THE
P RTAL
March 2019
Page 21
We wanted to know about John Ryan’s other great poorly but went on working until the day before he
success, Captain Pugwash.
died. He would always go to church
and it became quite a business getting
It seems that about 1950 John Ryan
him there and back. But it was really
was introduced to the man starting
important to him. The very last thing I
the Eagle comic. His first cartoon for
remember doing with him was saying
Eagle magazine was Captain Pugwash.
the Lord’s Prayer. He was sat up in bed
It lased a few months then the editor
and it really was important to him.
thought it a bit young for his readers,
and Ryan came up with Harris Tweed,
“When my daughter was about
the Extra Special Agent.
nine, she woke up one morning and
felt distraught that we were all going
This left Pugwash on the backburner.
to die one day. There was nothing she
But Ryan wrote a book based on
could do about it. My father heard
Pugwash, and sent it round to 12
about this, and wrote to her saying
publishers, the 13 th accepted it. In
‘My darling I understand your distress
1957 the BBC wanted to make it
and just wanted to say the way I deal
an animation on their children’s
with it is I believe I am going to heaven
programmes and the Radio Times
if I behave myself.
took it as a weekly strip. Isabel told
us, “That basically paid for my parents
I wanted you to know that for me I
and us children, and it all happened
believe in an afterlife and that stops
because he had hung on to
me from feeling awful that
Captain Pugwash.”
we are all going to die.
There is nothing we can
John Ryan was angry
do about it.’ That was a
when a piece appeared
lovely thing. He was always
in the press lampooning
interested in his children,
Pugwash as a dirty story.
his grandchildren, children
It was not true at all, but
everywhere. And how
John Ryan threatened
they were and that was an
legal action and eventually
example of his feelings and
settled out of court.
that was to do with him
Nevertheless for such a
being a Christian.
man as Ryan it was deeply
upsetting. Yet Pugwash
Alana Harris - who co-
has survived, along with
curated the exhibition
Tom, the Cabin Boy; Cut
with Isabel and wrote the
Throat Jake; and Master
texts - has degrees in Law
Mate. There were to be
and Italian Renaissance
many episodes enjoyed
History at the University
by children of all ages (including the authors of this of Melbourne. She has been a reference librarian,
piece), and many books as well. The exhibition has a corporate lawyer and civil servant. She took her
whole wall of lovely pictures of Captain Pugwash and doctorate on the reception of the Second Vatican
his crew.
Council and its impact on the devotional lives of
English Catholics at Wadham College, Oxford. She
“My father would not have said he was a particularly now teaches Modern British History at King’s Collage,
devout man. But he was a practising Catholic and went London.
to church every Sunday and brought his children up
as Catholics. He believed in Holy Days of Obligation,
Isabel Ryan herself has worked in Paris, New
and he didn’t eat for an hour before mass. My Mother York, and London. For thirty years she has been
is an Anglican. They respected each other’s views self-employed doing exhibition display graphics for
and teased each other about it. We children were all museums and galleries.
brought up Catholic.
It was a great privilege to meet her and enjoy the
“For his last 10 years, after an aneurism, he was really exhibition. Do visit, you will not be disappointed.