Artist Peter Woolcock's annual collection of political cartoons turns 21 this year.

And Woppened 21 is on shelves now the collection of cartoons that first appeared in The Royal Gazette as weekly political commentary, spans October 2008 to September 2009.

It is being released just in time to ring out Bermuda's 400th anniversary.

So, naturally, this particular volume contains several references to Sir George Somers.

"He kept popping up all year," said Mr. Woolcock.

In one strip Sir George Somers stands knee deep in water in front of a wrecked Sea Venture.

The caption reads "Tall Ships Race... Bermuda's 400th Anniversary... and we have come full circle".

This strip was a reference to the number of senseless road deaths that occurred in June.

Another cartoon released at Cup Match showed Sir George with a cricket bat and read "Well Done, Sir George — 400 Not Out."

It's been said that you haven't made it on the political scene until you've been mocked in one of Mr. Woolcock's cartoons.

The 2009 issue includes several newcomers including Governor Sir Richard Gozney, Chief Justice Richard Ground and Progressive Labour Party (PLP) MP Glenn Blakeney.

And of course, the issue of Bermuda's newest citizens a group of Uighurs released from Guantánamo Bay, naturally rears its head.

The Uighurs were perhaps one of the biggest controversies of the year and threatened to topple Bermuda's relationship with the United Kingdom government.

As Premier Ewart Brown negotiated a deal with the American government to allow the Uighurs to settle in Bermuda — without consulting Britain.

In the June 23 strip Sir Richard Gozney and Premier Ewart Brown are being interviewed on television.

Dr. Brown wears angel wings, a halo and a bleeding heart.

Sir Richard tells the camera: "I was not informed it was going to be a fancy dress affair."

Mr. Woolcock said the most controversial strip of the year was on December 12, 2008.

It depicted a rather portly, slightly depressed looking gorilla in a suit.

The caption quoted Finance Minister Paula Cox: 'Race is the 800-pound gorilla that sits in the room.

"Anyone who seeks to deny that is either in cloud cuckoo-land or is naive."

Unfortunately, some readers assumed the gorilla was meant to portray a particular person.

"Someone called me and said 'they're talking about you on the talk shows, you know'," said Mr. Woolcock. "People were trying to say I was referring to a particular person. It was just a gorilla. The one that Paula Cox referred to."

Mr. Woolcock's readers often spend time trying to figure out who the characters are meant to represent, but Mr. Woolcock said sometimes they are just random people.

"Many times the characters aren't meant to depict a specific person," he said. "I spend much more time trying to draw nobodies. They invariably looking like somebodies."

Mr. Woolcock produces one to two cartoons a week for The Royal Gazette. Technically, this should be the 22nd compilation of his work, but there was one year when his cartoons didn't get published as a collection.

Today, his strips are often used in classrooms as educational material for civics lessons.

He first started drawing political cartoons in Bermuda in 1983 at the time of a general election.

"The situation was so irresistible that I brought some samples to show then editor of The Royal Gazette, David White," he said. "That is when it all started."

Although he is well known locally for his political cartoons, he actually worked for 38 years for the Amalgamated Press in England drawing hundreds of illustrations for children's books and magazines including 'Look and Learn' and 'Treasure'. These were comically instructional.

He also illustrated the Amalgamated Press' version of 'Wind In The Willows' and then the 'Further Adventures of Mr. Toad' for 25 years.

He even drew '101 Dalmatians' before the film came out.

"The other day I was trying to clear out my studio and came across piles of bulging brown envelopes holding samples of my early work during the fifties, sixties and seventies," he said.

"I was bowled over by the sheer volume of stuff that I turned out on a daily basis, all the while keeping ahead of pressing deadlines."

He said at one point in his career he would often work from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. most days.

He urged young people to stick to their dreams and put effort into pursuing them.

"Not having much money in 1953, I worked my passage from Argentina (where he was born) to England on a cargo boat and began walking the streets of London, from interview to interview.

"Two weeks after arriving I had one interview with the Amalgamated Press, and saw the wrong man.

"Five weary months later, living on a shoestring, someone suggested I try again.

"This time the interviewer said: 'Where have you been? If you contract to work for us, freelance, we guarantee to work you up the wall...'"

He went on to have a long and successful career with the Amalgamated Press.

But he said if he hadn't worked so hard, and kept at it, he might have ended up in Argentina again.

"So if there is a message for young people starting out, it is this: 'If and when you get a job, don't think of it as your due right, but be grateful for it and bust yourself doing it, whatever it may be.

"Be glad you've got it, and the rewards will come to you eventually. Don't hit bottom before you realise this."

Today, copies of Mr. Woolcock's Bermuda political cartoons are highly sought after.

People have requested copies of his cartoons to present to former American President Bill Clinton, and former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

"I have no idea what they did with them afterward," he said. "Maybe there is one hanging at Number 10 Downing Street."

Woppened 21 is available in local bookstores.