John Millar Watt studied art at The Sir John Cass Institute and also at The Slade. While still in art school, he drew some sports cartoons for the Daily Chronicle. Watt pioneered the use of a continuing landscape divided into panels. On May 21, 1921, his new comic character 'Pop' appeared in the Daily Sketch. It was one of the first daily comic strips in Britain.
In 1925, the first 'Pop' annual appeared and continued annually until 1949. Pop's final years were spent as a daily gag panel, drawn by Gordon Hogg, who took over the strip upon Millar Watt's well-earned retirement. As a watercolorist and oil painter, Watt exhibited at The Royal Academy of Art as well as many galleries. Sadly, much of his original work has disappeared over the years, either lost or destroyed.
