Beano goes for gold to mark special year for sport

Emma Raducanu and Bukayo Saka were among the young sporting stars honoured in a special edition of the Beano comic, launched to celebrate a golden year of British sport.

The limited-edition comic book follows trouble maker Dennis the Menace and his special guests, including Olympic gold medallist diver Matty Lee world record holding Paralympic swimmer Maisie Summers-Newton and Olympic skateboarder Sky Brown in a Home Alone-inspired adventure.

Following the success of the first ever Beano for grown-ups last years to raise the nations spirits, Beano has created the collectible BeONE comic, to commemorate the golden year of sport enjoyed by Great Britain in 2021.

The special comic book, which goes on sale on Wednesday, also has appearances from some of the other biggest names of 2021, including Matt Hancock, Piers Morgan, Jackie Weaver on Zoom and Elon Musk and his moon mission.

First published in 1938, it is Britain’s longest-running children’s comic.

Featuring as a special pull-out inside the weekly comic, BeONE sees classic rulebreaker Dennis set off on a solo quest to reunite Gnasher with his family for Christmas.

In the comic, teenage stars Emma Raducanu, who was the first British woman to win a Grand Slam in 44 years, and Bukayo Saka, who was a stand-out star of the young England team in the Euros, come to Dennis’ rescue.

Alongside sporting heroes Jennifer and Jessica Gadirova, and Kare Adenegan, they all help Dennis make his way back to Beanotown to be reunited with his family in time for Christmas.

Mike Stirling, editorial director of Beano Studios, said: “This year, our sporting superstars have lifted the nation’s spirits so we couldn’t think of a better way to round off 2021 than with some well-deserved appreciation for these incredible young athletes and the joy they brought to the nation.”

Four individual special gold leaf comic covers featuring the sports superstars Matty Lee, Maisie Summers-Newton and Sky Brown will also go on sale, with the proceeds from the exclusive covers to be donated to Save the Children.

Gold medal-winning Olympic diver, Matty Lee said: “I loved reading the Beano as a kid so to see myself on the cover of such a special, charity issue is a crazy feeling, it’s absolutely amazing.

“I’ve had a sneaky preview and it’s as hilariously funny as I remember.”

Double gold medal winning Paralympic swimmer, Maisie Summers-Newton, said: “Seeing myself on the cover the special charity issue Beano is amazing, it’s such a memorable part of the childhood of many generations, so it’s a real honour to be a part of it and celebrate a fantastic year for sports.”