COLVIN, NEVILLE - Modesty Blaise Sunday Express strip test, later used for the

The Art of Diving with Modesty - Neville Colvin
Neville Colin's first strip appeared in the Evening Standard on May 27th 1980. However, this wasn't his first association with the character. At some point in the late '70's, writer Peter O'Donnell had been planning a weekly Modesty Blaise strip to appear in the Sunday Express and Colvin was the artist selected to draw it. He completed nine weeks worth of artwork for a story called The Scarlet Maiden but ultimately the idea was abandoned.

When he became the regular artist on the daily strip, Colvin suggested they revive the Scarlet Maiden storyline. O'Donnell agreed and the new version began on June 28th 1981.

Neville Colvin was born in 1918 in Dunedin, New Zealand. Studying for an art degree with the intention of becoming a teacher, he joined the army during World War II and trained as a commando. He went to the Middle East to draw maps with the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force. He also became a cartoonist for the army newspaper.

After the war he illustrated two books before joining the Wellington Evening Post in 1946. He drew political and sports cartoons for the paper but eventually grew tired of government censorship. In 1956 he took a holiday in London with his wife Margaret and they stayed for the next 30 years! He spent several years working as a cartoonist for a number of different newspapers before expanding into comics. He work included Ginger and Co. in Swift (1960-62) and in 1976-77 he spent a short time drawing the James Bond strip in The Daily Express.

Colvin drew 16 Modesty Blaise stories from 1980-86 when he retired aged 68. He went back to New Zealand for a short time but returned to his Hampstead home when he became ill. He died of liver cancer in 1991, aged 72. His obituary described him as the "best line artist in Britain".

Neville Colvin's contribution to Modesty Blaise often goes overlooked compared to Jim Holdaway or Romero but there's much to enjoy in his work, particularly his knack of drawing distinctive, memorable characters. I believe The Scarlet Maiden is a fine example of his talents.

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