The Newfoundland Cartoonist Who Documents Provincial Politics with Sharp, Salt-Tinged Humour

For four decades, starting in the mid-’80s, Kevin Tobin has been Newfoundland and Labrador’s sharpest editorial cartoonist. He can collapse a week’s worth of headlines into one perfectly barbed scene. From Donald Trump to the province’s chronic doctor shortage, from Mark Carney’s ascent to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, his thousands of caricatures for the Telegram have spared no target. Each one—signed “KT”—brims with satire, empathy, and the province’s own unmistakable, salt-tinged wit. Almost always hovering in his panels is a tiny fly—his alter ego—taking it all in. Describing himself as a “notorious doodler,” Tobin collects the high points of his years at the drawing table in his new book, Fly on the Wall. We’ve picked pieces that showcase his range: from the quick jabs to the slow burns. Paired with choice quotes, they offer a visual scrapbook of moments that have shaped Atlantic politics—and the country. —Carmine Starnino

“I have fond memories of my father reading the Western Star daily newspaper after supper, and I particularly enjoyed the coloured comic strips in the Saturday-morning edition, the sweet smell of newsprint and ink coming from the pages.”

“Most people have heard the phrase ‘ink in the blood.’ It means to have a predisposition toward or passion for the written word and the way it captures life. For me, the ink in my blood is what gives life to the cartoons I draw.”

“Flies are industrious. Flies turn poo into stock feed, and they are live food and fuel for birds, frogs, and lizards. They serve as pollinators for a variety of plants. They also buzz around humans and cause us to wave our arms about to shoo them, thus encouraging physical activity.”

Excerpted, with permission, from Fly on the Wall by Kevin Tobin, published by Breakwater Books Limited, 2025.