Unknown Frank Bellamy: Save the children

 

Save the Children 

I have known Frank Bellamy drew something called "Save the Children" for years but never knew what it was...until I scanned the Polaroids Alan Davis kindly shared with me. On the rear of the above comic strip photo was the evidence that THIS is the piece I have been searching for.

But before we explore that further the following letter appeared in the Eagle Times (p.52 of the 2001 Summer edition)

Dear EAGLE TIMES,
In case anyone is worried by my claim that 'Fraser of Africa' was none other than Frank Bellamy himself, I should like to relate the following story.
In the late 60s, when I was employed by Century 21 Publications, I was contacted by some publicity guy who worked with the charity 'Save the Children Fund' and who was putting together a four-page or eight-page magazine which was sent out free of charge to schools and libraries. I was asked to put together a strip-continuity page. With a certain amount of twisting of arms I got Frank Bellamy to do the illustration. He did it for peanuts but it came out only every three months. It was during one of these issues that Frank enlightened me on the Fraser situation - that, as I wrote in Part One of my memoirs: 'Frank Bellamy was so besotted with the idea of going on safari that the main character in the series 'Fraser of Africa' was none other than portraiture of his own image.
So there;
Yours sincerely,
ROGER PERRY (Philippines)

 Roger Perry (1938-2016) worked, as he said, on TV21 and knew Frank well. 

The strip above might have appeared in Today's Children or The World's Children. The Save the Children Fund Archive material is held at the University of Birmingham, Cadbury Research Library, Special Collections at their Edgbaston Campus. So one day I might visit the place, but if any readers live nearby and want to spend an afternoon browsing SCF materials for me...! I'd love to know if this was published - especially as he signed the work- so should have been indexed on the Archive's database, but I couldn't see any reference to our Frank. I know that Frank Bellamy was paid for it but was it published?  

On the 3 October 1968 he was paid £40 for this job. Comparing what he got for a single 'Thunderbirds' page at the time - the same amount - I'm amazed the charity could afford Bellamy! The content looks entertaining and thrilling as usual but how it relates to Save the Children, I have no idea - even the rocket looks to be labelled "5AF" rather than "SCF".

Another mystery to be solved