Ben Uri Research Unit

Born: 1907 Esk, Australia

Died: 1970 London, England

Year of Migration to the UK: 1911

Other name/s: Beryl Botterill Thompson, Anton, Beryl Yeoman , Beryl Thompson

Biography

Cartoonist Antonia Yeoman (née Beryl Thompson) was born on 24 July 1907 in Esk, Queensland, Australia. She adopted the name Antonia when she became a Roman Catholic in her early twenties, influenced by the author R. T. Regent, who was a family friend. The Yeomans visited England on holiday in 1911 and stayed with relatives in West Kirby, Cheshire. During this visit, Yeoman’s father passed away, and the family decided to stay in Britain, eventually settling in Brighton. Yeoman's childhood was marked by significant health challenges; she contracted tuberculosis of the spine, confining her to bed from the age of nine until 15, and resulting in the loss of two fingers on her right hand. Despite these obstacles, she learned to write and draw with her left hand, initially taught by private governesses. She briefly attended a local junior school and later attended the Royal Academy Schools in London in 1928, studying art under renowned artist Stephen Spurrier for a year, before becoming a freelance commercial and fashion artist, creating advertising posters and showcards, collaborating with her brother, Harold, on the latter from around 1935.

The pivotal moment in her career came in 1937 when she and her brother launched a cartooning partnership known as ‘Anton’. Their first cartoons under this name were sold to Night & Day and Punch magazines. The partnership combined their strengths—Antonia's superior line drawing and Harold's keen observation and sense of form. This collaboration began with her brother’s contributions identified under the signature ‘H. Botterill’ and evolved with Yeoman’s growing influence. The siblings initially maintained their individuality within the partnership, but over time, Yeoman became the primary force behind the cartoons, especially as Harold’s career shifted towards advertising.

Yeoman’s cartoons quickly gained popularity, appearing in prestigious publications such as Tatler, Lilliput, Men Only, The New Yorker, Evening Standard, Private Eye, and notably, Punch. Yeoman’s work was known for its elegant draftsmanship and a wry, sometimes surreal humour that depicted a world of high society quirks and foibles. Her ability to capture the essence of British social life from the 1930s through the 1960s earned her critical acclaim and a devoted readership. During the Second World War, with Harold serving in the Royal Navy, Yeoman managed their artistic ventures alone, producing some of her most memorable work, including a famous 1940 Punch cartoon depicting a humorous MI6 plot involving a Hitler look-alike. After the war, the siblings resumed their cartooning partnership, contributing to Punch, Lilliput, London Opinion, and Men Only. Harold later shifted his focus to advertising, becoming a creative marketing director, which left Antonia to take over the Anton name entirely by 1949. Her cartoons featured elegant men-about-town, superior spivs, and the middle classes, rendered with a distinctive ‘squiggle’ technique for half-tone effects (Bryant 2004). Her work appeared in notable publications, including Tatler, The New Yorker, The Daily Telegraph, and Private Eye. Two books of the jointly drawn cartoons were published: Anton’s Amusement Arcade in 1947 and Low Life and High Life in 1952. Yeoman also created a series of popular Anton advertisements for companies such as Moss Bros., Simpson's Services Club, Morley Outfitters, and Saxone Shoes. Additionally, she illustrated 17 books, including works by Virginia Grahame and Denys Parsons.

Yeoman's impact extended beyond her cartooning; she was also a pioneer in other areas of the arts. She was the only female member of Punch's Toby Club and became the first woman elected to the Chelsea Arts Club, a testament to her significant role in a predominantly male profession. Her personal life, marked by her marriage to John Yeoman, Mayor of Chelsea, also reflected her deep integration into the cultural and social fabric of her adopted country. Despite her success, however, Yeoman often expressed doubts about her ability to keep up with the changing times, particularly the satirical demands of the 1960s. 'I wake up in the morning in terror wondering if I'll be able to think of any more jokes,' she once expressed in an interview (British Cartoon Archive). Nevertheless, her work remained popular until her death at St George's Hospital, Tooting, London, England on 30 June 1970. A retrospective exhibition, featuring her drawings from the Second World War up to her death, was held at the Upper Grosvenor Galleries in 1971. In the UK public domain, her work is represented in the Victoria and Albert Museum collection and in the University of Kent Cartoon Centre.

Related books

Nicola Streeten and Cath Tate, The Inking Woman: 250 Years of Women Cartoon and Comic Artists in Britain (Oxford: Myriad Edition, 2018)
Mark Bryant, ‘Yeoman, Antonia’, in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004)
Martin Plimmer, ‘Classic Cartoons: Martin Plimmer on Anton’, The Independent, 23 January 1999, p. 28
Evan Anthony, ‘Dada's children (Book Review)’, The Spectator, 20 November 1971, p. 737
‘Present Laughter’, Country Life, 18 November 1971, p. 1369
Antonia Yeoman (London: Collins, 1947)

Public collections

Related organisations

Chelsea Arts Club (member)
Punch's Toby Club (member)
Royal Academy Schools (student)

Selected exhibitions

Retrospective Exhibition, Upper Grosvenor Galleries, London (1971)
Exhibition of Humorous Art, Royal Society of Arts, London (1949)

Ben Uri archive

Consult items in the Ben Uri archive related to [Antonia Yeoman]