How a conservative Belgian newspaper supplement launched the world's most famous boy reporter

Entertainment · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Between 1928 and 1940, a weekly youth supplement called Le Petit Vingtième transformed Belgian comics. Led by the young illustrator Hergé, this modest insert became a cultural phenomenon, quadrupling newspaper circulation on Thursdays and turning a fictional reporter named Tintin into a real-world celebrity greeted by thousands at train stations.

Le Petit Vingtième began as an eight-page Thursday supplement to the Brussels-based Catholic newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle. Under the direction of abbot Norbert Wallez, the publication sought to capture a younger audience. Hergé, who had been working as a clerk and illustrator for the main paper, was appointed editor-in-chief. Initially tasked with illustrating existing strips, he found them uninspired and began developing his own work, eventually debuting The Adventures of Tintin in January 1929.

The supplement’s success was immediate and profound. By January 1930, the publication expanded to 16 pages, incorporating new features like the gag strip Quick & Flupke. The popularity of Tintin reached such heights that the newspaper organized elaborate public receptions at the Brussels train station to mark the conclusion of each story arc. These events drew thousands of spectators, including royalty like the former empress of Austria, Zita of Bourbon-Parma.

To manage the commercial demand, the newspaper established Les éditions du Petit Vingtième to publish albums. However, as Tintin’s fame spread to France and Switzerland, the publishing house struggled to keep pace. In 1934, the rights were transferred to Casterman, a firm better equipped for international distribution. While the supplement continued to thrive, its run was abruptly halted by the German occupation of Belgium in May 1940, ending an era that had fundamentally reshaped the landscape of European comics.

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