Becoming Flynn

Mr Drum was here yesterday, he knows just what he needs And gives what he’s got to the thump of his creed Live fast, die young, leave a good looking corpse, Good looking corpse In a witch doctor’s den, in a shanty shabeen From the echoes of laughter I know where he’s been From the liquor you’ve drunk and the air that you breathe Is the tap of his typing, is the sweat from his sleeve Live…

LES MISÉRABLES (2018)

The BBC aired Magnitsky the Musical in January 2020, and it became my comfort listen through lockdown. Well I say 'comfort listen', it was more of a compulsion for the first few months, and my sketchbook filled up accordingly.

The characters in Magnitsky are real people, but having devoted myself to a massive project which consists of drawing a lot of real people recognisably, I thought for this I would try basing character designs entirely on how they sounded, without looking anyone up. Not how I'd suggest approaching this kind of project officially, but I only did it for fun. And it was fun.

Sadly, in the last five years, the show hasn't lost any of its relevance – Trump and Putin are even bigger players now than they were, and their friends and associates have all the more power. So it's more important than ever to be reminded how change is brought about by little people standing up for what's right, and teamwork with people of differing temperaments and values, to knock the big bad bullies down a notch.

I should like to see Emma in love and in some doubt of a return. It would do her good.

What is it about him? His smell.

VANITY FAIR (2018)