like I said, I love a bit of wordplay. But then who doesn't?