News just in from editor Tony Ingram, the magazine of British comics Crikey! is to fold with the 16th issue, out later this week.
Crikey! was originally launched by Brian Clarke in June 2007 and seemed to be just what UK comics fans had wanted; a regular magazine devoted to the history of British comics. Over the course of the past three years the magazine steadily improved and even made it to High Street newsagents due to a deal with Borders.
Sadly, after distributing just two issues the collapse of Borders dealt a huge blow to the mag. Ironically sales on those two issues had been higher than hoped through that outlet and had the company not gone under Crikey! would still be healthy. Having to depend on subscriptions and limited distribution through comic shops the fortunes of Crikey! declined. No doubt some readers who'd bought it from their newsagents thought the mag had already folded when Borders collapsed and never sought it out elsewhere. Annoyingly, some fans of UK comics simply never supported the magazine anyway. Perhaps they'll now wish they had.
It's a great shame Crikey! has gone, but editors/publishers Tony Ingram and Glenn B. Fleming should be proud of what they accomplished. A review of issue 16 will appear here once I've received my copy.
More details on the Crikey! website:
http://www.crikeyuk.co.uk/ed.html
Sad news indeed. Crikey! wasn't perfect, but it was getting better and better . . .
ReplyDeleteSeeing it and buying it in Borders was great for the comic..gutted when Borders closed down for good...
ReplyDeleteLiked the recent Frank McDiarmid interview and peoples memories of comics...
Maybe like DFC it might come back again..
If my finances weren't in the black I would of bought it more..
not a good time at the moment..But getting slowly better..
I'm not surprised though - I could find no way to buy an issue on their website. I used to get it from Borders before the store vanished from British shores.
ReplyDeleteThe subscription facility is deleted now because the mag has closed but there used to be sub details on the website.
ReplyDeleteA sad end but you could see it coming. The first ten issues were a wonder but then the material gets thin and the padding begins. It was never going to last. Sad, but a fantastic set and resource for historians. It would make a better website than a magazine now! It's the way of the world unfortunately.
ReplyDeleteReally? I thought the content was getting better personally. With contributions from Pat Mills, Mike Higgs, Peter Maddocks etc. it was getting away from the fannish "Comics were better in my day" attitude and poorly researched articles that held it back originally imho.
ReplyDeleteJust guessing but by their mention of 'sooner than you think' on the website, maybe Crikey! has gone but probably something a little more mainstream might be taking it's place? Maybe a US/UK nostalgia mag?
ReplyDelete...and I was only two issues into my subscription after only discovering the mag earlier this year! Sad indeed.
ReplyDeleteHowever, as others have said, a strong website/blog setup could carry the torch far more effectively in this day and age.