Marcus Rashford has guest-edited a special edition of the Beano, as well as appearing on the comic’s front cover.
The special edition of the comic comes after the publication of the England and Manchester United footballer’s book You Can Do It: How to Find Your Team and Make a Difference, which was written with Carl Anka.
As well as appearing on the front cover in cartoon form wearing a “Beano ed” T-shirt, the footballer and campaigner also makes several appearances throughout the special edition, alongside popular characters including the Bash Street Kids and Billy Whizz.
The comic is available from Wednesday, and has been produced in collaboration with NatWest’s Thrive programme. The scheme was established by the bank with Rashford to help six- to 16-year-olds become more financially confident and realise their full potential, through a series of interactive group workshops and peer-to-peer sessions.
In his editor’s letter, Rashford said he “jumped at the chance” to be involved with the comic.
“Nobody is a success in football without good teammates, and that’s true in life as well. Everybody needs to build a team of allies to have fun with and speak up for what’s important,” he said. “Our voice is strong alone, but when our voices come together, we are powerful. When we fight for things that are important together, we can make progress a lot quicker than by ourselves.”
In the letter he said his favourite thing about the Beano was how the comic “brings together all sorts of different children”.
He added: “Instead of our differences dividing us, we embrace them here, and we find strength in them. We should be celebrating all things that make each of us unique.
“Reading is one of my favourite things to do because it lets me dream. I see myself achieving so much more and I’m motivated to give new things a try.”
For every copy of the special Beano sold, 20p will be donated to the Marcus Rashford Book Club to help children access books, in partnership with Macmillan Children’s Books. So far, the book club has distributed more than 100,000 free books to children across the UK.
Fifty thousand copies of Rashford’s debut children’s book, The Breakfast Club Adventures: The Beast Beyond the Fence, will also be given out free to children.
