Dan Dare

Story

Meet Dan Dare, Pilot of the Future and famous for being square jawed and morally upstanding. His first adventure was set in the middle of a food crisis with a desperate mission to Venus about to launch. Throughout the 1950s he roamed the solar system in pursuit of the enemies of Earth, in particular his arch enemy The Mekon.

Why we chose it

Dan Dare was hugely popular in the 1950s. Even after The Eagle folded, he returned in other comics thoughout the 1970s and 80s and on into the 21^st century - most recently being revived in 2017 by Titan comics.

Where it came from

Dan Dare was the lead feature in The Eagle comic when it was first published in 1950. The Eagle was created by Marcus Morris, then a vicar in Southport and Frank Hampson who was one of his parishioners. Morris wanted to create a magazine that would counter what he saw as the bad influence of American comics. In the first dummy they produced Dan Dare wasn’t a pilot but a chaplain to pilots. Hampson went to extraordinary lengths to ensure that all his drawings were realistic – even photographing each frame before drawing it to make sure that all the details were correct.

Where it went next

Dan Dare was born in the 1950s but has reappeared many times over the years in comics, on the radio and in television animation.

Associated stories

Dan Dare has inspired other comic characters including Ham Dare: Pig of the Future in Oink comic. Captain Jack Harkness who appeared in Dr Who and in the spin off Torchwood was described in his first script as having the jawline of Dan Dare.