Despite not knowing him that well at all, the death of David Nightengale last winter - which I have only just found out about - has really upset me. David devoted his entire life to celebrating Gerry Anderson's achievements. Its tragic that he died so young. Just 66 or 7 I think.
Decades before I'd even remembered watching Thunderbirds and playing with my Project SWORD toys, David was publishing SIG, the original Supermarionation fanzine, with Brendan Sheehan.. What a labour of love that must have been, to actually put together a magazine and publish it regularly in the late 1970's and right through the 80's and beyond. David didn't just do this once, he went on publish the magazines Timescreen, Century 21 and Action 21, all fabulous in their own right. I have quite a few copies of the latter two at Moonbase and have always enjoyed re-reading them.
David also co-founded Fanderson in 1981, all of 41 years ago! How amazing is that. In 1981 I was 20 years old, strumming my guitar and jobbing round Europe! It would be another 10 years before I even remembered I'd owned a Dinky SPV as a kid, when I found a carcass of one in a junkshop.
So it was bitter-sweet for me to find the actual minutes of the very first meeting of what was to become Fanderson [in the Fanderon online archive] in that far off year of 1981 and how David's magazine SIG became the club fanzine. Its a fascinating read to see the kernel of the idea form, captured in these typed minutes with familiar names contributing to the discussion of how best to celebrate Gerry's work. Gerry himself is there too, eventually being made President at the close of the proceedings.
Another fascinating facet of the minutes is the attendance of Chris Leach representing Anderpup, another supermarionation club and fanzine, of which I have a few copies. These were very simple and stapled A4 booklets and represented one of two other clubs around at the time, the other being the Century 21 Appreciation Society or something similar.
Have a read of the minutes. Its fascinating to see these 'rival' clubs come together for a common cause and form the original membership of Fanderson, with David's SIG, rather than Anderpup, becoming its pioneering club fanzine.
Let me know what you think.
https://fanderson.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/810820.pdf
I used to really enjoy SIG and I loved the Thunderbooks shops. I went to the opening of the one in Preston (where someone had decorated their red Yugo to look like a Spectrum saloon, complete with tail fin!). I bought my Rosenthal SPV from the Blackpool one. The guy in the shop was on the phone to David Nightingale as I negotiated the price. He told me later that it had been David's until he got a better one@
ReplyDeleteGreat memories Kev. I grew up in Preston but left home in 1981. I don't think Thunderbooks was open then but then again I wasn't a toy head back then. It was full of rock! Its amazing how in small ways David connected with so many of us.
DeleteI have all the SIGs.
ReplyDeleteBought them as they came out on the 80s.
A fabulous fanzine, giving us the best history, visuals (especially the craft blueprints), and legacy info about Anderson shows ever assembled at that point.
A legend himself, David and his contemporary SIG contributors added to the future of Gerry's own TV career (Space Precinct and New Captain Scarlet) and helped, through Fanderson, to cement his place as one of the pre-eminent contributors to British TV's children's and Sci Fi content in history.
A sad loss indeed.
What a fab collection Mish and well done keeping them, which is always hard. I only have a few and bought in the Nineties as I discovered SIG, Century 21 and Action 21. It was a whole internet full of information and pictures right there and we have all been catching up ever since. In one of the SIGs is a really touching farewell from Brendan Sheehan as he parts company with the magazine for personal reasons. Really very moving and it must have been hard for David to carry on with SIG I imagine.
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