Punch (magazine)
Punch, or The London Charivari was a British weekly magazine of humour and satire established in 1841 by Henry Mayhew and wood-engraver Ebenezer Landells. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 1850s, when it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration. Artists at Punch included John Tenniel who, from 1850, was the chief cartoon artist at the magazine for over 50 years.
This article is about the British magazine. For other publications, see Punch § Periodicals.Categories
Politics, culture, humour, satire
Weekly
1841
17 July 1841
2002
United Kingdom
London
English
With its satire of the contemporary, social, and political scene, Punch became a household name in Victorian Britain. Sales of 40,000 copies a week by 1850 rose above 100,000 by 1910. After the 1940s, when its circulation peaked, it went into a long decline, closing in 1992. It was revived in 1996, but closed again in 2002.
Punch was influential throughout the British Empire, and in countries including Turkey, India, Japan, and China, with Punch imitators appearing in Cairo, Yokohama, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Shanghai.[21] A Canadian version, Punch in Canada, was launched on 1 January 1849, by John H. Walker (1831–99), a cartoonist and engraver. It ceased publication in 1850.[22]