Norman Thelwell (3 May 1923 – 7 February 2004) was an English cartoonist well known for his humorous illustrations of ponies and horses. He was also active as a comic artist, drawing the series Penelope and Kipper.

Life and career

Born in Birkenhead, Thelwell spent the Second World War in the East Yorkshire Regiment, having signed up at the age of 18 in 1941,

In 1944, he took evening classes in art at Nottingham Art School.

His first collection of cartoons, Angels on Horseback, was published in 1957. which detailed the first two lakes he dug there. A third lake was later featured on the BBC's South Today programme. Written much earlier, but published three years later, A Millstone Round My Neck described his experiences in re-building a Cornish water mill (Addicroft Mill at Liskeard, which he called Penruin), which was sold before the book was published. He always loved old buildings, and in his autobiography, Wrestling with a Pencil, wrote about his joy in the beauty of old cottages.

In the 1970s, Thelwell also illustrated the front covers of the first six James Herriot books in the series.

Exhibitions

An exhibition of Thelwell's drawings and cartoons was scheduled to be held at the Nature in Art gallery in Gloucester, England, from 30 July to 1 September 2019.

Published books

  • Angels on Horseback (1957)
  • Thelwell Country (1959)
  • A Place of Your Own – A Guide for House-Hunters (1960)
  • Thelwell in Orbit (1961)
  • A Leg at Each Corner (1962)
  • Top Dog (1964) [Dogs]
  • Thelwell's Riding Academy (1965)
  • Drawing Ponies (1966)
  • Up the Garden Path (1967) [gardening]
  • Thelwell's Compleat Tangler (1967) [fishing]
  • Thelwell's Book of Leisure (1968)
  • This Desirable Plot (1970) [real estate]
  • The Effluent Society (1971) [waste and ecology]
  • Penelope (1972)
  • Three Sheets in the Wind (1973) [sailing]
  • Belt Up (1974) [motoring]
  • Thelwell Goes West (1975)
  • Brat Race (1977)
  • Riding Frieze (1977)
  • A Plank Bridge by a Pool (1978)
  • Thelwell's Gymkhana (1979)
  • Horse Sense (1980; previously published as Riding Frieze, 1977)
  • A Millstone Round My Neck (1981)
  • Pony Calvalcade (1981) (3 in 1: Angels on Horseback, A Leg at Each Corner, Riding Academy)
  • Some Damn Fool's Signed the Rubens Again (1982) [owning a stately home]
  • Sporting Prints (1982)
  • How to Draw Ponies (1982; based on Drawing Ponies, 1966)
  • Magnificat (1983) [cats]
  • Wrestling with a Pencil: The Life of a Freelance Artist (1986)
  • Play It As It Lies (1987) [golfing]
  • Pony Panorama (1988) (3 in 1: Gymkhana, Goes West, Penelope)
  • Penelope Rides Again (1989)
  • The Cat's Pyjamas (1992) [cats]

Other published works/or works involved with

  • The Penguin Thelwell (1963)
  • The Delinquent Equine RS Summerhayes and Thelwell (Moss Bros) (undated)
  • Thelwell (1989) [sale catalogue]
  • Ploughmans Punch (1995)
  • The Definitive Thelwell (2009) [sale catalogue]
  • Thelwell Country: 70 years of Norman Thelwell (2003–4) [exhibition catalogue, Southampton City Art Gallery]

Forewords written by/contains some illustrations

  • Punch Afloat (1974) – contains two sections written by Thelwell, pp. 36 and 80, as well as additional illustrations
  • Travelling with a Sketchbook by Ray Evans, foreword by Norman Thelwell (1980)

References

  • Thelwell website
  • Obituary in The Telegraph, 9 February 2004.
  • Searchable Archive