George Martin (comedian) of the day. He wrote for the first TV series of Irish comedian Dave Allen; "Tonight with Dave Allen", as well as material for artistes such as Rolf Harris, Jimmy Tarbuck, Paul Daniels, Harry Worth and Tommy Cooper. He became the main writer and ideas man, as well as script and production associate, for renowned magician David Nixon. When the then unknown legendary fox puppet, Basil Brush, appeared as a weekly guest on "The Nixon Line", Martin helped develop the character and subsequently was the sole writer of every Basil Brush show for many years, (throughout the 1960s and 70s).
Mandrake the Magician Pictopia" (first published in "Anything Goes!" #2, August 1986) is a short story by Alan Moore and illustrator Don Simpson, which takes place in a limbo world of comic book characters. The main character, Nocturno the Necromancer, is based on Mandrake. The story was reprinted in George Khoury's "The Extraordinary Works of Alan Moore" (TwoMorrows, July 2003). Michael Kupperman's "Tales Designed to Thrizzle" (Fantagraphics), pokes fun at many comics, including "Mandrake the Magician" with a three-panel strip, "Mancake the Magician." New Zealand-born Australian country and western singer Tex Morton had a successful song "Mandrake" recorded in 1941. It was about