THE NEWSFIELD YEARS
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- čas přidán 8. 09. 2024
- 'The Newsfield Years' focuses on the complete story of Newsfield Publications, the publishers behind some of the most influential group of magazines in the 8 bit 80s. Featuring in-depth interviews with Roger Kean, Matthew Uffindell, Oliver Frey and Franco Frey the film focuses on the remarkable impact it had through its publications such as Crash, Zzap!64 and Amtix, featuring very open accounts of how they were created right through to Newsfield's demise in the early 1990s. The film explores how they dealt with the early days of getting their magazines into the Newsagents, the 'Unclear User' legal battle, developing a comic strip, their journalists becoming celebrities, resisting incredible pressure from Games Publishers for positive reviews as they knew they could literally make or break a game's success and the stunning artwork of Oliver Frey.
I was a Spectrum owner and I bought Crash and occasionally ZZAP 64 as I absolutely loved reading these magazines. They were fresh & exciting and I loved Oliver Frey's artwork. I must have been unusual then as I was a 14 year old girl not a boy lol!
I used to do just the opposite - buy Spectrum User by reason of Jerry Paris` amazing artwork... Now there is a telent lost to history. Absolutely loved his style, just as much as Frey`s.
Brilliant!
I was one of the Very Few that Received a Copy of "Unclear User"!!!
It was on holiday and hours later they had snipped out the section with Pinking Shears!
Trip down memory lane, Zzap '64 was full of energy and witty humor anbd in my opinion still stands far, far above any magazine that came after. We'll miss you guys. If you ever think of relaunching ( for a different platform ofcourse) using the same format, I'll subscribe, instantly.
totally agree. was a brilliant magazine with a lot of sense of humor , really icing the cake work!
Good old days ;)
Not all of those publications were available here in Portugal, nonetheless I devoured almost every single Zzap!64 and Crash magazines!
Thanks for the memories!
I lived in the USA and had to go to special news stands to buy this UK magazine. But it was well worth it, I used to love reading these.
Beautifully made, and a lovely bittersweet tale. Very fond memories of the magazines that these men made.
Can't believe I threw issue one of Crash away when I moved house. I'm so nostalgic for it now. Great trip down memory lane with this video.
I did something similar, bought the DVDs with the full set on but I wanted the paper mags back. I've been re-collecting ever since!
Fantastic. Living half way around the world (New Zealand), Zzap 64 gave me a real feeling of being connected to the gaming community. It was a 'friend' to look forward to catching up with every month and reinforced the very British influenced outlook kids had in New Zealand was back then. Glad I've still kept all mine though I've read them so many times, many covers are clinging on for dear life! Thanks for this doco, would love to hear from Rignall and Penn one day via a video doc. cheers.
How does this not have more views? Same reason I didn't know this existed until just now! This needs to be promoted!
great times these not to be repeated. The machines and these magazines shaped a number of folk in ways you can't really do now. A great lesson in how less is most certainly more regards to the games themselves too
Absolutely brilliant chaps.
I was working in Ludlow at a games developer in the early nighties, so we got to know a few people at Newsfield, I even went to the Newsfield Christmas party in around 1991/1992. Happy days!
Oliver Frey and his amazing Zzap 64 covers .. amazing. He did Terminal Man the comic also right ? 16:15 yeah he did
its been around 30 years ago i waited without patient to the Zzap64 magazines and of course loaded the awesome games in Tape they put as a bonus (like previews of new game) . fantastic days of my youth. thanks you very much Zzap64 makers for doing the absolutly best games magazine ever made since the 80s up to this day. totally miss the good ol' days , last but not least stunning & exciting Artwork by Oli Frey !! always was great reading!!
Wonderful thing to watch and I still have my Christmas edition of Zzap 64 where I wrote in and got a letter printed, they spelt my first name wrong but then I did not care as I was in Zzap :)
Julian Rignall, Robin Candy and Gary Penn were like rockstars to us young kids !
I think everyone who bought Crash! wanted to work for Newsfield. Their enthusiasm just shone through in what they did.
R.I.P. Oli and Roger, such pioneers :(
FKN AWESOME !
Makes me fuzzy inside....! :)
Brilliant, I used to be first at my newsagents for Zzap 64 !
So glad to hear Newsfeild never 'bent the knee' to these obviously greedy corporate scumbags! Crash, then ZZap64 were fantastic magazines whom most gamers from that generation, including myself have real fond memories. Great video.
excellent - really enjoyed that.
So many memories with Zzap!64... great job guys and thank you for making this doco... only... well... too darn short :/
Anyway, keep up with the good work!!!
This is great, really smashing. I used to buy and read Crash religiously back in the day, in fact I even bought Zzap!64 also despite not owning a Commie, though I caved in and bought one in the end.
+Mike Baker Ah ha so the C64 was better ....I knew it....I knew it all along.. Spectrums.....piles of rubbish! :)
Wonderful documentary, if only it was longer.
i've got a copy of zzap64 (the one with 'elite' on the cover) signed by Oliver Frey and jeff minter; i got it signed at a computer fair in london back in the mid 80's
These were the reading material of my youth! I had a Spectrum and read Crash avidly from when it came out up until I switched to the C64 in 1986, whereon I moved to Zzap until 1989, when I went to university. I remember liking Crash, but Zzap was my favourite and the one I have the fondest memories of. A bit like the C64, really.
Very interesting, but perhaps a bit short and really could use some of the main reviewers from the time having their say - Gary Penn, Julian Rignall and old paper bag Lloyd Mangram, for starters.
"Lloyd Mangram" was a pseudonym for whoever was writing the replies that month.
Kelvin Gosnell = Tharg the Mighty. Mind blown.
Wow - never thought I'd be famous - Name in lights at 15:33 - High score on ACE - Bruce Wood, Harworth
Great video thanks! How did I only just find this? :)
Fond memories. Buying Crash was the highlight of my month from 1987 onwards. I would buy Sinclair User too, but Crash was in a different class. The gradual decline in quality and the demise was quite embarrassing though..with the Crash logo slapped onto the cover on SU, as if it had been eaten up by it's rival. I also had no idea that Newsfield's founders were gay, which could have been problematic in that era
How so?
01:15 I am sure that ZZAP, stil with Rignal in place, posted that they had overtaken sales of Crash as a monthly magazine.
Thank you newsfield you started it all off,inovators,pioneers and most importanty you were able to bottle magic.You still live on today through you tube and retro gamers doing readthroughs eg bazza h spectrum guy,well done.
I was the Photographer between the years 1985 to 1990 when I left to do electrical work on anaerobic digesters. To commission them mainly lol
Cameron?
Cameron?
Zzap was huge with my friends in high school in Australia. Despite my meagre earnings from a paper round I always found money for the new issue (6-8 weeks after its UK release date).
Where were all the guys? Julian Rignall, Gary Penn etc??? strange they were not interviewed.
RIP Oli.
I have the First LM.. (Lloyd Mangram)?
Shame
BRING BACK "CRASH!" The gamer needs it but MAC WAB is just as good youtube him as he is Fantastic!!
I work for Rodger frey and Oliver grey I see them every week
Exactly my thoughts whilst watching before reading this comment...I agree.
What's the name of the incidental music? It sounds a lot like the Man of Steel movie theme!
What happened to Tamara Knight?
Got turned into a burger after dropping through a teleporter? ;)
Thought she wrote for Sinclair User?
I thought they must be suicidal when they produced Unclesr User- EMAP had enough money and retained lawyers to make their lives very difficult.
Is it Wrong that I had a Spectrum but thought Zzap was a bit better? (Later on).. I got an Amiga!
You forgot Loony Letman
This was quite interesting and a nice trip down memory lane because I used to read Zzap 64 and C&VG as a kid. I still remember Julian Rignall's name funnily enough because in the arcade high score listing's he always had the high score at Twin Cobra, my favourite arcade game.
They all seem like nice guy's with the exception of Mathew Uffindell who looks and sounds like a complete and utter wanker.
Roger Kean mentions magazines giving phoney reviews for advertising revenue. I'm sure they were all at that shit. Robocop by Ocean is a game that comes to mind immediately. I would believe a total arsehole like Uffindell to be capable of absolutely anything.
Gary Cameron What specifically about Uffindell rubbed you up the wrong way? He seemed entirely normal to me.
Great film! But the music...
Too melodramatic, too ponderous. Sucks the life out of it. The only sour note in an otherwise excellent film.
Can't wait for 'From Bedrooms To Billionaires'!
Modern Games....suck...
Ps4 was the biggest waste of money ever..