Glasgow Comic Mart today

By John Freeman on March 10, 2012

(with thanks to Gordon Robertson) A quick plug for today’s Comic Mart at the Britannia Panopticon Music Hall, in Glasgow today.

The world’s oldest surviving music hall, the Panopticon was founded in 1857 on the Trongate and quickly became famed as being the most popular place of amusement in the city. 1500 people would cram themselves onto wooden benches for every show.

The audience gained itself a reputation for “leaving no turn unstoned” and over the years the stage saw performances by such greats as Dan Leno, Harry Lauder, Marie Loftus, Charles Coburn, Harry Champion, W. F. Frame and of course, the debut of a sixteen year old Stan Laurel in 1906.

At the turn of the millennium, the music hall was rediscovered and a team of dedicated volunteers continue to working towards the goal of ultimately restoring this unique and valuable little auditorium.

– More info and directions: http://britanniapanopticon.org

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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.