Comic Strip / George and Lynne

A typical George and Lynne strip. Bad pun, Lynne in a
state of undress...

George and Lynne was a British comic strip that ran in The Sun newspaper from 1976 to 2010. It was written by Conrad Frost and illustrated by John M. Burns (1976–1982) and Josep Gual (1982–2010).

The strip focused on the titular married couple, George and Lynne Newman, who lived in a nice house in the suburbs of south west London. George was the breadwinner, working in what appeared to be property law (although his exact job was never mentioned), and Lynne spent her days shopping, socialising and sunbathing. The couple had no children and enjoyed a life of holidays, fine dinners and incredibly bad jokes, mostly by Lynne. Lynne had a relaxed attitude to nudity and was frequently shown topless or naked, which George (and many of The Sun's readers) did not mind at all.

Supporting characters included George and Lynne's best friends, Sammy and 'Mantha; and a group of associates who usually coupled up with partners who shared the same first letter of their names.

Whilst most strips featured a simple joke, the one and only ongoing Story Arc took place over five months in 2001 to mark the strip's 25th anniversary. George had an affair with a woman he met over the Internet, and got involved with gangsters, blackmail and Lynne retaliating with an old flame. After almost losing each other for good, George and Lynne realised how much they meant to each other and the status quo was resumed.

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George and Lynne contains examples of the following tropes:

• The Alcoholic: Sammy was implied to be this on numerous occasions.
• Alcohol Is Gasoline: One strip has Lynne and George discussing an inventor who made a car that runs on alcohol. Their own car suddenly hiccups in response.
• Alliterative Name: Most of George and Lynne's friends had names beginning with the same letter. Sammy and Samantha ("'Mantha") were the best known examples, but then you'd get Tim and Tina, Robbie and Ruthie, Bob and Becky.....
• All Men Are Perverts: Multiple strips feature George and other males having their focus caught by attractive women (to their wives/girlfriends' annoyance), with some others featuring men getting in peeks at Lynne.
• Ambiguous Situation: One of Lynne's friends remarks that her husband told her he can't get a certain "melody" out of his head. Lynne states that this shouldn't be a problem if they're talking about music... but as a busty woman with "Melody" emblazoned on her top walks by, Lynne darkly notes that the husband may not be talking about music...
• As You Know: George and Lynne frequently have to remind each other, in detail, of social events taking place that very day.
• Bait-and-Switch:
  • In one strip, Lynne writes in her diary about how she saw a "handsome hunk with a great six pack", but ignored him, as there's only one guy for her. George, reading over her shoulder, thinks she's referring to him. Lynne then writes "It's just a shame Angelina got to Brad first."
  • In another story, George spots a "new couple" across the street. When Lynne joins him at the window, she sees that the "very nice pair" he was referring to belongs to a buxom redhead.
  • While at a topless beach, the titular duo spot a famous football player and his glamourous girlfriend. George remarks "Yes, they're a great pair, always in the papers". He then adds, "Oh, and so is he, of course!" to Lynne's annoyance.
  • Another strip features a group of men seemingly admiring someone's new boat — until the final panel reveals that they're actually admiring a bikini-clad Lynne.
• Beach Bury: One strip features George buried up to his neck in sand.
• Buxom Beauty Standard: Several strips feature George and other males taking the time to admire any busty women who happen to be nearby.
• Carpet of Virility: George has a considerable amount of body hair, and is generally considered attractive by most females.
• Censor Suds: Numerous strips showed Lynne in the shower, complete with convenient suds covering her nether regions.
• Comically Missing the Point: 'Mantha, usually as an excuse for Lynne's bad puns. The blog George and Lynne Explained also deliberately does this with 444 strips, looking at over-the-top explanations as to why the dialogue and settings are as they are.
• Drunken Glow: Sammy is often seen with a red nose, hinting at a drinking problem.
• Duck Season, Rabbit Season: With "football" and "shopping". Lynne always wins, and George comments on how he always falls for it.
• Eating the Eye Candy: Plenty of strips show characters gazing at attractive members of the opposite sex.
• Eek, a Mouse!!: Invoked in one strip, causing Lynne (in her underwear) to leap onto a chair. She wonders where the mice keep coming from; it turns out George is buying them from a pet shop in order to scare Lynne and get a look at her bottom.
• Exact Words:
  • One strip shows George returning from the reading of his uncle Harry's will. Lynne is ecstatic when he tells her he was left a "small fortune". Though her joy quickly deflates when it trurns out to be the words "small fortune" written on a piece of paper.
    George: Uncle Harry was a joker to the end.
  • Another strip features a friend saying that his wife wants to "get something off her chest". After Lynne ponders what the problem is, the man's wife walks by, completely topless.
• Fanservice Carwash: One strip features Lynne washing the car wearing nothing but a pair of denim cutoffs.
• Flirtatious Smack on the Ass: In one strip, Lynne wears some skintight shorts, and worries that they might be too short. George assures her that they're perfect, and that the issue may be that her legs are too long - while playfully swatting her backside.
• Gilligan Cut: When Lynne tells a friend that George needs a hobby, the friend tells her that she teaches a body-painting class, with herself as the subject (something George definitely looks interested in). The final panel shows Lynne forcing George to take up stamp collecting instead.
• Home Nudist: Lynne, frequently. George would sometimes join her.
• Hollywood Tone-Deaf: In one strip, Lynne sings in the shower, badly. Afterwards, she asks George if he thinks her body needs toning. George replies in the negative, then adds that her voice could use some tuning instead.
• Hunk: George is quite muscular and handsome.
• Immediate Self-Contradiction: In one strip, George and Sammy complain that their gym membership fees have gone up again, saying that they should refuse to pay. Once they enter the gym, they find themselves surrounded by attractive women in gym outfits, and immediately decide that it's "worth every penny".
• Irony: One strip has Lynne note that the local nudist colony is under threat of closure due to complaints - not from the people who overlook the place, but the people who don't.
• Lame Pun Reaction: Towards Lynne.
• Long Runner: 36 years.
• Long-Runner Tech Marches On: The strip started in 1976, and the characters never aged. Towards the end of the run the internet, mobile phones and I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! (2002 - ) would be mentioned.
• Male Gaze: There is plenty of focus on the bodies of Lynne and other attractive women.
• Monochrome Casting: The strip's main and recurring characters are all white.
• My Local: George and Sammy can often be found at The Ferryman inn.
• Naked Apron: Lynne was frequently seen in this.
• Naked People Trapped Outside: In one strip, Lynne tells George she was locked outside wearing only a towel. George asks if she got help, and she replies she did - from the police, postman, fire brigade and ambulance. It's implied they all stopped to help her and admire her figure.
• Passionate Sports Girl: One strip features Lynne playing a variety of sports in a variety of skimpy outfits. George tells the reader that while Lynne likes to play, he prefers to watch.
• Page Three Stunna: As the strip was featured in The Sun for several decades, it was only natural that they would bring up the newspaper's other well-known fixture from time to time.
  • The football player's girlfriend is implied to be this, going by George's sly claim that her "great pair" is "always in the papers".
  • One strip has Lynne, while posing provocatively, saying that people have told her she could have been a Page Three girl. George smugly remarks "Page Three's loss is my gain!" while cuddling with his wife.
  • Another strip features a neighbour shamelessly ogling Lynne while she's sunbathing topless, telling her that it makes up for him not getting his copy of The Sun this morning.
• Public Bathhouse Scene: Lynne and 'Mantha enjoyed being in hot tubs or jacuzzis, usually without tops on.
• Pun: A staple of the comic's humour.
• Recurring Element: Several strips feature the use of a buxom, curly-haired redhead as a Lust Object. Someone on the comic's staff definitely Has a Type...
• Selective Enforcement: In one strip, a bad-tempered boat owner is shown being hostile to anyone who comes near his boat... except for a topless Lynne and 'Mantha floating in a rubber dinghy, whom he lets pass by with a lovestruck smile on his face.
• Selective Obliviousness: While Lynne is usually well aware of how easily she can catch the eyes of males, one short shows her as being unable to understand why the teenage paperboy always knocks on the door so he can give her the paper personally. She ponders this while wearing a see-through negligee, with George's wry smile showing that he knows exactly why the paperboy does it.
• Shameless Fanservice Girl:
  • Lynne, big time. She was very confident in her body and was seen without clothes almost as much as she was with them (and said clothes were usually tight, skimpy, or even see-through). She wasn't above using her figure to get what she wanted, either.
  • There's also the barmaid at the Ferryman, a stunning blonde whose outfit shows off her chest, midriff and legs.
• Stupid Crooks: A handful of strips mention Dim Jim the Burglar, a criminal with more greed than brains. In one story, Lynne reads that he had smugly told a courtroom that they wouldn't find his fingerprints on some stolen goods — because he'd been wearing gloves when he stole them.
• Talking Is a Free Action: Occasionally, in between Lynne setting up her bad jokes and revealing the punchline, she and George have managed to get undressed, or driven home, or eaten a meal...
• Visual Pun: A couple of strips feature a buxom woman standing near a "large chest" or "very impressive bust".
• Wardrobe Malfunction: George and Lynne were being given a lift by their friend Clive in a topless sports car. For some reason, the wind caused Lynne's dress to come off.
• World of Pun: Practically every character takes the chance to indulge in comedic worldplay or a funny turn of phrase.

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