The Telegraph celebrates 30 Years of Matt with a tribute from HRH Duke of Edinburgh

The Telegraph today celebrates a milestone: 30 years since cartoonist Matt Pritchett’s first cartoon was published.

The Duke of Edinburgh has paid tribute to the “genius” of Matt in a personal message in which he praised Matt’s “ability to think of wonderfully appropriate swipes at the idiocies of contemporary life”.

He leads tributes to Matt’s ‘30th birthday’ as a Telegraph cartoonist, joined by Theresa May, every living former Prime Minister, some of Britain’s best-loved broadcasters, and authors and playwrights.

Mrs May, the Prime Minister, sent her personal congratulations to Matt for helping politicians to “laugh at ourselves”, while David Cameron revealed he enjoyed one cartoon poking fun at him so much it is mounted on the wall of his daughter’s bedroom.

Sir John Major praised his talent for capturing each moment “magnificently” with “gentle, understated humour” and Gordon Brown added: “If, as it is said, a picture can paint a thousand words, then a pocket cartoon conjured up by Matt can regularly do even more.”

Known simply under the pen name ‘Matt’, since February 1988, over 8000 Telegraph cartoons have been drawn, capturing the absurdities of everyday life through sharp humour and a kind touch.

To mark this unprecedented landmark, The Telegraph is celebrating in a number of ways:

The Telegraph Magazine on Saturday (24 February) published a specially drawn – colour – Matt cartoon on its cover, accompanied by an interview with Matt choosing some favourite cartoon moments of the last 30 years.

Today’s Telegraph celebrates with a souvenir, four-page special cover-wrap edition of the newspaper which showcases 93 Matt cartoons from the last 30 years, hand-picked by Matt, three for every year since 1988.

A dedicated Telegraph online gallery of the 93 cartoons. A special Telegraph video containing tributes from Matt fans and admirers from the world of broadcasting and culture, including John Humphrys, Evan Davis, Gyles Brandreth, Jeremy Vine and Jilly Cooper. A day-in-the-life behind-the-scenes video in which Matt shows readers the process of how he decides what each days’ cartoon will be and how it makes it to The Telegraph front page.

In 1988, when Matt’s Telegraph cartoons first appeared, they were published entirely in print.

In the modern era, readers can enjoy Matt in a number of ways: in the newspaper, online at Telegraph.co.uk and via social media.

Matt’s cartoons are published to The Telegraph’s 2.4 million Twitter followers @Telegraph, where they regularly receive hundreds of retweets.

Reflecting on his 30 years drawing cartoons for The Telegraph, Matt Pritchett said: “Time flies when you’re panicking about tomorrow’s cartoon.”

Telegraph editor Chris Evans said: “In an unpredictable world, our readers know that Matt’s cartoon can be relied on to lift their spirits and make them smile. All of us at The Telegraph are delighted to celebrate 30 incredible years of cartoons with him.”

Notes to editors:

30 Years of Matt celebrations will continue throughout the year, culminating in November 2018 with a unique event at Cadogan Hall in London as Matt tells the stories behind three decades of making the front page, in an evening hosted by our Editor, Chris Evans. Visit telegraph.co.uk/Matt30 to find out more.

The event will coincide with the publication of a special book, ‘30 Years of Matt’ by Orion Books.

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