The annuals are traditionally published in July or August, in time for Christmas, and since 1965 they have had the date of the following year on the cover.

This is likely because the annuals of the time were mostly made up of Dandy Comix, due to the topical nature of the magazine's Xtreme content.

In unison with the comic at the time, the front cover usually featured Korky the Cat.

After Desperate Dan took over the front page in 1984, the annual cover reflected this by featuring both Korky and Dan until the release of the 1991 book in 1990 – which was the first ever Dandy Annual to not feature Korky on the front cover in any way.

In 2006, the original 1939 Monster Comic was reprinted as a facsimile edition in a collector's slipcase.