Ee's back!

Friday 22 November 2024

Stone de Croze, 'the Original Guernseyman', has returned, with a new home at the Priaulx Library so a new generation can discover him.

In announcing this, the library has said he is "alive and kicking yer at the Priaulx Library, fighting Jerseymen, eating as many ormers as he can, la!, chuckling away at the funny Stone Age tourists, and all in pure Guernsey English!".

The family of Alan Guppy donated cartoons, including the original Stone de Croze comic strips which were featured in the Guernsey Evening Press and Star during the 1970s, to the library.

To mark the occasion, a selection of them are on display. Mark Guppy was pleased to view his father’s artwork like this.

“Over the last decade or so it has been on my mind: what should I do with my father’s collection of cartoons which he had drawn throughout the 60s and 70s? They are very precious to us as a family, but the vast majority of them were stored away," he said.

"Along with being concerned about them deteriorating over time, I thought it was such a shame that they were also not being enjoyed by the general public. So the Guppy family have decided to donate my father’s collection to the Priaulx Library and to the Bailiwick. This way many people can enjoy his artwork for generations.”

Priaulx Library Chief Executive Steve Foote said: “I am delighted that the Guppy family have chosen the Priaulx Library for the safekeeping of Alan Guppy’s cartoons - especially the iconic Original Guernseyman, Stone de Croze.” 

The collection has been organised and safely rehoused in specialist archival boxes, which are acid-free and designed to minimise the impact of dust or environmental damage. There are plans for a larger display of Guppy’s work in the future, to include his excellent satirical cartoons, many of which are still relevant 40 years later!

Mr Guppy's artwork was influenced by the people he met every day while travelling around the island and across to Sark and Herm, as he worked for the family business, Guppy’s Soft Drinks Ltd.

Included in the display are items on loan from Guernsey Museums and Galleries, including E and W Guppy’s glass bottles and a colourful collection of soda drinks labels. 

The cartoons will be on display until late March.