'Teddy Tail' (Daily Mail, 2 May 1945).
Arthur Potts was a mid-20th century British political cartoonist and comic artist, who signed his work with the nickname "Spot". During the 1930s and 1940s, he drew sports and politically-themed cartoons, alongside his comic strip 'Pickles' (1933-1936), in the Bristol Evening World. However, he is best remembered as the fourth artist to continue Charles James Folkard's 'Teddy Tail' in the Daily Mail.
Early life and career
Not much is known about Potts' life, not even his dates of birth or death. From 1933 on, he started creating sports cartoons for the Bristol Evening World. He mainly depicted the local football teams Bristol Rovers and Bristol City, as well as the county cricket team Gloucestershire. He also had a comic strip called 'Pickles' (1933-1936), in the paper's juvenile supplement, The Boys and Girls Own Evening World. During World War II, Potts changed from sports to political cartoons to raise the morale of the newspaper's readers.
"Spot" cartoons from 25 May 1940 and 8 June 1940 (images source: original-political-cartoon.com).
Teddy Tail
By 1945, Potts had moved from the Bristol Evening World to The Daily Mail. There, he is best remembered as the fourth artist to continue the popular funny animal comic strip 'Teddy Tail', originally created by Charles James Folkard in 1915 and then continued by Harry Folkard (1926-1933) and Herbert Sydney Foxwell (1933-1943). Potts rebooted 'Teddy Tail' from 5 March 1945 on, and his stories were also reprinted in six comic booklets (1950-1951) and in the 'Teddy Tail's Annual' adventure book series (1948-1955). At the Daily Mail, Potts worked alongside his fellow cartoonists Wally Fawkes and Leslie Illingworth.
Death
Suffering from severe asthma, Arthur Potts died in South Kensington in June 1950. He was only 41 years old. It seems likely that the 'Teddy Tail' strip was then continued by another staff artist, for instance Potts' graphic assistant, the young cartoonist and future TV scriptwriter Tony Hawes (1929-1997). In 1954, William St. John Glen became the new 'Teddy Tail' artist, with Roland Davies doing the annuals.
'Teddy Tail', 1949.