Born on 11 April 1948 in Ciney, Bédu learned how to draw by himself and never attended any course in graphic arts. It was not that he was impervious to studying. Quite the opposite. He had offered himself the luxury of specialising in economics at the University of Louvain and obtaining a degree in this subject so far removed from imagery. In 1972, he even defended his dissertation on the thrilling subject of “fixing prices in the soviet socialist system”. However, the psycho-technical tests which he was subjected to by companies recruiting recent graduates made him flee the world of finance.
He took refuge at the Berck studios where he improved his skills as a cartoonist, practising, in turn, all areas of work, from the most humble to the most anonymously glorious; calligraphy, inking, scenery, etc. Three years at the studios made him want to stand on his own two feet.
From 1975, he spent several years working on Tintin, writing his own scripts for stories such as “Beany, le raton laveur” or “Hugo”, little troubadour from the Middle Ages. He created “Le P’tit Prof” with Blareau (1977), followed by “Ali Béber” in 1979, in the style of A Thousand and One Nights. In 1983 he took up Clifton again, firstly with Bob De Groot and then using his own scripts.
After the demise of Tintin, Bédu was taken on by Spirou in 1992 and developed a surreal working relationship with Raoul Cauvin. That was the start of the “Psy” (The Shrinks) saga.
Why shrinks? According to Bédu “being a cartoonist means you can avoid going to see them”.
Today, he lives peacefully in the inner suburbs of Brussels, dedicating his spare time to conscientiously learning music theory and piano, which is very useful for filling his pages with little staves.
