The Big Tip-Off! (comic story)

The Big Tip-Off! was a Department S comic printed in TV Century 21 in 1969.

The location of Unity City, first introduced in The Daleks story Duel of the Daleks, was referenced in a "Stop Press" panel integrated into the middle of the story, thus making it a crossover with the Doctor Who universe. The Daleks itself had previously utilised a similar format to regularly cross over with such series as Stingray and Thunderbirds.

Summary
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Characters

 * Jason King
 * Stewart Sullivan
 * Annabelle Hurst
 * Betty Carlisle
 * Luigi Morelli
 * Alex Bolton
 * Bruce White
 * Jules Desault
 * Jack Grant
 * Chief-Superintendent Carlisle
 * Jack the Grass
 * Thompson
 * Bert
 * Joe
 * Tom
 * Rome police chief
 * Constable
 * Customs officer

Worldbuilding

 * Information about the activities of Department S are taken from their top secret files, such as AJB/2.
 * Scotland Yard call handlers receive tip-offs that Bruce White has robbed Maceys, that Jack Grant has blown a safe in Mayfair, that Charlie Wyatt is hiding at his brother's place in Buckingham, as well as the current whereabouts of Jules Desault in Paris and where Rome police can find the Mafia headquarters.
 * The Rome Chief refers to Luigi Morelli as the "most wanted man in Italy".
 * An advert for Ty-Phoo can be seen on a London bus.
 * The number plate of Jason King's car is CPG-283.
 * Superintendent Carlisle claims Bolton's doll is for his daughter.
 * Jason King contacts a Tony in Rome and asks him to find out all he can about a new gang.
 * A late flash from Unity City states that World President T.J. Younger has resigned due to reasons of ill health, succeeded by Vice President Roberts.
 * A ship being made to honour Vice President Roberts has had to change its name to President Roberts.
 * Jason King states his belief that Betty Carlisle's plan was "too fantastic to work" only a woman could have thought it up.

Story notes

 * This comic marked the only Department S story to contain elements from the Doctor Who universe, though characters and concepts from the series also crossed over in cover stories.

Continuity

 * T.J. Younger tenders his resignation as World President due to his ill health, the same reason his predecessor in the role Nikita Bandranaik also stood down. (PROSE: Solar Streak A.O.K., Information Service)
 * TV 21 covered Department S's investigations into the anonymous telephone calls. (PROSE: Landslide!, Radiation Hazard!)