Monday, October 27, 2014

Mepham

Amongst the latest quartet of Commando issues is a reprint of a story credited to Mepham. I don't recognise Mepham as an author of any other comics but I wonder if he might be Clement Roderick Mepham, who wrote With the Eighth Army in Italy (Stockwell, 1951).

I believe Clement Roderick Mepham was born in Hastings, E. Sussex, in 1919, the son of Herbert James Mepham (1888-1952) and his wife Ethel Kate (nee Ransom, 1884-1958). He was the second of three children, his siblings including Phyllis J. (1914), and Ethel A. M. (1922).

I know nothing of his career but he later lived in Margate, Kent.

Whether he was the author behind the recent Commando release "Colonel Scarface" is uncertain—I base my guess solely on the fact that he is known to have written a book about the war. Mepham is credited with only two stories for Commando, one published in 1964 and the other four years later in 1968.

Stripography
Colonel Scarface, illus. by Juan Gonzalez Alacreu (Commando 135, Oct 1964)
Legion of the Lost, illus Eustaquio Segrelles (Commando 311, Feb 1968)

 
 
(* Commando © D. C. Thomson Ltd.)

2 comments:

  1. I believe that the Mepham credited as the author was my uncle, Bruce Mepham from Cardiff. He served during the war as an RSM with the 1st Special Service Brigade of the Commandos. He landed at Sword beach on D-day and there is a quite well know photo of him carrying a Thompson up the beach in a line of beret wearing commandos with a bridging machine in the background. I knew he had written at least one story for Comamando, the Colonel Scarface issue I assume, but maybe there were more. I'd certainly be interested to know if there were.

    Mike.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Mike,

    I'd love to know more about your uncle, if you're willing to share - you can write directly to me at the address below the photo (top left) if you prefer. I'd certainly be interested to know which of the stories you know to have been written by him.

    ReplyDelete

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