Manchester Comic Fair--Sat July 2nd

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

I haven't been to one of these 'Golden Orbit' affairs since David Cameron was flogging freshmen at Eton. They used to be good, don't know about now. I'm thinking of going. If anyone else is and wants to meet up for a cup of tea and a chat, please let me know.

[EwanUK]

My first ever comic mart was at Manchester Picadilly, March 23rd 1985

 

For a 12 year old it was like entering heaven !!!

 

Used to go to Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield marts a lot in the mid to late 1980s

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

My first ever comic mart was at Manchester Picadilly, March 23rd 1985

 

For a 12 year old it was like entering heaven !!!

 

Used to go to Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield marts a lot in the mid to late 1980s

 

Born 1973? You're a baby.

[Ken Aldred]

I used to enjoy the Piccadilly Plaza comic marts, going regularly from 79 through to 85, until I moved away from the area.

 

The Golden Orbit marts get very repetitive, with most dealers bringing the same stuff each time. One or two rotate their stock, the majority don't, and I struggled to find even a couple of bargain bin books to buy in the end. True, I haven't been to a show since 2006, but a friend who regularly has a table there told me that the situation hasn't changed.

 

If you haven't been for a while, and so the novelty's there, I hope you enjoy it.

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

Thanks Ken

[Mmehdy]

I haven't been to one of these 'Golden Orbit' affairs since David Cameron was flogging freshmen at Eton. They used to be good, don't know about now. I'm thinking of going. If anyone else is and wants to meet up for a cup of tea and a chat, please let me know.

 

Like your location...we are all number 6....

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

I haven't been to one of these 'Golden Orbit' affairs since David Cameron was flogging freshmen at Eton. They used to be good, don't know about now. I'm thinking of going. If anyone else is and wants to meet up for a cup of tea and a chat, please let me know.

 

Like your location...we are all number 6....

 

I am not a number, I am a free man.

[Tony Edwards]

I used to enjoy the Piccadilly Plaza comic marts, going regularly from 79 through to 85, until I moved away from the area.

 

Loved the Piccadilly Plaza marts. A couple of good friends and I set up a stall there in 1981 - we were 14, 14 and 12 - and did some pretty good business. My dad used to drive us there (from Newcastle-under-Lyme) and some of the songs we listened to on the radio on the journey (I Can't Go For That by Hall & Oates, for one) transport me right back there.

 

Wonderful memories.

 

 

[steelcity]

I used to enjoy the Piccadilly Plaza comic marts, going regularly from 79 through to 85, until I moved away from the area.

 

Loved the Piccadilly Plaza marts. A couple of good friends and I set up a stall there in 1981 - we were 14, 14 and 12 - and did some pretty good business. My dad used to drive us there (from Newcastle-under-Lyme) and some of the songs we listened to on the radio on the journey (I Can't Go For That by Hall & Oates, for one) transport me right back there.

 

Wonderful memories.

 

 

Great memories indeed. We all seem to link happy and even unhappy memories to music from the time. Piccadilly Plaza was for me the star of going to comic marts. By the early 1980s I had already got my childhood collection bagged but not yet using boards. I found a local comic shop and so fliers advertising marts. I always enjoyed the Manchester fair and my adult collection soon began to accumulate. I was surprised how much more expensive SA Marvel was compared with equivalent age DC. I even bought my first price guide - the small Alan Austin one - from Piccadilly Plaza.

 

The other mart I always enjoyed was at The Griffin, Leeds. I would search for DC titles with the huge black Thorpe and Porter 9d stamp. They all seemed so exotic. Ironically, I often ended up buying from the stall run by my local comic book store.

[steelcity]

The last time I went to a Manchester comic fair was around eight years ago. Harley Yee and Jamie Crackers were sharing a stall there and had a lot of nice books to see. Glorious summer day it was, too, and a really enjoyable occasion.

 

Sadly it seems the best days of marts are over. I suppose it must be a question of supply and also that comics can now be easily found on websites.

 

I am sure that me from three or so decades ago would be very impressed with my current collection of mostly higher grade and stamp free books. Yet buying today can be a lonely and almost sterile experience. I never get the excited anticipation of all those years ago walking into those box filled halls.

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

The other mart I always enjoyed was at The Griffin, Leeds.

 

Me too.

[Ken Aldred]

I used to enjoy the Piccadilly Plaza comic marts, going regularly from 79 through to 85, until I moved away from the area.

 

Loved the Piccadilly Plaza marts. A couple of good friends and I set up a stall there in 1981 - we were 14, 14 and 12 - and did some pretty good business. My dad used to drive us there (from Newcastle-under-Lyme) and some of the songs we listened to on the radio on the journey (I Can't Go For That by Hall & Oates, for one) transport me right back there.

 

Wonderful memories.

 

 

+1

 

I have a similar association between yacht music / American AOR and my comic collecting through the late 70s to mid 80s.

 

On a Saturday, I’d normally get back from Manchester around noon or so, and I recall listening to Radio 1’s American Top 40 while reading (i.e. carefully looking through) the month’s 12p distributed comics.

 

On a mart weekend, returning home with imported, new cent-cover comics and various back issues, it would be much later, about 5pm, and Piccadilly Radio played a lot of this type of music. Can’t remember why I switched to Radio 1 earlier in the day - possibly to avoid the irritating voice of Mike Sweeney?

[quicksilver]

The other mart I always enjoyed was at The Griffin, Leeds.

 

Me too.

 

That was my first one in 1981 - Bob Smart bought most of my stuff that day.

I wouldn't give him a discount though.

[Ken Aldred]

The other mart I always enjoyed was at The Griffin, Leeds.

 

Me too.

 

That was my first one in 1981 - Bob Smart bought most of my stuff that day.

I wouldn't give him a discount though.

 

The Golden Orbit marts in Leeds were always worth going to in the early-to-mid 80s, with many dealers that didn’t attend the Piccadilly Plaza here. When Gez Kelly took over the Manchester shows it all started to become more homogenous and repetitive ; not too bad during the 90s, deteriorating throughout the 00s.

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

The other mart I always enjoyed was at The Griffin, Leeds.

 

Me too.

 

That was my first one in 1981 - Bob Smart bought most of my stuff that day.

I wouldn't give him a discount though.

 

That sounds like you Richard

[EwanUK]

As well as Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield, I was also lucky enough to visit the original Westminister marts in the late 1980s

The variety and depth of the comics and art offered was amazing

 

I recall buying Brett Ewins 2000AD art work for £10 a page and seeing V for Vendetta pages offered by Comic Showcase...

 

I was then out of comics 1992-2001 but the London marts opposite KX were still pretty good in the early 2000s

 

I haven't been now for 4 years or so

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

As well as Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield, I was also lucky enough to visit the original Westminister marts in the late 1980s

The variety and depth of the comics and art offered was amazing

 

I recall buying Brett Ewins 2000AD art work for £10 a page and seeing V for Vendetta pages offered by Comic Showcase...

 

I was then out of comics 1992-2001 but the London marts opposite KX were still pretty good in the early 2000s

 

I haven't been now for 4 years or so

 

I agree that the 80s and early 90s were the halcyon days for the Northern marts, and London for that matter, but along came ebay and the internet and just destroyed them. While I'm thankful for the breadth of choice and financial competition that the www has brought, I miss the camaraderie and friendship of those days. I was friends with many dealers and collectors and every Mart I travelled to was full of incident and adventure. I really do miss those days.