It was originally Raymond Macherot who created the Colonel Clifton character, and the first story was published in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine "Tintin" on 16 December 1959. In preliminary studies, Macherot had used Colonel Horatio Amaory Crickett as a working name, but before the first story decided on Colonel Clifton instead. Clifton's first names Harold Wilberforce were not mentioned until the second story. After three stories, published in 1959–1960, Macherot went on to do other work, and eventually left "Tintin" for the competitor "Spirou" magazine, leaving behind his "Tintin"-owned work. "Clifton" was shelved for six years.