Sales of children's comic books have rocketed, despite the lure of modern hobbies and pastimes.

The pre-teen market - which includes classic comics such as the Dandy and Beano - has experienced a surge of more than 70% in the past four years.

Comic sales have seen a massive 72% increase since 2003, and were worth £136m this year, thanks to new titles such as Dr Who Adventures.

Sales of women's magazines increased by just 15% in the same period and teenage magazines declined by 61%, according to research by consumer analysts Mintel.

Clever branding has meant new titles enjoying success by launching on the back of TV programmes such as In the Night Garden and Doctor Who.

Toni Round, managing director for youth and children's magazines, BBC Worldwide, said TV tie-ins had allowed publishers to tap into the pre-teen market, resulting in a surge in sales.

"Primetime shows like Dr Who are watched by children across the country," she said. "Tie-ins have swelled interest and pushed up sales and branding has been the key element in the recipe for success.

"The magazine published in conjunction with In the Night Garden is an example of a refreshed brand that has responded to what kids are interested in at the time. It's a cyclical branding process."

Experts predict sales of comics are set to increase a further 21% to reach £165 million by 2013.

Mark Brecchin, Mintel's senior leisure analyst, said the figures proved that the humble comic was "standing the test of time".

"Even today comics provide an ideal treat for children," he said.

"The market for this traditional favourite has gone from strength to strength due to a host of new launches, price rises and the fact that publishers now bring out more issues per title each month.

"Many of us will remember comic book heroes Dennis the Menace, Minnie the Minx and Desperate Dan. And while you might think that when faced with competition from modern technology, comic books would have been left behind, this childhood classic is still going strong today - albeit with a modern twist.

"New titles coming to the market, such as Dr Who Adventures and In The Night Garden, have proved popular but old favourites such as the Beano and Dandy also have strong circulation figures today. These traditional characters clearly still strike a chord with a new generation of youngsters."

He said the popularity of comics was an impressive feat for traditional media among 21st century children, who are increasingly technology savvy.

Despite the wide variety of media and other forms of digital entertainment aimed at pre-teens, the research suggests that children still enjoy reading and sharing comics.

A host of new launches, price rises and the fact that publishers now bring out more issues per title each month has meant that the pre-teen market is a lucrative area. With most pre-teens being funded by their parents to purchase their reading material, publishers are looking at ways to appeal to both consumers.

Ms Round said parents of pre-teens found that buying magazines and comics was a good way of getting children to read.

"The feedback that we get from parents suggests it is a good way to get children, particularly young boys, to read," she said.

"It isn't necessarily a replacement for novels or books, but magazines and comics provide a stop-gap and have a very important place in the lives of children. They are relatively cheap, the content is safe and appropriate and it is a means of entertainment."

Funny you should ask. . . A Mr Harrison, of 18 Paternoster Row, London, published the first comic book - The Comick Magazine - in April 1796. Thomas Rowlandson arguably created the first British comic superstar in 1812, Dr Syntax, in The Tour of Dr Syntax in Search of The Picturesque. The longest-lived comic magazine in Britain, Punch, ran from July 1841 until 2002. Punch introduced the word cartoon into the English language in 1843. In 1896, Richard Outcault's Yellow Kid - seen as the first major modern comic-strip character - first appeared in the New York Journal. In 1902, it released five 50cent books with cardboard covers reprinting Sunday comic strips. The first Marvel Comic was published on November, 1939. Twinkle, the picture paper especially for little girls', was published by DC Thomson, publisher of the Dandy and Beano, from 1968 to 1999. Teen sensation Jackie magazine "a girl's best friend" between 1964 and 1993, sold close to one million copies a week at its height - five times more than any teen magazine today. The BBC sells an average of one million pre-school magazines a month. CBeebies Animals, which launched this year, has sold 58,558.