DARKIE'S MOB - BACK IN ACTION!

Following a huge resurgence of interest in classic British war comics of the 1970s, the Judge Dredd Megazine has struck a deal with Egmont Magazines Ltd to republish the best of Battle Picture Weekly - beginning with the brutal and brilliant Darkie's Mob.

Written by Judge Dredd co-creator John Wagner and illustrated by the legendary Mike Western, Darkie's Mob tells the tale of the mysterious Captain Joe Darkie, who leads a rag-tag bunch of British soldiers behind Japanese lines in Burma in the Second World War, transforming them into a terrifying guerrilla force. First published in 1976-77, and unseen for over 20 years, Darkie's Mob returns in Judge Dredd Megazine 202, on sale 15 January 2003.

"British war comics seem to be going through something of a renaissance," says Megazine editor Alan Barnes, "and Darkie's Mob is one of the very best - intensely dramatic, beautifully illustrated and in places amazingly violent! We will be making a few minor cuts to the racial language, though. Some of what passed by without comment 27 years ago just isn't acceptable these days!"

If Darkie's Mob proves a hit, the Megazine hopes to showcase other Battle strips in future, such as Pat Mills' and Joe Colquhoun's epic Charley's War.

Also coming to the Megazine in 2003: David Bishop follows up his highly-acclaimed series of Thrill-Power Overload! features chronicling the behind-the-scenes story of 2000 AD with a series profiling the heyday of the British war strip!