Lainsbury Press

Lainsbury Press is one of a number of fictitious companies invented by Simon Kirby to scam the rubes publish his numerous manga/comic pastiches. According to this faux history, Lainsbury was a small-time British operation specializing in transgender fiction. Titles included such gems as Just Like Mommy, Spanked on his Panties, Nephews in Knickers, and the ever-popular Panty Flashing Schoolboys. A subdivision of the company, Anville Press, catered to more a "sophisticated" audience (you know the kind). Covers featured monochrome line drawings embellished with lurid captions ("Turning eighteen is a turning point in most boys lives - and for some more than others!"), stories tended to be unoriginal, poorly-written and mediocre - in short; a fitting tribute to the Great British TG Pulps of the 1960s.

Faux History
Lainsbury Publications was founded in January 1960 under the name Anville Press, one of a large number of fly-by-night operations attempting to cash in on the rising popularity of the "funny book" medium. Amongst its earliest titles were Big Thrill and Razzle-Dazzle, obscure humor anthologies featuring "newpaper" reprints (you know the kind). Neither book fared particularly well on the newsstand, although a later addition, Hot Young Men in Panties enjoyed increasing success during the later 60s.

Anville merged with rival publisher Goldman Periodicals in June 1969, adding a new line-up to the regular inventory. The newly formed company expanded into the market under both the Anville and Goldman logos for seven months, before finally settling on the Lainsbury indicia in February 1970. By this time, ongoing donations from several anonymous investors had allowed the company to expand into the more lucrative "specialist" market (you know the kind).

Throughout the 1970s, the company struggled to maintain its position against American imports such as Playboy and Hustler (magazine), particularly after their investors were forced to withdraw financing. As the decade drew to a close, Lainsbury experimented with numerous genres, including "teenaged humor" and "romance" (you know the kind). None of these proved especially durable, although Hot Young Men in Panties! still managed to hold its own against better known competitors.