The Woodwose of Cannock Chase — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This is a **title page** for a Victorian penny dreadful serial. The page announces *The Woodwose of Cannock Chase*, published by the Newsagents' Publishing Company on Fleet Street, priced at one penny weekly. The central illustration shows a large, dark, ape-like or wild-man creature amid trees and foliage, with smaller human figures visible nearby—likely depicting the "woodwose" (an archaic term for a wild man or forest creature). The page notes that "a splendid picture and No. 2" are given with this first installment, indicating this is a multi-part serialized story. The subject appears to be a sensational tale involving a mysterious creature, typical of the melodramatic content that appealed to Victorian working-class readers.