Neville Colvin

Neville Maurice Colvin was a New Zealand artist born on 17 December 1918. He was a cartoonist with the Wellington Evening Post for a decade from 1946 before moving to London to continue a distinguished cartooning career working for the News Chronicle, Daily Telegraph, Daily Express and Evening Standard. Colvin was also a noted portrait artist.

He also drew the 'Ginger & Co.' strip in Swift weekly (1960-62) and almost certainly contributed to other comics.

Colvin briefly drew the James Bond strip, providing an ending to the story 'Ape of Diamonds' for syndication whilst author Jim Lawrence and artist Yaroslav Horak concentrated on a new series
for the Sunday Express. Colvin drew episodes 3384-3437 for the Daily Express, the strip ending on 22 January 1977.

Colvin later drew a Sunday strip featuring Modesty Blaise written by Peter O'Donnell but the idea was dropped after Colvin had drawn seven episodes. Colvin replaced Romero on the daily strip on 27 May 1980 with the story 'Dossier on Pluto' and went on to draw 1,902 episodes, his last strip appearing on 15 September 1986. One story, 'The Scarlet Maiden' (published in 1982), was the completion of the Sunday strip tryout from some years earlier.

Colvin died in Camden, London, in 1991.

Colvin cartoon from the Evening Post, 23 December 1953 and shows Prime Minister Sidney Holland (no relation!) rolling out the red carpet for the new Queen's post-coronation visit to New Zealand.

Illustrated Books
Struth. The harbinger of truth, beauty and goodness, verses by J. F. McDougall. Dunedin, New Zealand, printed by Dupliprint Service, 1939.
Johnny Enzed in Italy. Libels and Lyrics by E. G. Webber. Rotorua, New Zealand, Rotorua & Bay of Plenty Publications, 1945.
The Songs We Sang by Les Cleveland. Wellington, New Zealand, Editorial Services, 1959.
Kiwi Down the Strada by Leslie Hobbs, with photographs by George F. Kaye. Christchurch, New Zealand, Whitcombe & Tombs, 1963.
A Welcome to Britain. London, New Zealand High Commission, 1970.
Sleep Clinic. A strip cartoon analysis of insomnia and its causes by Ridwan Aitken (based on Sleep Well by Marianne Kohler & J. Chapelle). London, Daily Express, 1975.
Modesty Blaise: The Lady Killer, Garvin's Travels, The Scarlet Maiden. Franklin, WI, Ken Pierce, Jun 1984.
Modesty Blaise: The Moon Man, A Few Flowers for the Colonel, The Balloonatic. Franklin, WI, Ken Pierce, Jun 1985.
Modesty Blaise: Death in Clow Motion, The Alternative Man, Sweet Caroline. Franklin, WI, Ken Pierce, Jun 1986.
Modesty Blaise: The Return of the Mammoth, Plato's Republic, The Sword of the Bruce. Franklin, WI, Ken Pierce, Jun 1986.
"NZEF Times" and "Private Clueless" by R. D. Munro. Upper Hutt, New Zealand, R. D. Munro, 1993.
Modesty Blaise: The Lady Killers. London, Titan Books, Apr 2009.
Modesty Blaise: The Scarlet Maiden. London, Titan Books, Aug 2009.
Modesty Blaise: Death in Slow Motion. London, Titan Books, Oct 2009.