Rare copy of the first ever Dandy annual to be sold at auction

A rare copy of the first Dandy annual, published before the outbreak of the Second World War, is to be sold at auction.

The 1939 Dandy Monster Comic, published late in 1938, was the first of 81 editions of the annual to be published.

It features many of the characters that went on to become household comic names, such as Desperate Dan and Korky The Cat.

A copy of the first ever Dandy annual, published in 1938, is to be auctioned at Keys Fine Art Auctioneers in Aylsham, Norfolk (Andy Newman/PA)

The annual, which had an original cover price of 2/6, has a pre-sale estimate of £1,200 to £1,500 ahead of this month’s auction.

It is to be sold as part of a two-day book sale at Keys Fine Art Auctioneers in Aylsham, Norfolk.

The Dandy comic was first published in December 1937 and continued until December 2012 in printed form, then for a further six months online.

The annual features many of the characters that went on to become household comic names, such as Keyhole Kate and Desperate Dan (Andy Newman/PA)

It has been discontinued by publisher DC Thomson but annuals and occasional summer specials continue to be published.

Keys auction house last year sold a copy of the first ever Beano annual, from 1940, for £2,700.

“Along with The Beano, The Dandy is the archetypal kids’ comic, and in fact it pre-dates its stablemate by about a year,” said Keys head of books Andrew Lindsay-Bullock.

“It is very rare to see a copy of the first ever Dandy annual, especially in such good condition, and we are expecting a lot of interest from collectors from right across the UK and beyond.”

The book sale takes place on Thursday April 11 and Friday April 12.