World Distributors (known colloquially as "Pembertons") was a British publisher and distributor of

magazines A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combination ...

and

comic books A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

. The company was known for repackaging American comics and producing comic book annuals based on licensed properties. For a period, the company was the lone distributor of American comics in the UK. Pembertons was owned and operated by the brothers Alfred, John, and Sydney Pemberton, originally based in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

History

The Pemberton brothers started out as second-hand booksellers in

. Around 1940, they began a book distribution business, T. A. & E. Pemberton.

1945–1952: Paperback books

In 1945, shortly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, they became a publisher of lurid and sensationalist

paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with adhesive, glue rather than stitch (textile arts), stitches or Staple (fastener), staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) book ...

books; one series was known as "Thrilling Love." At this point the brothers created the company name World Distributors/Sydney Pemberton (the company was incorporated as World Distributors (Manchester) Limited on 2 May 1949).EGMONT PUBLISHING LIMITED: Company number 00468030
Companies House. Retrieved Jan. 3, 2021. The paperback craze died down in the period 1951–1952, partly as the result of Home Office clampdowns on "obscene and objectionable publications;"Chibnall, Steve. "The Sign of the Tee Pee: The Story of Thorpe & Porter," ''Paperback, Pulp and Comic Collector'' Vol. 1: "SF Crime Horror Westerns & Comics" (Wilts, UK: Zeon Publishing / Zardoz Books, 1993), pp. 16–29
Archived
at

Box.com } Box, Inc. (formerly Box.net) is a public company based in Redwood City, California. It develops and markets cloud-based content management, collaboration, and file sharing tools for businesses. Box was founded in 2005 by Aaron Levie and Dylan Sm ...

. Retrieved Dec. 28, 2020. by the end of 1952, the Pembertons had mostly left the paperback publication business (though the company continued publishing books sporadically in the following decades).

1947–1959: Reprint comics

From 1947 to 1959, World Distributors published black-and-white ongoing comic book titles. These were mostly reprints of American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

titles, many from the

Dell Comics Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1974. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium.Evanier, Mark"Wh ...

backlist A backlist is a list of older books available from a publisher. This is opposed to newly-published titles, which is sometimes known as the frontlist. Business Building a strong backlist has traditionally been considered the best method to produ ...

. The company's first foray into comics, however, was 1947's ''Super Thriller Comic'', an anthology comic of original stories by British creators (featuring "Ace Hart the Atom Man"), which was picked up with ''Superthriller'' issue #11 from the

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

-based printer/publisher Foldes. ''Super Thriller Comic'' ran for 22 issues until issue #33 (1950) when it became the cowboy comic ''Western Super Thriller Comics'', running an additional 49 issues to #82 before it was canceled. As ''Western Super Thriller Comics'', it featured the Rawhide Kid (not the same

Rawhide Kid The Rawhide Kid (real name: Johnny Bart, originally given as Johnny Clay) is a fictional Old West cowboy appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. A heroic gunfighter of the 19th-century American West who was unjustly wanted a ...

published by Marvel). World Distributors' longest-running Western reprint titles included ''

Roy Rogers Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Following early work under his given name, first as co-founder of the Sons of the Pioneers and then acting, the rebra ...

Comics'' (100 issues and 12 annuals, 1951–1963), '' John Wayne Adventure Comics'' (82 issues and six annuals, 1950–1960), ''The

Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in ...

'' (66 issues and 12 annuals, 1953–1976), and ''

Red Ryder Comics Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

'' (62 issues, 1954–1959). The few non-Western-themed comics titles which had extended runs during the 1950s were ''A Movie Classic'' (88 issues, 1956–1959), which featured

adaptations In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the ...

of popular movies; and ''Walt Disney Series'' (52 issues, 1956– 1959), reprints from the Dell Comics title ''

Walt Disney's Comics and Stories ''Walt Disney's Comics and Stories'', sometimes abbreviated ''WDC&S'', is an American anthology comic book series featuring characters from The Walt Disney Company's films and shorts, including Donald Duck, Scrooge McDuck, Mickey Mouse, Chi ...

''. As Western comics faded in popularity, World Distributors had canceled most of their ongoing titles by 1959.

1950s–1980s: Annuals

World Distributors may be best known for the hardback annuals they published based on popular film, television, animation, and comics properties. The annuals generally contained comics (often reprints from American titles) mixed with illustrated text stories, word games, and puzzles. Beginning in 1951 and continuing into the mid-1980s, the annuals were published in the autumn of each year for the holiday gift-giving season, displaying next year's date (if any date at all) on the cover to prolong shelf-life. World Distributors shipped unsold copies to overseas markets such as

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, where they still had the current year's date despite the time taken for transport. World Distributors' longest-running annuals included ''

Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and Voice acting, voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring role ...

'' (21 issues, 1951–1981), ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' (20 issues, 1965–1985), ''

Yogi Bear Yogi Bear is an anthropomorphic animal character who has appeared in numerous comic books, animated television shows and films. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in '' The Huckleberry Hound Show''. Yogi Bear was the first ...

'' (17 issues, 1961–1980), ''

Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series c ...

'' (14 issues, 1967–1985), ''The

'' (13 issues, 1956–1976), and ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'' (13 issues, 1969–1985). Other notable annuals published featured ''

The Adventures of Champion ''The Adventures of Champion'' is an American adventure serial radio drama directed by William Burch about screen cowboy Gene Autry's horse Champion. Each 15-minute episode was broadcast weekday afternoons on the Mutual Broadcasting System in 194 ...

'',

Gobots GoBots is a line of transforming robot toys produced by Tonka from 1983 to 1987, similar to Hasbro's Transformers (toy line), Transformers. Although initially a separate and competing line of toys, Tonka's Gobots became the intellectual property ...

, '' Thunderbirds'',

Top Cat ''Top Cat'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and originally broadcast in prime time on the ABC network. It aired in a weekly evening time slot from September 27, 1961, to April 18, 1962, for a single season of ...

, ''

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction television series produced by MGM Television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who wo ...

'', ''

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' is a 1961 American science fiction disaster film, produced and directed by Irwin Allen, and starring Walter Pidgeon and Robert Sterling. The supporting cast includes Peter Lorre, Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, M ...

'', Gary Glitter, and UK television properties like ''

Basil Brush Basil Brush is a fictional red fox, best known for his appearances on daytime British children's television. He is primarily portrayed by a glove puppet, but has also been depicted in animated cartoon shorts and comic strips. The character has ...

'', ''

Dad's Army ''Dad's Army'' is a British television sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and originally broadcast on BBC1 from 31 July 1968 to 13 November 1977. It ran fo ...

'', ''

Just William ''Just William'' is the first book of children's short stories about the young school boy William Brown, written by Richmal Crompton, and published in 1922. The book was the first in the series of William Brown books which was the basis for ...

'', ''

Blake's 7 ''Blake's 7'' (sometimes styled ''Blakes7'') is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. Four 13-episode series were broadcast on BBC1 between 1978 and 1981. It was created by Terry Nation, who also wrote the first ...

'', ''

TV Tornado City Magazines was a British publisher of weekly comics and men's magazines that operated from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s. The company's most notable publications were comics magazines based on licensed television properties, including ''TV C ...

'', ''

Terry Nation Terence Joseph Nation (8 August 19309 March 1997) was a British screenwriter and novelist. Especially known for his work in British television science fiction, he created the Daleks and Davros for ''Doctor Who'', as well as the series '' Survivo ...

Dalek The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in the 1963 ''Doctor Who'' ...

, and ''

Thomas the Tank Engine Thomas the Tank Engine is an anthropomorphised fictional tank locomotive in the British ''Railway Series'' books by Wilbert Awdry and his son, Christopher, published from 1945. He became the most popular and famous character in the series, ...

1960s: Illustrated World Library, World Adventure Library, and Famepress titles

In 1965, the Pembertons returned to publishing ongoing comics series with the "Illustrated World Library" line, which featured

romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...

, horror-suspense,

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

, and

war comics War comics is a genre of comic books that gained popularity in English-speaking countries following World War II. History American war comics Shortly after the birth of the modern comic book in the mid- to late 1930s, comics publishers began incl ...

. The line started with ''Illustrated Romance Library'' and ''Thriller''; and increased in 1970 with three more ongoing titles: ''Picture Romance'', ''Sundance Western'', and ''War Hero''. A number of the "Illustrated World Library" titles lasted into the late 1970s. To augment the "Illustrated World Library" line, in 1966 the Pembertons launched the "World Adventure Library" line of titles, featuring action heroes like

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

Flash Gordon Flash Gordon is the protagonist of a space adventure comic strip created and originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by, and created to compete with, the already established ''Buck Rogers'' adve ...

, Mandrake the Magician, the

Phantom Phantom may refer to: * Spirit (animating force), the vital principle or animating force within all living things ** Ghost, the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear to the living Aircraft * Boeing Phantom Ray, a stealthy un ...

, and

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

; as well as comic book versions of '' Bonanza'' and ''

'' The "World Adventure Library" line, however, had petered out by the end of 1967. Also in 1966 World Distributors acquired a number of ongoing titles from Famepress, a UK publisher which began operating in 1960. Long-running titles picked up from Famepress included the Western title ''

Pecos Bill Pecos Bill is a fictional cowboy and folk hero in stories set during American westward expansion into the Southwest of Texas, New Mexico, Southern California, and Arizona. These narratives were invented as short stories in a book by Tex O'Reill ...

Picture Library'', the romance comic ''Young Lovers'', the adventure comic ''Top Three Adventure Picture Library'', and the war comic ''Battleground''. World Distributors gave up on the Famepress titles after about two years, however; many of them were in turn acquired by Alex White in 1967/1968. (Alex White appears to have gone defunct shortly thereafter.)

1970s: American comics distributor

The company was for a time in the 1970s, the official distributor of American comics in the UK, an arrangement which ended in the early 1980s.

1980: World International

In 1980, the company became known as World International Publishing, Ltd., but due to falling sales limiting their publishing activities. In 1991 they moved to new offices in

Handforth Handforth is a town and civil parish in Cheshire, England, south of Manchester city centre. The population at the 2011 census was 6,266. In the 1960s and 1970s, two overspill housing estates, Spath Lane in Handforth, and Colshaw Farm nearby in Wi ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, still operating as World International and publishing annuals in much lesser volume. The company went defunct in 1993; the Pemberton brothers were no longer affiliated with the company by this point. In mid-1995, the business was revived as World International Limited and moved offices to London.EGMONT WORLD LIMITED: Company number 02171929
Companies House. Retrieved Jan. 3, 2021.

1999: Sale to Egmont

The Egmont Group acquired World International in early 1999, and it became known as Egmont World Limited, eventually becoming Egmont Children's Books (Egmont Books Limited). Egmont had previously purchased the

Fleetway Fleetway Publications was a magazine publishing company based in London. It was founded in 1959 when the Mirror Group acquired the Amalgamated Press, then based at Fleetway House, Farringdon Street, London. It was one of the companies that merg ...

arm of

IPC Media 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 ...

and merged it with their existing comics publishing division, thus becoming Britain's largest comic book publisher. By 1999–2000 the resultant company was focusing on reprint and licensed material titles such as World produced. Annuals continued to be published, but by 2001 any mention of the old World name was removed from the company logos.

Titles published (selected)

Ongoing titles

* ''

Billy the Kid Billy the Kid (born Henry McCarty; September 17 or November 23, 1859July 14, 1881), also known by the pseudonym William H. Bonney, was an outlaw and gunfighter of the American Old West, who killed eight men before he was shot and killed at t ...

Adventure Magazine'' (76 issues, 1953–1959) – reprints from the

Toby Press Toby Press was an American comic-book company that published from 1949 to 1955. Founded by Elliott Caplin, brother of cartoonist Al Capp and himself an established comic strip writer, the company published reprints of Capp's '' Li'l Abner'' s ...

title of the same name * ''Black Diamond Western'' (31 issues, 1949– — reprints

Lev Gleason Publications Lev Gleason Publications, founded by Leverett Stone Gleason (1898–1971), was the publisher of a number of popular comic books during the 1940s and early 1950s, including '' Daredevil Comics'', '' Crime Does Not Pay'', and '' Boy Comics''. Backg ...

title of the same name * '' Cisco Kid'' (51 issues, 1952-1955) — reprints of the

title of the same name * ''

Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, musician, rodeo performer, and baseball owner who gained fame largely by singing in a crooning s ...

and Champion'' (34 issues, 1956–1958) — reprints of the Dell title of the same name * ''Indian Chief'' (featuring White Eagle) (31 issues, 1953–1954) — reprints of the Dell title of the same name * '' John Wayne Adventure Comics'' (82 issues, 1950– 1957) — reprints from the Toby Press title of the same name * ''The

'' (66 issues, 1953–1958) — reprints from the Dell title of the same name * ''A Movie Classic'' (88 issues, 1956–1959) — adaptations of popular movies * ''

'' (62 issues, 1954–1959) — reprints from the Dell title of the same name * ''

Comics'' (100 issues, 1951–1959) — reprinting the Dell Comic of the same name * ''Super Thriller Comic'' (22 issues, 1947–1950) — numbering continues from ''Superthriller'' ( Foldes); numbering continues with ''Western Super Thriller Comics'' * ''

Tom Corbett, Space Cadet Tom Corbett is the main character in a series of ''Tom Corbett—Space Cadet'' stories that were depicted in television, radio, books, comic books, comic strips, and other media in the 1950s. The stories followed the adventures of Corbett, Ast ...

'' (11 issues, 1953–1954) — reprints from the Dell Comics title * ''

Tonto Tonto is a fictional character; he is the Native American (either Comanche or Potawatomi) companion of the Lone Ranger, a popular American Western character created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker. Tonto has appeared in radio and tele ...

'' (32 issues, 1953-1955) — reprinting the Dell Comics of the same name * ''

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

Series'' (52 issues, 1956– 1959) — reprints from the Dell Comics series * ''Western Classic'' (39 issues, 1950– 1952) * ''Western Roundup Comic'' (42 issues, 1955-1958) — reprints from the Dell title of the same name * ''Western Super Thriller Comics'' (49 issues, 1950- 1954) — continuing the numbering from ''Super Thriller Comic'' * ''

Zane Grey Pearl Zane Grey (January 31, 1872 – October 23, 1939) was an American author and dentist. He is known for his popular adventure novels and stories associated with the Western genre in literature and the arts; he idealized the American frontie ...

's Stories of the West'' (31 issues, 1953-1954)

Illustrated World Library series

* ''Illustrated Romance Library'' (23 issues, 1965– 1970) * ''Picture Romance'' (198 issues, 1970–1975) * ''Sundance Western'' (117 issues, 1970–1979) * ''Thriller'' (86 issues, 1965– 1977) * ''War Hero'' (84 issues, 1970– 1977)

World Adventure Library

* ''

World Adventure Library'' (11 issues, 1966– 1967) * '' Bonanza World Adventure Library'' (3 issues, 1967) * ''

World Adventure Library'' (8 issues, 1967) * '' Man from U.N.C.L.E. World Adventure Library'' (14 issues– 1967) * '' Mandrake the Magician World Adventure'' (8 issues, 1967) — reprints from the newspaper strip by

Lee Falk Lee Falk (), born Leon Harrison Gross (; April 28, 1911 – March 13, 1999), was an American cartoonist, writer, theater director, and producer, best known as the creator of the comic strips '' Mandrake the Magician'' and ''The Phantom''. At th ...

* ''

World Adventure Library'' (8 issues, 1967) * ''

World Adventure Library'' (4 issues, 1967) * ''

World Adventure Library'' (4 issues, 1967) — reprints from Dell/Gold Key series

Acquired from Famepress

; ''Many of the titles acquired from Famepress in 1966 were then taken over by Alex White in 1967/1968; some were canceled.'' * ''Attack!'' (14 issues, 1966–1967) — acquired with issue #37; continued by Alex White * ''Battleground'' (39 issues, 1966–1967) — acquired with issue #93; series continued by Alex White * ''Pecos Bill Picture Library'' (26 issues, 1966–1967) — acquired with issue #125 * ''Scotland Yard'' (20 issues, 1966–1967) — acquired with issue #5 * ''Top Three Adventure Picture Library'' (24 issues, 1966–1967) — acquired with issue #110 * ''Totem'' (26 issues, 1966–1967) — acquired (as ''Totem Picture Library'') with issue #77; series continued by Alex White * ''Undercover'' (38 issues, 1967-1968) — acquired with issue #45; series continued by Alex White * ''Young Lovers'' (31 issues, 1966-1967) — acquired with issue # 124; series continued by Alex White

Annuals

* ''

Annual'' (10 issues, 1971–1980) * ''

Annual'' (21 issues, 1951–1983) — reprints from the

''Bugs Bunny'' series * ''The

Dr Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

Annual'' (20 issues, 1965–1985) — contributors included Paul Crompton, Paul Green, and John Fasnacht * ''The

Annual'' (13 issues, 1956–1976) — reprints from the Dell Comics series * Marvel Comics superheroes — reprints from various

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

superhero titles: ** ''The Fantastic Four Comic Album'' (2 issues, 1969–1970) ** ''The Fantastic Four Comic Annual'' (2 issues, 1969–1970) ** ''Marvel Annual'' (2 issues, 1974–1975) ** ''Marvel Comic Album'' (1 issue, 1975) ** ''Marvel Comic Annual'' (3 issues, 1969–1971) ** ''Marvel Story Book Annual'' (1 issue, 1967) * ''

The Pink Panther ''The Pink Panther'' is an American media franchise primarily focusing on a series of comedy-mystery films featuring an inept French police detective, Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The franchise began with the release of the classic film '' The Pi ...

Annual'' (10 issues, 1973–1986) — reprints from the

Gold Key Comics Gold Key Comics was originally an imprint of American company Western Publishing, created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated this way from 1962 to 1984. Currently, Gold Key Comics is owned b ...

series * ''

Annual'' (13 issues, 1969–1985) — reprints from the Gold Key series * ''

Annual'' (14 issues, 1967–1985) — reprints from the Dell Comics series * ''

'' (5 annuals, 1967–1971) — contributions from

Denis Gifford Denis Gifford (26 December 1927 – 18 May 2000)Holland, Steve, Obituaries: Denis Gifford', ''The Guardian'', 26 May 2000. was a British writer, broadcaster, journalist, comic artist and historian of film, comics, television and radio. In h ...

and

Mick Anglo Michael Anglo (born Maurice Anglowitz, 19 June 1916 – 31 October 2011)Holland, Steve, "Who's Who in British Comics", ''Comics World'' No. 43, Aceville Publications Ltd (September–October 1995) was a British comic book writer, editor and arti ...

* '' Wild West Comic Annual'' (10 issues, 1951–1960) — reprints from a variety of Western comics, including many from Dell's ''

Four Color ''Four Color'', also known as ''Four Color Comics'' and ''Dell Four Color'', was an American comic book anthology series published by Dell Comics between 1939 and 1962. The title is a reference to the four basic colors used when printing comic ...

'' * ''

Annual'' (17 issues, 1961–1980) — reprints from the Gold Key series * ''

Annual'' (2 issues, 1979–1980)

Book series

Little Owl Books

Little Owl Superstars

= '' Gordon T. Gopher''

Mini World

= ''
BraveStarr ''BraveStarr'' is an American space Western animated series that aired 65 episodes from September 1987 to February 1988 in syndication. The show was created a year after Mattel had released a line of action figures. ''BraveStarr'' was the last a ...
''

= '' The Centurions''

= ''
Fireman Sam ''Fireman Sam'' ( Welsh: ') is a Welsh animated children's television series about a fireman named Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other residents in the fictional Welsh rural village of Pontypandy (a portmanteau of two real towns, Pontypridd ...
''

= ''
The Glo Friends ''The Glo Friends'' is an American television series that originally aired in 1986 as a segment of ''My Little Pony 'n Friends''. Produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions in collaboration with Toei Animation, the 26 segments of ''Glo ...
''

= ''
Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
''

= ''
Scooby-Doo ''Scooby-Doo'' is an American animated media franchise based on an animated television series launched in 1969 and continued through several derivative media. Writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears created the original series, ''Scooby-Doo, Where Are ...
''

= '' She-Ra, Princess of Power''

References

Citations

Sources consulted

* * *

External links

World Distributors
at Comic Vine

at Ash Rare Books {{DEFAULTSORT:World Distributors 1945 establishments in the United Kingdom Book distributors British companies established in 1945 Comic book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Comics industry Companies based in Manchester Defunct comics and manga publishing companies Privately held companies of the United Kingdom Publishing companies established in 1945

History

1945–1952: Paperback books

1947–1959: Reprint comics

1950s–1980s: Annuals

1960s: Illustrated World Library, World Adventure Library, and Famepress titles

1970s: American comics distributor

1980: World International

1999: Sale to Egmont

Titles published (selected)

Ongoing titles

Illustrated World Library series

World Adventure Library

Acquired from Famepress

Annuals

Book series

Little Owl Books

Little Owl Superstars

= '' Gordon T. Gopher''

Mini World

= ''BraveStarr ''BraveStarr'' is an American space Western animated series that aired 65 episodes from September 1987 to February 1988 in syndication. The show was created a year after Mattel had released a line of action figures. ''BraveStarr'' was the last a ...''

= '' The Centurions''

= ''Fireman Sam ''Fireman Sam'' ( Welsh: ') is a Welsh animated children's television series about a fireman named Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other residents in the fictional Welsh rural village of Pontypandy (a portmanteau of two real towns, Pontypridd ...''

= ''The Glo Friends ''The Glo Friends'' is an American television series that originally aired in 1986 as a segment of ''My Little Pony 'n Friends''. Produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions in collaboration with Toei Animation, the 26 segments of ''Glo ...''

= ''Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...''

= ''Scooby-Doo ''Scooby-Doo'' is an American animated media franchise based on an animated television series launched in 1969 and continued through several derivative media. Writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears created the original series, ''Scooby-Doo, Where Are ...''

= '' She-Ra, Princess of Power''

See also

References

Citations

Sources consulted

External links

= ''
BraveStarr ''BraveStarr'' is an American space Western animated series that aired 65 episodes from September 1987 to February 1988 in syndication. The show was created a year after Mattel had released a line of action figures. ''BraveStarr'' was the last a ...
''

= ''
Fireman Sam ''Fireman Sam'' ( Welsh: ') is a Welsh animated children's television series about a fireman named Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other residents in the fictional Welsh rural village of Pontypandy (a portmanteau of two real towns, Pontypridd ...
''

= ''
The Glo Friends ''The Glo Friends'' is an American television series that originally aired in 1986 as a segment of ''My Little Pony 'n Friends''. Produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions in collaboration with Toei Animation, the 26 segments of ''Glo ...
''

= ''
Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
''

= ''
Scooby-Doo ''Scooby-Doo'' is an American animated media franchise based on an animated television series launched in 1969 and continued through several derivative media. Writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears created the original series, ''Scooby-Doo, Where Are ...
''