Beryl the Peril appeared in the first issue of "The Topper" in 1953. She was created to be a female equivalent to "The Beano"'s Dennis the Menace. Davey Law, her artist and creator, drew inspiration from his daughter, who would often pull faces during her tantrums. The strips were similar in concept to the Dennis the Menace ones in that she would cause chaos through menacing her neighbours, parents and school teachers. In 1958, Beryl was chosen as one of the few of D.C. Thomson's characters to earn an annual all to herself, consisting solely from reprints in past years. When Law retired
The Unexpected was "Johnny Peril" which ran from issues #106–117. For issues #111–on, the titular protagonist was billed as an "adventurer of the weird". Johnny Peril would again appear in issues #200 and 205–213. Johnny Peril's roots, prior to his first appearance, came in the one-off story "Just a Story" in All-American Comics' "Comic Cavalcade" #15 (July 1946), by writer–artist Howard Purcell. With issue #22 (Sept. 1947), the anthological "Just a Story" series gained newspaper-reporter character Johnny Peril, who often acted as witness or narrator rather than as an integral part of the narrative. With this issue, the series title became "Johnny