SA Newspapers: Humour/Satire

This was a comic journal commenting on current issues and prominent figures of the day. Political figures were the major target. Sport and the theatre also received regular coverage. In 1875 and 1876 the paper printed the Licensed Victuallers' Advertiser as a supplement. The Lantern's first editor was the lawyer and politician George Stevenson, son of the first editor of the Register. Early cartoonists included Alfred Clint, John Hood and J.H. Parr, and Samuel Calvert the well-known engraver. In 1881 an entirely new format was taken as the Adelaide Bulletin and Lantern, modelled perhaps on the Sydney Bulletin. This contained more serious articles and no cartoons. From July 1882 the Lantern was re-issued in its old format. In 1884 the paper absorbed Adelaide Punch. In 1890 the Lantern itself was absorbed by a new venture, Quiz, which became the state's longest running comic paper.

James Allen of the Adelaide Times produced a handful of single issue humorous newspapers. Charles Platts, a Hindley Street bookseller, was the printer and publisher of this example. Send-ups of various well-known men including Allen himself fill its columns. Timothy Short's Journal of Passing Events, and First of April Cracker, appear to be other titles in this series . They were possibly produced as April Fool's Day jokes.

Only this single issue is known to exist, although a prospectus for the newspaper appeared in the South Australian Register on 22 March 1845, and references to the title occur through 1846.

The Adelaide independent was an experimental weekly newspaper, and possibly the first illustrated newspaper in Australia. It was the brainchild of colourful early auctioneer Nathaniel Hailes. Hailes wrote for various newspapers under the pen-name ‘Timothy Short’. Its illustrations were a series of pen and ink sketches, or cartoons, as lithographed inserts. These were possibly the work of the engraver George Hamilton. Editor Hailes was the subject of several of the sketches. The newspaper was forced to close in 1841, allegedly due to the outcry caused by publishing a sketch portraying a drunken brawl between bank manager Edward Stephens and wealthy land-holder Osmond Gilles at a dinner in honour of Edward John Eyre. Hailes went on to produce the Adelaide Free Press, but unfortunately no copies of this later newspaper have survived. He was the first secretary of the South Australian Institute, forerunner to the State Library.

Adelaide's earliest comic paper - as distinct from satirical newspapers - was the Adelaide Punch. There are references to the existence of the title as early as 1865, however the earliest existing copy dates from 1868. Modelled closely on the English Punch, it was published by William Roberts and William Fawcett. The illustrations were by Tom Carrington, previously of the Melbourne Punch. This incarnation however, lasted for only twelve issues.
In 1878 Adelaide Punch was revived by Caleb Dalwood, a nephew to the Frearson brothers of the Illustrated Adelaide news. In July 1878 Adelaide Punch passed to Scrymgour & Sons, a large firm of Adelaide printers. Dalwood continued to contribute cartoons to Frearson's weekly and Frearson's monthly through the following year, and also contributed cartoons to Adelaide Punch until 1880. Editorship is unclear until December, when JCF Johnson took over as owner and editor. Johnson was formerly drama critic for the Register. 'WJK' remained the artist of the main cartoons until early 1880. Johnson, an accomplished writer, was also an able artist and contributed the 'side pictures' for Adelaide Punch. In 1882 he sold the paper and in 1884 was elected to South Australian Parliament. The new owner of Adelaide Punch was Edward Derrington of the Port Adelaide news.
In early 1884 the paper was taken over by its chief cartoonist, Herbert Woodhouse. Woodhouse had begun drawing the side pictures for Adelaide Punch in 1881 and by 1884 seems to have been contributing almost all the cartoons. Other cartoonists had previously included 'A.E.' or A. Esam, 'H.R.', E. Dale and 'Dane'. In October 1884 Adelaide Punch was sold to its rival, the Lantern and ceased as a separate title.

The 1915 edition of the Truth seems to have been published under the auspices of the Melbourne Truth by Adelaide-based journalist Frederick Joseph Jennings. This was short-lived. The newspaper began in May 1915, but its last issue appeared only a month later.

Since 1954 the students of the Adelaide University have published a satirical newspaper for Prosh Week. The title and format have varied, and since 1993 the newspaper has been produced as an issue of the student newspaper, On dit. The 1965 Prosh Week newspaper contains humorous references to political figures of the day including Don Dunstan, Sir Robert Menzies and the South Australian governor Sir Edric Bastyan and his wife.

Common Sense was a small magazine produced by journalists Theodore Argles and Frederick Banbury. The name was taken from the 1776 pamphlet by Thomas Paine which promoted American Independence. The only known issue contains interesting descriptions of the police court (a haunt of Adelaide’s reporters) and a dance at the Queen’s Head, Kermode Street, under landlady, Sarah White.

This was a short-lived satirical journal published by EJ McAlister and FW Kennedy. Concentrating on political criticism, the journal also covered theatre reviews and horse racing.

The First of April Cracker is an April Fool's Day joke, probably produced by James Allen. It may have been part of a series of single issue annual newspapers which began with Timothy Short's Journal of Passing Events published by Nathaniel Hailes in 1847. Like a normal newspaper, the Cracker contains a shipping column, advertisements, and news items, but each is written in a satirical fashion.

Frearson's Weekly was established by the Frearson brothers in 1878 as a second illustrated newspaper. This followed the success of their Monthly Illustrated Adelaide News. The weekly was published on a Saturday. It initially took a more satirical and comic approach than the older title, filling its pages with cartoons and political comment. The first few issues included front page editorials and interesting wood-cut cartoon illustrations commenting on issues of the day.

The Free Press was an interesting but short-lived newspaper. It was one of several short-lived titles produced by the outspoken Charles Chandler, founder of the Truth newspaper (Adelaide), and author of Darkest Adelaide. It was published in the year after South Australian women achieved the right to vote, and was not in favour of the legislation change. It contains many derisive comments about women's movements and prominent individuals in these organisations. Its strongest statements however, are against prostitution, making libellous allegations about ‘old colonists,’ church members and MPs who allegedly kept mistresses and visited prostitutes. Even the short stories in the newspaper took this theme. The Free Press made unflattering comments about several well-known figures, including Catherine Helen Spence, Samuel Way and Charles Cameron Kingston.

This was essentially a literary and satirical newspaper founded by CJ Dennis with other staff of the Critic. Novelist Alice Grant Rosman wrote for the journal as 'Aunt Tabitha'. Oswald Pryor was the cartoonist.

This was a comic journal commenting on current issues and prominent figures of the day. Political figures were the major target. Sport and the theatre also received regular coverage. In 1875 and 1876 the paper printed the Licensed Victuallers' Advertiser as a supplement. The first editor was the lawyer and politician George Stevenson, son of the first editor of the Register. Early cartoonists included Alfred Clint, John Hood and JH Parr. Samuel Calvert was the engraver. In 1881 a new format was taken as the Adelaide Bulletin and Lantern, modelled perhaps on the Sydney Bulletin. This contained more serious articles and no cartoons. But from July 1882 the Lantern was re-issued in its old format. In 1884 the paper absorbed Adelaide Punch. In 1890 the Lantern itself was absorbed by a new venture, Quiz, which became the state's longest running comic paper.

This newspaper was published by William Hammond. It contained short items of Adelaide news, court reporting, horse racing and other items. It also included satire of local people and events. This was the first South Australian newspaper to make widespread use of (woodcut) illustrations in articles, cartoons and advertisements. Artist ST Gill was employed to create some of the illustrations. The newspaper has been called ‘scurrilous’ and ‘anti-religious’ (Depasquale), however it has also been described as the only newspaper of the period which appealed to the working-class population. Hammond later published a newspaper under the same title in Melbourne.

The Mirror was a short-lived comic paper published by the engraver Joshua Payne. The chief artist was Alfred Clint, principally known for his stage design work in Melbourne and Sydney. Clint went on to contribute cartoons to the long running Lantern.

This single issue newspaper from 1965 reads like a Prosh magazine, making fun of various situations and individuals in Adelaide. It contains mostly articles discussing music in a tongue-in-cheek manner. A front page 'article' describes Adelaide being sold to President Soekarno [sic] for a private holiday resort.

This was South Australia's first comic magazine. It was published by the colourful early newspaper man James Allen, of the Adelaide Times. Each issue contains an almanac for the month, with phases of the moon, historic dates and weather reports. The Monthly Almanac is also filled with parodies, puns, send-ups and cartoons. It includes South Australia’s first comic depiction of Aborigines, one in which Europeans are the butt of the joke. Various character types were satirised by Allen, particularly 'new chums,' who were portrayed as impractical snobs. There are derogatory references to the reporting of Allen's newspaper rivals, the South Australian Register and the South Australian Gazette and Mining Journal. Interesting business advertisements are printed on the outer coloured wrappers. The printer was Thomas Strode, an important Australian colonial newspaper man. The engraving was probably the work of Penman and Galbraith.

This was first produced as a manuscript (handwritten) newspaper by the men of the SS Moonta, a surveying party under George Goyder. The newspaper was created during the 1868 voyage of the party from Port Adelaide to Darwin. It comprised five editions and a final supplementary issue marking the expedition’s arrival. Later the handwritten newspaper was professionally printed. Unfortunately the Library has been unable to locate the original handwritten copies.

The word 'pasquin' refers to a lampoon, or satire, but also to criticism or protest against a government. This journal was owned and largely written (in its first two years) by Eustace Mitford. Mitford was a keen critic of Adelaide society and politics, usually through allegory. He also wrote about colonial literature, the theatre and horse-racing. Such was the admiration for his work that the journal was reprinted in London in 1882. The original journal included cartoon supplements. Three of these cartoons are held in the State Library pictorial collection.

The Portonian was founded by the eccentric South African Duncan Moodie. The intention was to provide a news reporting forum for Port Adelaide. However, most space was given to criticising the South Australian Parliament. Politicians, including local M.P. John Hart, religious leaders and the governor were targeted. The journalist Spencer Skipper wrote for the Portonian and John Eden Savill ('Cerberus') provided cartoons. The Portonian articles were of a high quality and Savill's political cartoons were a major attraction. (Some of these were re-published as a book.) W. Pyndar Willis was a later cartoonist. South African news filled the columns later, in particular news of the Anglo-Zulu War in 1879. The Portonian ceased without notice in May 1879.

This was a small comic paper founded by the cartoonist Jeffery Bruer when the long-running Lantern ceased. Besides cartoons, there was some coverage of sport and the theatre, and the usual satirical/political comment found in most 19th century comic papers. Bruer initially drew the front page portraits and the main cartoon himself, while the unsigned inside double page montage of the week's events is in the style of Ambrose Dyson's work for the Critic. Quilp seems to have ceased in 1891. In 1897 Bruer was contributing cartoons for the first issues of the Critic newspaper.

Quiz was founded by Harry Evans and Alfred Chandler, two Advertiser journalists. The pair purchased the old satirical comic paper, the Lantern, as the basis for their venture. Harry Craker, James Hutchison and Alfred Smith were also involved in the publication. Quiz appealed to the new, more educated readers of late nineteenth century Adelaide. It mixed political and social comment with cartoons and quips, sports and theatre reporting, and snippets of social news. The tone was light and racy, and at the proprietors twice found themselves in court for libel over less flattering reports of theatre performers. By 1898 Quiz included photographs, including sporting photographs. In 1914 Quiz combined with the Sporting Life newspaper. In its final years the journal concentrated increasingly on sports reporting, particularly horse racing.

Quiz was founded by Harry Evans and Alfred Chandler, two Advertiser journalists. The pair purchased the old satirical comic paper, the Lantern, as the basis for their venture. Harry Craker, James Hutchison and Alfred Smith were also involved in the publication. Quiz appealed to the new, more educated readers of late nineteenth century Adelaide. It mixed political and social comment with cartoons and quips, sports and theatre reporting, and snippets of social news. The tone was light and racy, and at the proprietors twice found themselves in court for libel over less flattering reports of theatre performers. By 1898 Quiz included photographs, including sporting photographs. In 1914 Quiz combined with the Sporting Life newspaper. In its final years the journal concentrated increasingly on sports reporting, particularly horse racing.

Quiz was founded by Harry Evans and Alfred Chandler, two Advertiser journalists. The pair purchased the old satirical comic paper, the Lantern, as the basis for their venture. Harry Craker, James Hutchison and Alfred Smith were also involved in the publication. Quiz appealed to the new, more educated readers of late nineteenth century Adelaide. It mixed political and social comment with cartoons and quips, sports and theatre reporting, and snippets of social news. The tone was light and racy, and at the proprietors twice found themselves in court for libel over less flattering reports of theatre performers. By 1898 Quiz included photographs, including sporting photographs. In 1914 Quiz combined with the Sporting Life newspaper. In its final years the journal concentrated increasingly on sports reporting, particularly horse racing.

Quiz was founded by Harry Evans and Alfred Chandler, two Advertiser journalists. The pair purchased the old satirical comic paper, the Lantern, as the basis for their venture. Harry Craker, James Hutchison and Alfred Smith were also involved in the publication. Quiz appealed to the new, more educated readers of late nineteenth century Adelaide. It mixed political and social comment with cartoons and quips, sports and theatre reporting, and snippets of social news. The tone was light and racy, and at the proprietors twice found themselves in court for libel over less flattering reports of theatre performers. By 1898 Quiz included photographs, including sporting photographs. In 1914 Quiz combined with the Sporting Life newspaper. In its final years the journal concentrated increasingly on sports reporting, particularly horse racing.

Smith’s Weekly was founded in Sydney in 1919 by James Joynton Smith with Claude McKay and Clyde Packer. The newspaper ran until 1950, with editions in a number of Australian states including an Adelaide edition. The newspaper was a mixture of sensationalism, sport and cartoons, particularly aimed at the post-War male population. It was dubbed the 'larrikin version of the Bulletin'. Staff included a number of journalists who later became prominent on other titles. Second World War poet Kenneth Slessor was editor between 1935 and 1939. Norm Mitchell and Eric Joliffe were among its cartoonists. Henry Lawson and Bernard Hessling were also among the writers for Smith’s.

Adelaide bookseller Charles Platts published this satirical newspaper. The text was probably by Nathaniel Hailes, a well-known auctioneer who used the pen name 'Timothy Short'. The humour in the newspaper consists mostly of puns. The usual newspaper columns including an editorial, shipping column, courts, proceedings in parliament, letters to the editor and advertisements are all composed in a satirical style. The Burra mines, defence and a recent agricultural show are topical items which are mentioned. It is possible that two later newspapers published by James Allen were inspired by this title. These are titled: Adelaide Gazette Extraordinary, and First of April Cracker. No other issues of the newspaper have survived, if published.