Commando Presents: Cadman

On 10th February, 1973, “The Coward of the Fighting 43rd” first appeared in The Victor, showcasing the unlikeliest of heroes — the cowardly Cadman! For two decades Cadman entertained readers as the unscrupulous cad, determined to get out of any fight in the First World War and eventually ending up fighting back against Hitler and the rise of the Nazis. Then, in 2023, Cadman weaselled his way onto the pages of Commando, the world’s longest-running war comic. Those two rebooted issues, as well as selected comics from DC Thomson’s Victor and The Victor Book for Boys, are collected here in DC Thomson’s Heritage Comics and Commando Presents… Cadman Volume 1.

In the autumn of 1914, the Anglo French and German armies launched a series of flanking manoeuvres towards the Channel, as cowardly cavalry lieutenant, Gerald Cadman tries to trick his captain into leading them away from the fighting. But every attempt to flee takes them into fresh action, while Cadman’s batman, Tom Smith, looks for ways to expose his deceptive master…

Marvel at over 190 pages of classic Cadman comic artwork from some of DC Thomson’s most legendary titles, as well as a delightful foreword from iconic original and returning artist Mike Dorey!

Andrew Knighton was born in Nottingham in 1978 and grew up on the edge of Norwich, a city whose rich medieval heritage fostered his fascination with the past. He studied history at Durham University, with a focus on medieval warfare, before spending a decade working in office jobs and briefly as a teacher. Along the way, he started writing and publishing short stories. In 2013, he quit a life of spreadsheets and meetings to strike out on his own as a freelance writer, with a focus on business writing and ghostwritten books for digital publishers. He’s written articles and video scripts on history for resource sites such as History.com and War History Online.

Andrew’s fiction is a mixture of fantasy, science fiction, and historical settings. His published work includes over seventy short stories, two novellas, and an alternate history military thriller, The Bear’s Claws, co-written with Russell Phillips. Andrew’s comic career began when he entered Top Cow’s 2013 talent hunt. Since then, he’s written for Top Cow and Commando, with Commando scripts stretching across a thousand years of history, from the Battle of Hastings to Vietnam and The Falklands War.

Mike Dorey worked for DC Thomson and IPC in the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s. He is an artist with a dark, textured style who pencils, inks, colours and sometimes adds lettering to his illustrations.
His first regular strip for DC Thomson was in Diana and after a short while, he was asked to do a story for The Victor. The choice was either The Pillow Champ, Is it Cricket? or Cadman which was his first war story of which he has drawn in excess of 800 pages. Tough of the Track and Morgyn the Mighty followed. In Warlord, Dorey drew Wolverine, Cassidy, Iron Annie, Sergeant Rayker. The Fighting Condor, Kampfgruppe Falken and Codename: Warlord.

Dorey also worked on Buddy, Scream, Champ and Bullet, drawing The Wolf of Kabul, A Ghastly Tale, The Sinister World of Mr Pendragon, Fireball, Head-Hunter of the Galaxy, Toro Space Samurai, Mantracker and Striker’s Squadron, as well as Hard Mercy from Mandy and numerous strips in Debbie and Diana.

Dorey also has worked for DC Thomson’s competitors Action and later in Battle / Action comics. In the early years of 2000 AD, Dorey illustrated the Rogue Trooper, Ro-busters, Ro-Jaws, Psi-Testers, ABC Warriors, M.A.C.H. 1, Tharg’s Future Shocks, and Time Twisters.

In the ’90s Mike did a number of covers for Commando and is now enjoying drawing complete stories, some featuring his old friend Cadman.

After 30 years in TV and film storyboarding, Mike has now happily returned to working in comics.