Rasher is a British comic strip published in the comics magazine ''

The Beano ''The Beano'' (formerly ''The Beano Comic'', also known as ''Beano'') is a British anthology comic magazine created by Scottish publishing company DC Thomson. Its first issue was published on 30 July 1938, and it became the world's longest-runn ...

'', featuring Dennis the Menace's pet pig Rasher. It was initially drawn by

David Sutherland David Sutherland may refer to: * David Sutherland (baseball) (born 1985), Australian baseball player * David Sutherland (comics) (1933–2023), Scottish comic book artist * David Sutherland (cricketer) (1873–1971), Australian cricketer * David Su ...

and published five years after the character's first appearance. Due to ''The Beano'' 2012 continuity, Rasher's daughter (also named Rasher) has succeeded the role, particularly in '' Dennis And Gnasher: Unleashed!''.

Character background

Rasher is a

pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus ''Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...

obsessed with food, either seen eating it (usually by stealing the food from an unsuspecting human) or

daydreaming Daydreaming is the stream of consciousness that detaches from current, external tasks when attention drifts to a more personal and internal direction. This phenomenon is common in people's daily life shown by a large-scale study in which partici ...

about it. A method of attack to get the food is by either butting humans or racing past them quick enough so they fail to notice their food has disappeared.

Publication history

Introduction to ''The Beano''

Rasher made his first appearance in ''The Beano'' in issue 1920 in ''

Dennis the Menace and Gnasher ''Dennis the Menace and Gnasher'' (originally titled ''Dennis the Menace'' and currently titled ''Dennis and Gnasher)'' is a long-running comic strip in the British children's comic '' The Beano'', published by DC Thomson, of Dundee, Scotlan ...

''. Dennis and

Gnasher Gnasher () is a fictional comic strip character that appears in the British comic magazine ''The Beano''. He is the pet dog of Dennis the Menace, who meets him in 1968's issue 1362, and is also the star of three spin-off comic strips. Gnasher i ...

walk by a farm and notice the farmer's pig used its

trough Trough may refer to: In science * Trough (geology), a long depression less steep than a trench * Trough (meteorology), an elongated region of low atmospheric pressure * Trough (physics), the lowest point on a wave * Trough level (medicine), th ...

to prank him. Dennis is intrigued and successfully takes the pig off the relieved farmer's hands, naming it Rasher.

''Rasher'' comic strip

Rasher received his eponymous comic strip in issue 2201, illustrated by Dave Sutherland. It is notable of being the last comic strip published with Harold Cramond as ''Beano'' chief-editor. Early stories also featured Rasher's family, such his brother Hamlet, his sister Virginia Ham, Uncle Crackling and Little Piglet, who were all introduced in the first episode. The series ran for over a decade in over 500 issues, and ended in 1995. From issue 3480, older ''Rasher'' strips were reprinted in full colour in ''The Beano''. Lew Stringer helmed the reboot from issue 3660, which was a part of the Funsize Funnies section. This new series has appeared infrequently throughout the 2010s.

Subsequent appearances

Rasher has appeared in Dennis' comic strips sporadically, unlike Dennis' other pet, Gnasher, who stars in every issue (apart from a few issues in 1986). Rasher is absent in the ''Dennis the Menace'' cartoon adaptations, notably not appearing in 2009's ''

Dennis and Gnasher ''Dennis the Menace and Gnasher'' (originally titled ''Dennis the Menace'' and currently titled ''Dennis and Gnasher)'' is a long-running comic strip in the British children's comic '' The Beano'', published by DC Thomson, of Dundee, Scotland ...

'', despite the cartoon featuring Dennis' grandmother having a pet pig named Harley. Eventually, Rasher returned in ''Beano'' 3601, featuring in ''Dennis and Gnasher'' alongside Harley. Issue 3649 shifted ''Beano'' continuity as

Gok Wan Kowkhyn Wan (; born 9 September 1974), known as Gok Wan, is a British fashion consultant, author, television presenter, actor, DJ, chef and event manager. Initially training in the performing arts at the Central School of Speech and Drama, ...

gave Dennis' parents a makeover, which was later revealed that Dennis' father turned into the original Dennis who had grown up, married and had his own children. Stringer's ''Rasher'' reboot implies this change does not affect Rasher, but in the franchise retooling for ''Dennis and Gnasher: Unleashed!'', the Rasher who appears in the cartoon is black and white like a cow, and revealed as the daughter of the Rasher the original Dennis owned. Unlike her father, she prefers eating turnips. As of September 2021, Rasher's last appearance in ''The Beano'' was in issue 4048.

In ''Beano'' media

Rasher appears in other parts of ''Beano'' franchise. In ''

The Beano Annual ''The Beano Annual'' is the current name of the book that has been published every year since 1939, to tie in with the children's comic book, comic ''The Beano''. there have been 84 editions. The annuals are traditionally published in July or A ...

''s, Rasher's stories have appeared from 1986 to 1989's editions, but Rasher actually appeared a few annuals earlier in Rasher-themed puzzle games in 1984's and 1985's. The ''Rasher'' series mostly appeared in 1983's, 1985's and 1987's ''Beano Summer Special''s. The new Rasher appeared in the 2014 annual, where she was drawn by

References

Notes

Citations

External links

* of Rasher's first appearance on the ''Beano'' website * from ''Dennis & Gnasher: Unleashed!'' fact file on Beano.com {{Pigs Beano strips Comics characters introduced in 1979 1984 comics debuts 1988 comics endings Comics spin-offs Gag-a-day comics Comics about animals Comics about pigs Children's comics British comics characters Fictional pigs Male characters in comics Dennis the Menace and Gnasher