By the beginning of 1987, I'd been writing for Richard Burton's Battle Action Force comic for a few months and Richard had just been transferred to 2000AD as deputy editor. No sooner than he'd arrived than incumbent editor Steve MacManus took a three month sabbatical leaving Richard as editor and no deputy in sight. One day in January, I'd met up with Richard for lunch to discuss a Future Shock I was scripting for 2000AD, and Richard was telling me he didn't know how he was going to manage. I volunteered to help out for a few months as Deputy Editor ("I've edited a few mags and comics in my time," I told Rich helpfully). Richard was surprised at the offer, as he'd seen me as a developing scripter, but took me up on it anyway. So, I was duly interviewed by Managing Editor Gil Page and I started immediately. Prog 515 was the first issue I worked on as Deputy Editor, arriving just in time to see the last few pages out the door.

I hadn't been at 2000AD but a couple of weeks when I happened to field a phone call from Pat Mills - the creator and original editor of 2000AD, as well as the writer of some of the comics most successful strips. Though I could never understand the appeal of his later work, he was still treated pretty much as a demi-god by the editorial team at the time.
As it turned out, Pat wasn't happy. He hadn't received an expected cheque from the accounts department - this was to be an ongoing problem with Fleetway in all its guises - and decided to take it out on me. I listened patiently through a gale of obscenities that would have made a navvie blush until Mills had blown himself out.
I gave no indication that I'd even heard this tirade. I quietly told Mills that I pass his message along, and hung up.
That incident was to colour my opinion of Mills for my entire tour of duty on 2000AD. After that, I could never warm to the man or to his work.