Pugs In Space CEO, and Lindfield resident, Tim Southwell has announced an exciting new partnership for the comic brand with children’s charity Great Ormond Street Hospital.
The company will donate 50p for every copy of the comic sold, plus 15% of all merchandise sales. The money raised will help support seriously ill children who are treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH).
“It was a no brainier for us to approach Great Ormond Street,” says Tim. “Given the all-ages nature of the comic and the amazing work that Great Ormond Street Hospital does for children, we just saw it as a great opportunity to make sure that the pugs don’t just entertain in space, they put something back on earth as well!”
Laura Savory, GOSH Charity’s deputy director of community fundraising, said: “We at GOSH Charity are thrilled to be benefitting from the exciting adventures of Pugs In Space. The money raised will be hugely beneficial to seriously ill children and their families at the hospital, so for that we’d like to say a big thank you.”
Tim, co-founder of Loaded magazine, founder of GolfPunk magazine and feature writer for the The Daily Telegraph, turned his attentions from golf to pugs, launching the new comic, Pugs In Space in November 2020, prompted by the pandemic.
Created by Tim and graphic artist Jason Measures, Pugs In Space is an all ages comic inspired by satirical magazines, The Simpsons and classic UK comics. Tim got the idea when his two pug dogs started getting very excited whenever there was a space movie on TV. “Whether it’s Gravity, Space Odyssey or Star Wars, they go mad for it, running round in a figure of eight,” said Tim. “So, I decided to turn them into cartoon characters and send them into space in order to solve the world’s sausage problem.”
Led by Major Ron (a canine Captain Mainwaring) and Lieutenant Lola (excitable and unpredictable liability), they embark on an epic journey in which they encounter all manner of strange characters and adventures, culminating in them having to go where no pug has gone before... the Catosphere...
Tim set up Pugs In Space Ltd shortly after lockdown, funding launch costs through a successful Kickstarter campaign in October. “I think I might have gone slightly mad in lockdown,” said Tim. “And like a lot of people, I was at a bit of a loose end. The idea for the comic had been with me for a couple of years but I never got round to doing anything with it. Then, when Covid turned the world upside down I thought I’d give it a try. I went on LinkedIn, found Jay and we got to work. And it’s been fantastic fun!”
Tim added that he has always featured cartoon strips in his magazines especially Loaded and GolfPunk. “Even my fanzine, my first journalistic endeavour, had comic strips, but I’d never done one myself. I thought about the popularity of these funny little dogs and they kind of made up my mind for me when they started watching and clearly enjoying space films.
“We must be doing something right because Frank Skinner and his eight-year-old son are avid readers!” he said.
Copies of the comic are available through the website: www.pugsinspace.co.uk/shop