Mr. Merchandise

Mr. Merchandise, 6 George Street, Hastings, East Sussex, 2014 • I only grabbed one shot of this charming old-school fan memorabilia shop in 2014, and when I got home I […]

Mr Young’s Screening Rooms

Mr Young’s Screening Rooms, 14-15 D’Arblay Street, City of Westminster, London W1, 2002 • Soho film-land stalwart, now called Soho Screening Rooms.  

Mr Videos

Mr Videos, New Cross Road, Borough of Greenwich, London SE8, 2002 • Seems to specialise in films about men with guns (maybe Mrs Videos sells exclusively rom-coms). I think we […]

Mr Bongo

Mr Bongo, 44 Poland Street, City of Westminster, London W1, 2002 • Long-departed record store, not to be confused with Um Bongo, that favourite beverage of the Congo. By 2017 […]

African Video Centre

African Video Centre, 7 Balls Pond Road, Borough of Islington, London N1, 2002 • Niche dying market. By 2017 it was a wine bar called Aqua 7.

Wax Unlimited

Wax Unlimited, 9 Northwold Road, Stoke Newington, Borough of Hackney, London N16, 2002 • Palimpsest of obsolete formats.

Anon Records Basement

Anon Records Basement, 101 High Street, Leicester LE1, 2016 • So anon the name has gone – a defunct mixture of records, typewriter supplies and publishing (according to tiny writing […]

Southern TV Services

Southern TV Services, 60 Albert Road, Southsea, City of Portsmouth, 2016 • Sunnily-signpainted TV shop, which like yesterday’s gem I first spotted via the Instagram feed of Steve Wilde (known as @SteveWild on both Instagram […]

Sister Ray

Sister Ray, 34-35 Berwick Street, Soho, City of Westminster, London W1, 2015 • Angel wings poster outside closed-down record shop, designed to attract selfie-posers – which it did. Sister Ray […]

Video Scene

Video Scene, 33 Station Road, Birchington-on-Sea, Kent, 2006 • Love the random word spacing on this. I’m not saying Birchington’s old-fashioned, but it probably does still have a video scene. 

Best Wishes

Best Wishes, 13 Guildhall Street, Folkestone, Kent, 2008 • Ex-gift shop, now ex-charity shop, whose ghost sign has – like yesterday’s shop – a rather Edwardian feel. Note crowns on door handle […]

Boris Noris (possibly)

Nameless record shop, 105 St James Street, Brighton, West Sussex, 2004 and 2014 • Rather mysterious nameless record shop which shortly after the 2014 photos were taken became Fairydust Bakery. In the […]

Shirley Stores

Shirley Stores, 2-8 Shirley Street, Borough of Newham, London E16, 2002 • Bleakness on the edge of Silvertown. Later became a Kwiksave.

Southern Video

Southern Video, 41 High Street, Herne Bay, Kent, 2004 • Red Profil on pink fascia, what a colourful shop. Last spotted in 2009 with blue Profil on yellow.

Broadway Electronics

Broadway Electronics, 32 Broadway Market, Borough of Hackney, London E8, 2003 • I photographed this long before Broadway Market’s shutters got the Eine treatment. In this post-videotape era it’s been reborn as Buggies & Bikes, […]

Stevens Music Stores

Stevens Music Stores, side of 170 Mortimer Street (seen from Cavendish Road), Herne Bay, Kent, 2004 • A ghost sign of indeterminate age, as seen from the side entrance of yesterday’s now-demolished Servowarm. On the side of […]

G. Makepeace (Dance Music Finder)

G. Makepeace (Dance Music Finder), Makepeace House, 136 Digbeth, Birmingham, 2005 • Dance music found via fax departs, but the original occupant lives on. According to Andy Foster’s   Pevsner Architectural Guides: […]

Maestro Records, Mobiles Phone

Maestro Records, Mobiles Phone, 61 Rye Lane, Borough of Southwark, London SE15, 2010 • Poignant collision of old and new tech divided by a fat conductor, in a typically ruinous […]

Kelly’s Records

Kelly’s Records, Central Market, St Mary Street, Cardiff, 2012 • Scary festive Elvis at massive vintage vinyl emporium in Cardiff’s wonderful old covered market.

Virgin, Republic (Walsall)

Virgin, Republic, 18-22 & 16-18 Park Street, Walsall, West Midlands, 2005 • Another grand Walsall building – it certainly outlasted Virgin.

The Music Roll Exchange.

The Music Roll Exchange., ghost sign behind Premier Food & Wine, 29 Clapham High Street, Clapham North, Borough of Lambeth, London SW4, 2002 • Secondhand music rolls, the superannuated CDs of […]

Henrietta’s News & Food

Henrietta’s News & Food, 1-3 Slipshatch Road, Reigate, Surrey, 2002 • Not wishing to diss Henrietta, but there’s a quiet despair about suburban shopping parades. (This particular shop is now updated […]

Teignmouth Parade: Devine Creations, Videotalk

Devine Creations, Videotalk, 5 & 6 Teignmouth Parade, Perivale, Borough of […]

Eros Movieland

Eros Movieland, 1 Berwick Street, Soho, City of Westminster, London W1, 2002 • Beware ancient Greeks bearing 1960s X-rated videos. All, including stairway to “model”, is now demolished.

Disc Chord

Disc Chord, 71 High Street, Lowestoft, Suffolk, 2007 • Oh, the sad decline of record stores: by 2008 this had become a charity shop.

Euston Bookshop

Euston Bookshop, 40 Eversholt Street, Euston, Borough of Camden, London NW1, 2002 • The kind of bookshop that needs its windows blacked out. By 2012 was signed “To Let”, perhaps a […]

Y2K

Y2K, 33 Liverpool Street, City of London, London EC2, 2006 • A video library for the new millennium – how wrong can you get.

V Falber & Sons, Daddy Kool, The Soho Music Company

V Falber & Sons, Daddy Kool, The Soho Music Company, […]

Colt Bookstore

Colt Bookstore, 3 Berwick Street, Soho, City of Westminster, London W1, 2002 • Last redoubt of the plastic strip curtain. Demolished to make way for glossy new apartments / retail.