After 22 Years - The Spaced And Red Dwarf Shop Closes...

[Rich Johnston]

They Walk Among Us is one of the oldest comic shops in Britain, though it is better known as the comic shop that Tim Bisley worked at in Spaced, and the shop the Red Dwarf characters tried to find information about themselves in the recent revival of the show.

Founded by Jon and Sabrina Browne twenty-two years ago, and the oldest surviving Princes Youth Business Trust company, They Walk Among Us is situated in Richmond, London where it has survived all sorts of ups and downs in the market.

But it doesn't end there. The shop will be bought up and rebranded by Ace Comics, making it their sixth store and first in London. Ace now become the third biggest comic store chain in the UK, that is if you count the two different Forbidden Planet chains separately. If not, then it's the second.

The transfer of ownership and name change will take place at the end of September. And, as is Jon and Sabrina Browne's way, there's very likely to be a party. Maybe with a few familiar faces present...

[kaiho]

another one bites the dust ....

i guess they got a good deal out of this. I doubt any comic-store owner would say no to a good offer. Most of them feel tires after year and year of interaction with fanboys.

[Peter J Poole]

All My Sins Remembered Day continues:

I was actually living in Richmond when they opened, and sold a large chunk of my old collection to them when I first headed North, some 20 years ago...

It really is a ridiculously small world.

Cheers

[Call_Me_Karma]

Yup, and I remember you well.....

[Peter J Poole]

Like I'm not paranoid enough already!!!

Cheers

[J.C. Bakken]

There's two chains named Forbidden Planet? Howcome?

[eargang]

Kinda wish the name could stay intact. Like, Ace Comics presents They Walk Among Us?

Rich, explain the Forbidden Planet thing to non-locals? I try to hit the London branch whenever I'm in town. It's fun, like walking into a department store filled with genre material. "They get us. They really get us!"

[JoeStone]

I actually work at Ace Comics' flagship store in Colchester, and I'm not so sure that the shop will be re-branded. We have bought other stores around the country without re-branding them, and when Rich writes there are six stores, only three of them are actually called Ace.

I also like to think that we'll keep things mostly the same, and as far as I know the staff won't be changing too drastically.

And as for Forbidden Planet, they split into two seperate brands, FP London and FP Scotland, after the two founding memebers had a disagreement but both wanted to keep the name, I believe. FP London just has shops in London (obviously), while FP Scotland has shops all around the country.

[gothamstar]

I moved from Richmond just before this opened, (I used to shop at Books Bits and Bobs in Kingston).
However when I visit my sister we regularly pop in. It's a small shop but the staff are friendly and it's reasonably priced.

Let's hope Ace Comics can keep it going - as far as I know their are no other speciality stores in the area, (Croydon is the closest?).

[AlessaDark]

It was my first comic shop, when I lived in Richmond as a 14 year old Vertigo fan, until I went off to uni (and forgot to cancel all my standing orders). Red Dwarf reminded me about it recently, and I was thinking of taking a trip up there. Jon and Sabina were always really friendly and helpful, especially since in most other comic shops you got stared at just for being a girl! I thought they were the coolest grown-ups I knew, and had a bit of a crush on both of them! Many fond memories of the place.