Ben Heywood :: Battle Action

Battle Action #247 (1st December 1979) HMS Nightshade

Artists: Mike Western (All) , John Wagner (Writer)

84 Views - 1 Comment - 6 Likes

Battle Action #247 (1st December 1979) HMS Nightshade Comic Art

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As published

Cover

Previous Item:
Battle #183 (2 September 1978) The Sarge

Next Item:
Action Annual 1983: The Fantastic Fall (1982)

Artwork Details

Title:	Battle Action #247 (1st December 1979) HMS Nightshade
Artist:	Mike Western (All)
Artist:	John Wagner (Writer)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Interior Page
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	84
Likes on CAF:	6 7
Comments:	1
Added to Site:	9/22/2025
Comic Art Archive:

Description

With the purge of the IPC archives in the 1990s so many extraordinary British artists lost entire bodies their work. One of these was the incomparable Mike Western, and so I'm delighted to welcome his work into my collection. These pages are beyond rare.

What distinguished Battle (and subsequently Battle Action) from other British war comics was the sheer excellence of the artwork: artists who were able to imbue the weekly 4/5 pager of action and danger with a sense of pathos and realism for the soldier (or sailors) involved. One these artists was Mike Western.

Mike's career spanned the entire gamut of British comics, but his work was never more important that the stories that he illustrated for John Wagner and Gerry Finley-Day for Battle.

HMS Nightshade was the tragic epic of the British flower-class corvette (hence Nightshade) throughout WW2, from the channel to the battle of the Atlantic, to the arctic convoys. Thrilling stuff!

This page was cut down for a reprint. I've chosen to remove the cut-outs.

Pen, ink and whiteout on thick cartridge paper.

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About the Owner

	Ben Heywood Premium Gallery Owner
Joined:	November 2009
Last Login:	January 2026
Ebay Id:	eggwood
Country:	UNITED STATES
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Peter Roe
Member Since 2009

1 - Posted on 10/29/2025

Wow! This is a fabulous title page full of naval and air battle action from this Battle Action issue! HMS Nightshade is my favorite of the Battle Action stories. Reminds me of Alistair McLean's novel "HMS Ulysses." Congratulations!

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