A long, long time ago (in the previous century, if the truth be told), I was introduced to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and Fat Freddy’s Cat.

This was when I was a student at Sheffield Hallam University in the fabled county of Yorkshire in the legendary country of Albion. I was on a 4-year co-op course, which meant I spent a year in school, out for 6-months in industry, another year in school, out again for another 6 months in industry, and then back to school for a final year of buffing and polishing before they kicked me out as a brand spanking new engineer.

I was based in St Albans for my second period in industry, which I spent working as an intern at the research and development center for a company that made glass products. One Friday evening, a bunch of my friends came down from Sheffield. Bright and early the following morning (it may have been the crack of noon), we caught a train into London to spend the day wandering around, seeing the sights and blowing the froth off a few cold beers.

We had a great time exploring the London Underground, delving into the depths of the system, and reemerging into the light of day at fabled stations like the Elephant and Castle, Piccadilly Circus, and Shepherd’s Bush.

We also ended up strolling the length of the celebrated Carnaby Street, which has a storied history dating from the 1600s, including being the birthplace of the Swinging Sixties.

If the truth be told, my memories of that day have grown somewhat fuzzy over time (mayhap I had a bad beer). What I do remember is wandering into one of the many amazing shops—a purveyor of interesting comics—which is where I first met The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers.

I purchased all the issues that were available—around six or seven—along with a couple of issues of Fat Freddy’s Cat. I still have them somewhere in my office, along with other illustrious 1970s and 1980s publications like Heavy Metal.

The reason I’m waffling on about this here is that there’s long been a niggling feeling lurking at the back of my mind that I’ve missed out by not having the complete FFFB collection (there is also the 2020 FFFB Animated TV Series, but it’s really not the same).

Thus, you can only imagine my surprise and delight when, while meandering my way around the Amazon website, I ran across The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers Omnibus and the Fat Freddy’s Cat Omnibus. Between them, they purport to provide all the Freak Brothers stories, book covers, posters, etc. and merchandise.

I immediately splashed the cash for both bodacious beauties. Reading them is like travelling back in time—a trip down memory lane, if you will, although “tripping” would also be applicable in those halcyon days. Even better, since my memory is not what it used to be, I anticipate taking this same trip multiple times in the future.

I fear that the names of publications like Heavy Metal and the FFFB will have no meaning to the youngsters of today. How about you? Do these appellations spark a flicker in your little grey cells?