''Fun'' was a Victorian weekly humorous magazine, first published on 21 September 1861 in competition with ''

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...

''. The magazine's first editors were H. J. Byron and

Tom Hood Tom Hood (19 January 183520 November 1874) was an English humorist and playwright, and a prolific author. He was the son of the poet and author Thomas Hood. ''Pen and Pencil Pictures'' (1857) was the first of his illustrated books. His most s ...

. They had many well-known contributors, including Tom Robertson,

Ambrose Bierce Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce (June 24, 1842 – ) was an American short story writer, journalist, poet, and American Civil War veteran. His book ''The Devil's Dictionary'' was named as one of "The 100 Greatest Masterpieces of American Literature" by t ...

, G. R. Sims and

Clement Scott Clement William Scott (6 October 1841 – 25 June 1904) was an influential English theatre critic for ''The Daily Telegraph'' and other journals, and a playwright, lyricist, translator and travel writer, in the final decades of the 19th century ...

but the most important contributor to its success in its first decade was

W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most fam ...

, whose

Bab Ballads ''The Bab Ballads'' is a collection of light verses by W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911), illustrated with his own comic drawings. The book takes its title from Gilbert's childhood nickname. He later began to sign his illustrations "Bab". Gilbert w ...

were almost all first published in ''Fun'' between 1861 and 1871, along with a wide range of his articles, drawings and other verses. At a

penny A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is th ...

an issue ''Fun'' undercut its rival, ''Punch'', and prospered into the 1870s, after which it suffered a gradual decline. It passed through various ownerships under different editors, and ceased publication in 1901, when it was absorbed into a rival comic magazine, ''Sketchy Bits''.

History

Early years

''Fun'' was founded in 1861 by a London businessman, Charles Maclean, who believed there was scope for a rival to the established comic weekly magazine ''

''. Scott, Clement. "The Foundation of ''Fun''", ''

The Sketch ''The Sketch'' was a British illustrated weekly journal. It ran for 2,989 issues between 1 February 1893 and 17 June 1959. It was published by the Illustrated London News Company and was primarily a society magazine with regular features on ro ...

'', 20 September 1893, p. 412 He established its premises at 80

Fleet Street Fleet Street is a major street mostly in the City of London. It runs west to east from Temple Bar at the boundary with the City of Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the London Wall and the River Fleet from which the street was ...

, London, and installed the writer H. J. Byron as its titular editor, although in the early days the editing seems to have been a collective effort by Byron,

and others. ''Fun'' became known as "the poor man's ''Punch'': at a

for its weekly issue of twelve pages, it sold at a third of the price of its older rival. According to the historian Charles Barrie, ''Fun'' "had a young upstart liveliness, which by then ''Punch'' had lost, and was well received, reaching a circulation of 20,000 by 1865".Barrie, p. 217 Each issue of ''Punch'' featured a drawing of Mr Punch and his dog, Toby: ''Fun'' parodied them with its own jester, Mr Fun, and his cat."Fun, 1861–1901)"
Bodleian Library. Retrieved 13 September 2022 According to the introduction to the

Gale A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or )."Fun – About this publication"
Gale Primary Sources. Retrieved 13 September 2022 The Gale site adds: ''Fun'' was aimed at a well-educated readership interested in politics, literature and theatre. Like ''Punch'', it published satiric verse and parodies, as well as political and literary criticism, sports and travel information. These were often illustrated or accompanied by topical cartoons, often of a political nature. The more conservative and establishment-minded ''Punch'' took a condescending view of its upstart competitor.

William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray (; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was a British novelist, author and illustrator. He is known for his satirical works, particularly his 1848 novel '' Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portrait of British society, and t ...

, a longstanding contributor to the older publication, dubbed the new magazine "Funch".

Mark Lemon Mark Lemon (30 November 1809, in London – 23 May 1870, in Crawley) was the founding editor of both ''Punch'' and '' The Field''. He was also a writer of plays and verses. Biography Lemon was born in Marylebone, Westminster, Middlesex, ...

, the editor of ''Punch'', nevertheless made frequent efforts to lure ''Fun''s best contributors away. He succeeded with F. C. Burnand but failed with ''Fun''s star contributor,

.Stedman, Jane W
"Gilbert, Sir William Schwenck (1836–1911), playwright"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', 2008 Encouraged by the success of ''Fun'' and looking to make more money, Byron founded and became editor of another humorous paper, ''Comic News'', in July 1863. He was succeeded at ''Fun'' by Hood in May 1865, when Edward Wylam, a prosperous manufacturer of dog biscuits, bought the business.Thomson, Peter
"Byron, Henry James (1835–1884), playwright and actor"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', 2008

Peak years: 1865–1874

Hood assembled a vivacious and progressive team, who liked to think of themselves as bohemian, albeit in a generally respectable way. The historian Jane Stedman describes them: Notable contributors included Tom Robertson,

, G. R. Sims and, most importantly for the magazine's fortunes, W. S. Gilbert, who was an unknown novice when ''Fun'' began, but who rapidly became its most valuable asset. His

were almost all published in ''Fun'', along with other articles, verses, illustrations and drama criticism over a ten-year period. Hood, the son of a famous poet, was exacting in his standards.

recalled, "In the matter of verse Tom Hood was a purist. A Cockney rhyme was to him an abomination. A false rhythm sent him crazy. It was an education, indeed, to be brought up under such a strict master". As well as Gilbert, Hood's writers of verse included Mortimer Collins, Edmund Yates, Jeff Prowse and Harry Leigh. Cartoonists included

Arthur Boyd Houghton Arthur Boyd Houghton (13 March 1836 – 25 November 1875) was a British painter ( oil and watercolours) and illustrator. Houghton was born in Kotagiri, Madras, India. His work was varied and was highly regarded during the mid-19th century. ...

Matt Morgan Matthew Thomas Morgan (born September 10, 1976) is an American politician, actor and retired professional wrestler. He is a current City Commissioner in Longwood, Florida. He is known for his time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is ...

and James Francis Sullivan (1852–1936). The ''Fun'' gang frequented the Arundel Club, the

Savage Club The Savage Club, founded in 1857, is a gentlemen's club in London, named after the poet, Richard Savage. Members are drawn from the fields of art, drama, law, literature, music or science. History The founding meeting of the Savage Club took ...

, and especially Evans's Café, where they had a table in competition with the ''Punch'' "Round table". Even though ''Fun'' was seen as liberal in comparison with the increasingly conservative ''Punch'', it could cast satirical scorn or praise on either side of the political spectrum. For instance,

Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a centr ...

, whose unorthodox character and Jewish lineage made him a frequent target of attack, was praised in the magazine, particularly for his

Reform Bill In the United Kingdom, Reform Act is most commonly used for legislation passed in the 19th century and early 20th century to enfranchise new groups of voters and to redistribute seats in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ...

of 1867.

Later years

The ownership of ''Fun'' passed in 1870 to the engravers and publishers George and Edward Dalziel, who had previously engraved drawings for ''Punch''. Two years later they transferred it to their nephew Gilbert Dalziel (1853–1930). After the death of Hood in 1874 the quality of the content began a slow decline. Gilbert's contributions ceased in the early 1870s, and although ''Fun'' still had talented writers including Clement Scott and

Arthur Wing Pinero Sir Arthur Wing Pinero (24 May 185523 November 1934) was an English playwright and, early in his career, actor. Pinero was drawn to the theatre from an early age, and became a professional actor at the age of 19. He gained experience as a supp ...

, the magazine lost a key asset without his unique combination of what Stedman calls "squibs, fillers, puns, verses, drawings, social and dramatic criticism, suggestions for double acrostics (a special ''Fun'' feature), absurd letters, and, of course, the Bab Ballads, which out-laughed anything ''Punch'' had to offer". Hood was succeeded as editor by Henry Sampson until 1878, and then the editorship devolved to Charles Dalziel. In 1893 the Dalziel family withdrew from the journal, and Henry T. Johnson became editor."Literary Gossip", '' The Globe'', 19 August 1893, p. 6 ''Fun'' was bought by the publisher

George Newnes Sir George Newnes, 1st Baronet (13 March 1851 – 9 June 1910) was a British publisher and editor and a founding figure in popular journalism. Newnes also served as a Liberal Party Member of Parliament for two decades. His company, George Newne ...

, who sold it to Charles Shurey, proprietor of a rival comic paper early in 1901. It ceased publication in the same year, when it was absorbed into Shurey's ''Sketchy Bits''.

Gallery

Notes

Sources

* * *

External links

Waterloo Directory''Fun''
is online with zoomable page images and searchable text a
University of Florida's Comics Digital Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fun (Magazine) Satirical magazines published in the United Kingdom Caricature Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1861 Magazines disestablished in 1901 Weekly magazines published in the United Kingdom 1861 establishments in the United Kingdom 1901 disestablishments in the United Kingdom