Wills'n'Kate: the comic book

‘There is a kitschness to it’ . . . Kate and William in comic form.

^'I think you could definitely go down the pub with William and Kate," says Rich Johnston, who has spent the last three months reading every article he could find about the couple's lives, as research for a comic book that will, he says, faithfully chart their relationship.

Johnston, bearded, with unkempt red hair and slightly wonky glasses, is the cartoonist for the controversial Westminster blogger Guido Fawkes, as well as being the founder of the comics website Bleeding Cool. He knows the idea will strike some as tawdry, but he describes Kate and William: A Very Public Love Story as a modern-day romance. "There is a kitschness to it. But I love doing things that sound ridiculously kitsch, then surprising the audience with something deeper."

Due out in April, to coincide with the royal wedding, this "dramatic retelling" will appear in two issues, one focusing on the prince, the other on his bride, although there will be a third edition that brings the stories together, each running from opposing ends of the book and meeting in the middle.

It might sound surprising that a man who spends much of his time abusing politicians would pen such a reverential tome. After all, one of his recent cartoons, titled How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Trident, depicted Nick Clegg riding a nuclear bomb, Stetson in hand, declaring: "Feel the power between my legs!"

His purpose, though, is simply to "expose comics to a new audience. Comics have a lot to offer as a medium, but often they are dismissed as something juvenile." His hope is that everyone from the elderly to Heat magazine readers will pick up a copy with their weekly shop. And then there's the obvious market in the US, where royal-related memorabilia is snapped up.

Does he tackle Diana's death? "It's a monumental event in the life of William, so you see him at the funeral. You also see Kate, watching the funeral in a news report and being affected by it. Kate's biggest problem is that the media begin hounding her, which is what happened to Diana, so there's that idea of mortality and dangerousness being introduced into her life." Although Johnston uses some artistic licence to touch on the couple's sex lives, he adds: "There are no scenes where you see them 'at it'."

Two of the UK's best-known comics artists, Mike Collins and Gary Erskine, were given the task of representing the stories visually. "Rich has written a witty, detailed and clever script," says Collins, who has drawn the likes of Spider-Man and Batman. "Diana's involvement is surprising and well handled."

William Windsor: A Very Public Prince, drawn by Erskine, is reminiscent of defunct Boy's Own-ish titles like Commando and Roy of the Rovers. "Their staples tended to be playing sports at school and running around with tanks, aeroplanes or through trenches. Funnily enough, those are very much part of William's life story."

Kate Middleton: A Very Private Princess, drawn by Collins, employs fictional diary entries and echoes the sort of comic strips found in 1970s schoolgirl magazines. "Jackie was an inevitable touchstone," says Collins. "Just like a songwriter would evoke a certain musical sequence, we're able to draw – literally – on that styling to create an appropriate mood."

The US publishing house Bluewater has just announced a rival to this comic, called The Royals: Prince William and Kate Middleton, also due in April. Is Johnston worried? "It's being printed in America, written by Americans and drawn by Americans. The way the British relate to the monarchy is different. We understand their flaws – they kind of become part of us. Monarchist or republican, you get it by osmosis. There is a loving mockery."

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