Although Butterworth continued as the main writer until 1982 with Ken Roscoe filling in afterwards, Lawrence left impulsively in 1976 after discovering that the strip had been widely syndicated abroad and that he was not receiving what he considered to be appropriate compensation for his work – despite having won an award sponsored by his publisher acknowledging him to be their finest artist. The main script-writer for this science-fantasy story was Mike Butterworth (1924-1986) and the artist chosen to give life to his stories was Don Lawrence (1928-2003). This boys’ adventure strip ran until 1982, which means that it delighted young audiences for 17 years through its 854 issues. Originally published in Ranger on the 18th of September 1965, The Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire became an absolute hit before it moved, forty weeks later in 1966, to Look & Learn. The magazine contained a combination of educational texts dealing with volcanoes, space, or the Loch Ness monster, visual adaptations of famous works of literature, serialized works of fiction, and a long running science-fiction comic strip called The Trigan Empire. Look & Learn was probably the only comic that was allowed in schools and libraries, as well as one of the few that parents bought willingly for their children. Currently on display in the Comic Art Gallery, we have a page with the original artwork done by Ron Embleton ( Look &Learn, 1969), as well as the Dutch weekly Eppo cover that was created in 1979 by Don Lawrence.ĭuring the time that the British Parliament passed the Children and Young Persons (Harmful Publications) Act in 1955, and right before it was made permanent in 1969, parents could rest assured that the educational magazine Look & Learn did not contain any of the violent and horrifying comics that were said to tarnish children’s morality. The Comic Creators Project at the Cartoon Museum in London has original artwork from The Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire, more commonly known as The Trigan Empire.