Quality Communications was a British

publishing company Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

founded by

Dez Skinn Derek "Dez" Skinn (born 4 February 1951) Miller, John Jackson"Comics Industry Birthdays" ''Comics Buyer's Guide'', 10 June 2005. Accessed 14 August 2010WebCitation archive is a British comic and magazine editor, and author of a number of books o ...

that operated from 1982 to 2008. The company's most notable publications were the monthly

comics a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...

anthology ''

Warrior A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have been p ...

'', which featured early work by writer

Alan Moore Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman:'' ''The Killing Joke'', and ''From Hell' ...

; and the comics

trade magazine A trade magazine, also called a trade journal or trade paper (colloquially or disparagingly a trade rag), is a magazine or newspaper whose target audience is people who work in a particular trade or industry. The collective term for this ...

Comics International ''Comics International'' was a British news and reviews magazine about comic books. Founded in 1990, it was published monthly by Quality Communications until 2006, and then by Cosmic Publications Ltd. until 2010. Over time, ''Comics Internation ...

'', which Skinn published and edited for 16 years. Quality was involved with comics in both the UK and the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, mainly with reprint material from ''Warrior'' and repackaging '' 2000 AD'' material for the U.S. market.

History

Quality was initially formed to publish ''

'', which featured the

stories ''

V for Vendetta ''V for Vendetta'' is a British graphic novel written by Alan Moore and illustrated by David Lloyd (with additional art by Tony Weare). Initially published between 1982 and 1985 in black and white as an ongoing serial in the British anthol ...

'' and ''

Marvelman Miracleman (Michael ("Micky" / "Mike") Moran), originally known as Marvelman, is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books first published by L. Miller & Son, Ltd. Created in 1954 by writer-artist Mick Anglo for publisher L. Miller & So ...

''. ''Warrior'' won 17

Eagle Awards The Eagle Awards were a series of awards for comic book titles and creators. They were awarded by UK fans voting for work produced during the previous year. Named after the UK's ''Eagle'' comic, they were launched in 1977 for comics released in ...

during its short run (including nine Eagles in 1983 alone). Quality was also involved in the U.S. completion of ''Marvelman'' and ''V for Vendetta''. Quality's main period as a comics publisher was from 1982 to 1988. ''2000 AD'' content repackaged for the U.S. market included the titles ''2000 A.D. Presents'', ''Spellbinders'', and ''Scavengers''. During this period, Quality also published 7 issues of ''

Halls of Horror ''The House of Hammer'' was a British black-and-white magazine featuring articles and comics related to the Hammer Film Productions series of horror and science fiction films. The brainchild of Dez Skinn,Dakin, John. "'Marvel Revolution' in Eng ...

'', a title Skinn had originated earlier with

Thorpe & Porter Thorpe & Porter (widely known as T & P) was a British publisher, importer, and distributor of magazines and comic books. At first, the company was known for repackaging American comics and pulp magazines for the UK market. Later on, it became a pu ...

(the British publishing division of

Warner Communications Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

). In 1990, Quality shifted focus to magazines, launched the comics trade journal ''

'', which Skinn published and edited for the following 16 years. His "Sez Dez" column was a regular feature in issues #100–#200. With issue #200, in 2006, Skinn sold the magazine to Cosmic Publications.Johnston, Rich
"Comics International Closes Shop,"
Bleeding Cool (May 27, 2010). (''Comics International'' struggled along for another couple of years before folding in 2010.)Freeman, John

DownTheTubes (May 21, 2010). Quality published a few sporadic titles in the 2000s, including ''Toy Max'' (2003), a one-off magazine for toy collectors,"Magazine offers toys for grown-ups,"
''Press Gazette'' (May 1, 2003). and Skinn's hardcover book ''Comix: The Underground Revolution'' (2004). In 2005, Quality published ''Ace Comics'', an anthology of ten comic strips by

City College Brighton & Hove Brighton MET is a large general further education college located in Brighton and Hove, It is now part of the Chichester College Group after Greater Brighton Metropolitan College merged with CCG on 1 August 2021. It has two campus: Central Bri ...

students of Skinn's; it was distributed for free in

East Sussex East Sussex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England on the English Channel coast. It is bordered by Kent to the north and east, West Sussex to the west, and Surrey to the north-west. The largest settlement in East Su ...

. In 2008, Quality Communications published the 15th-anniversary issue (numbered #15) of ''

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comic book artist, writer and editor, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He gr ...

Quarterly''.Freeman, John
"Jack Kirby Quarterly Returns
" DownTheTubes.net (JULY 12, 2008).

Titles published

Comics

* ''2000 A.D. Presents'' (20 issues, Aug. 1986–May 1988) — reprinting classic stories from '' 2000 AD'' (license acquired from

Eagle Comics Eagle Comics was a short lived comic book publishing company that existed to reprint comic stories from the UK's '' 2000 A.D.'' magazine for distribution in North America. They existed from 1983 to 1986 and were based in London, England with pro ...

; later continued by Fleetway Publications) * ''Ace Comics'' (1 issue, July 2005) * '' Fighting Figurines'' (1 issue, 1996) — by

Paul Honeyford Paul Honeyford (born Manchester, 1958) is an English biographer and writer who has worked on a number of music- and sport- related works. He has often worked with Dave Heaven, a musician, on a variety of musical and design projects. Honeyford's ...

and

Dave Heaven David Andrew Rhys Heaven (born Uplawmoor, 1959) is a Welsh-descended musician of some renown with a focus on smooth jazz and fusion. Songs such as Midnight Dean Street, Do It Again and Moonflower brought him to the attention of guitarist Pete Down ...

, collecting the story originally anthologized in ''

Revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

'' * ''Halls of Horror Dracula Comics Special'' (1 issue, Apr. 1984) * '' Marvelman Special'' (1 issue, 1984) * ''Scavengers'' (14 issues, Dec. 1987–Jan. 1989) — reprinting dinosaur-themed stories from ''2000 AD'' * ''Spellbinders'' (12 issues, Dec. 1986–Dec. 1987) — reprinting stories with a magic/horror twist: ** Sláine and

Nemesis the Warlock ''Nemesis the Warlock'' is a comic series created by writer Pat Mills and artist Kevin O'Neill which appeared in the pages of the British weekly comics anthology '' 2000 AD''. The title character, a fire-breathing demonic alien, fights agains ...

from '' 2000 AD'' ** Cursitor Doom/Amadeus Wolf from '' Smash!'' ** "Library of Death" stories from '' Scream!'' * ''

Steel Claw The Steel Claw was one of the most popular comic book heroes of British weekly adventure comics of the 1960s and 1970s. The character was revived in 2005 for ''Albion'', a six issue mini-series published by the Wildstorm imprint of DC Comics. P ...

'' (4-issue limited series, Dec. 1986– Mar. 1987) — by

Kenneth Bulmer Henry Kenneth Bulmer (14 January 1921 – 16 December 2005) was a British author, primarily of science fiction. Life Born in London, he married Pamela Buckmaster on 7 March 1953. They had one son and two daughters, and they divorced in 1981. B ...

Garry Leach Garry Leach (19 September 1954 – 26 March 2022) was a British comics artist and publisher. Biography Garry Leach's early work for ''2000 AD'' included mainly one-off stories featuring ''Dan Dare'' and ''M.A.C.H. 1''.Jesús Blasco Jesús Blasco (3 November 1919 – 21 October 1995) was a Spanish author and artist of comic books, whose career covered most of the conventional history of comic strips. He worked extensively in British comics in the 1960s and 1970s. Career Bla ...

; colourized reprints of ''Steel Claw'' stories from the

IPC Magazines TI Media (formerly International Publishing Company, IPC Magazines Ltd, IPC Media and Time Inc. UK) was a consumer magazine and digital publisher in the United Kingdom, with a portfolio selling over 350 million copies each year. Most of its tit ...

title '' Valiant'' * '' Storm: The Deep World'' (1 issue, 1982) — by Saul Dunn and

Don Lawrence Donald Southam Lawrence (17 November 1928 – 29 December 2003) was a British comic book artist and author. Lawrence is best known for his comic strips '' The Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire'' in the British weeklies '' Ranger'' and '' Loo ...

; reprinting ''De diepe wereld'' (originally serialized in '' Eppo'' magazine, Oberon, 1977) * ''

'' (26 issues, Mar. 1982–Feb. 1985) ** ''Warrior Summer Special'' (1 issue, 1983)

Magazines

* ''

'' (200 issues, 1990–2006) * ''

'' (7 issues, 1982–1984) — acquired from G.B.D. Ltd./

Top Sellers Ltd Thorpe & Porter (widely known as T & P) was a British publisher, importer, and distributor of magazines and comic books. At first, the company was known for repackaging American comics and pulp magazines for the UK market. Later on, it became a pu ...

(imprints of

) (

) with issue #24; previously known as ''

House of Hammer ''The House of Hammer'' was a British black-and-white magazine featuring articles and comics related to the Hammer Film Productions series of horror and science fiction films. The brainchild of Dez Skinn,Dakin, John. "'Marvel Revolution' in En ...

'', ''Hammer's House of Horror'', and ''Hammer's Halls of Horror'' * ''Jack Kirby Quarterly'' #15 (1 issue, 2008) — 15th-anniversary issue * ''Toy Max'' (1 issue, June 2003) — edited by pop culture expert Tim Pilcher

Books

* ''Comix: The Underground Revolution'' (2004) — by Dez Skinn

References

Notes

Sources

* *{{comicbookdb, type=imprint, id=1766, title=Quality Communications

External links

Quality Communications entry
DezSkinn.com Comic book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Companies established in 1982 1982 establishments in the United Kingdom