A new graphic novel running through the lives and ideas of humanists, both well known and unjustly forgotten, has just been announced.

Paul Fitzgerald (Polyp), a Manchester-based illustrator and cartoonist, and Madeleine Goodall, a researcher and writer on humanist history, proposed book sets out to recover ‘unjustly forgotten freethinking humanists’ and bring them back into popular history.

In recent years, Polyp has produced a range of projects, which we here at the Society for the Study of Labour History are proud to have supported. In 2022, we part-supported his graphic novel on the life and writings of Thomas Paine, which was funded through a Kickstarter appeal. We also later supported COURAGE, which covered the long fight for the right to vote from the Luddites to the Suffragettes.

Now, Polyp and Goodall are looking for support to crowdfund their latest project and for your participation in shaping the book’s content. The author’s are keen to emphasise that they view the project as part of a broader campaigning community to promote progressive values and the wider preservation of radical and labour history.

The project sets out to be a “a vivid, illustrated biographical romp through the lives and ideas of freethinking humanist icons who shook the world”, Polyp and Goodall note. The project will highlight both household names, as well as other lesser known individuals.

Polyp and Goodall are aiming for around thirty individuals, though each chapter will vary in length, depending on how complex and dramatic their individual stories are. Alongside, the author’s own list of ‘must haves’, they are also looking for supporters to offer suggestions and co-edit the collection. They note:

“We hope to hear from every backer who they think should go in the book . . . and of course feel free to throw our way entertaining, well sourced facts about any of these LOOSE CANNON characters . . . our only fixed criteria is that they are not still alive!”

The authors aim to have the finished book printed and available to purchase by the summer of 2027.

Polyp (Paul Fitzgerald) is a cartoonist, graphic novelist, prop-builder and science educator based in Manchester, UK. He is a freethinking humanist whose work has been used by New Internationalist, Amnesty International, The Freethinker and many more, and he is chair of the Peterloo Memorial Campaign. His previous (Kickstarter crowdfunded) titles include PETERLOO, PAINE, COURAGE and thINK. 
https://polyp.org.uk

Madeleine Goodall researches and writes about humanist history, with a particular focus on the role of women in the movement. She has written about these rebels for New Humanist, History Workshop Online, the Women’s History Network, The Humanist (US), and extensively on the Humanist Heritage website, as well as giving talks, leading walks, and developing resources to share this rich history.

Support their work here.

Find out more about Polyp’s previous projects.

Read Madeleine Goodall’s previous work.