Fun on the Kerbstone
Perhaps the most famous and beloved of all the screevers; yet today, Percy Pickle the pavement artist has largely been forgotten.
Merry and Bright banner heading 4th July 1914
Percy was the very first EVER weekly comic book pavement artist character. He first saw the light of day in the Amalgamated Press comic story paper MERRY & BRIGHT. Published every Thursday and costing half-a-penny (which was considered quite expensive back then) It was a mixture of written children’s stories & comic strip spreads with jokes. The first issue was published by the Amalgamated Press on the 22nd October 1910 and continued every week until 1935.
Here’s one of Percy’s Kerbstone adventures from 1914
Percy Pickle cartoon strip 4th July 1914
For 25 years Percy was known by every school boy and girl throughout the land for his “Kerbstone antics” a loveable rogue, he was a master at drawing himself out of mischief and getting his own back on the law. Merry & Bright was part of The Amalgamated Press Ltd of London, and as such Percy’s antics were also published in Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Tis without doubt; Percy Pickle was a pavement artist of international renown!
Written and researched by Philip Battle
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