Richard the Lion was a fictional character in a comic strip in the UK comic The Beano, starting in issue 1678, dated 14 September 1974, and continuing for another few years afterwards. Drawn by David Gudgeon, Richard, a mangy lion and self-styled "king" of Lord Threadbare's safari park, managed the other animals for his Lordship. Other regular characters included Lord Threadbare's butler and his nephew Oswald.