Realm of Chaos 80s : Behind the scenes at Golden Demon 1988 and beyond:...

Realm of Chaos 80s : Behind the scenes at Golden Demon 1988 and beyond:...: Many Old School scholars will instantly remember Guy Carpenter. He, alongside Tony Cottrell, produced the remarkable model (shown above) out of the old Star Wars walker model released in the early '80s. It was a image that was published in White Dwarf and the Golden Demon books, and one of the more memorable ones from the 1987-92 period.

I can certainly remember pouring over it in my younger days and cannabalising various toys I had around at home in homage to it. Thankfully, none of my creations have survived to the present day. It was through the power of social media that I was able to track down Guy and chat to him about the model above. After a while, he agreed to a longer interview about his experiences 'back in the day' and some of his wider work as I knew that readers of this blog would be very interested in seeing, and hearing about, his work. 

Little did I know that Guy was sitting on a wealth of material, so I have had to split the interview over two articles. This, the photostory, will be the first, and a full interview with the mastercraftsman himself will follow shortly, along with lots of pretty pictures of his models. Among his material was a large number of photographs he took back in the later 1980s and early 1990s, mostly of Games Days and Golden Demons, but also images from the retail operation itself. 

I am proud to present these photographs to you and hope you enjoy playing the 'spotting' game and trying to discover what you can see in the background of many of these images. Guy has provided me with some brief notes about when and where many of these pictures were taken and I have expanded on his notes to explain what else the images show.

All I can say before we start is, go get yourself a cup of tea, some biscuits or whatever makes you feel at home and enjoy this trip back in time to the Golden Age of GW and British gaming. 

One: Entries into the Golden Demon Painting Competition in 1988. Amongst the great haircuts are some choice models, though I cannot recognise anything from the 1980s Fantasy Miniatures books yet. Anyone spot another of note from among this lovely models?

Two: Kev 'The Goblin Master' Adams and Mike McVey enjoy a pint of Newcastle Brown while showcasing their painting talents at the Golden Demon in 1988. Notice the inks, those of you who follow the Oldhammer Facebook group will know that we have been having quite a discussion about the importance of these. Note the Bloodbowl elves and Star Players on display to the right and the cheeky chap about to spark up at the back. Imagine alcohol and smoking at events today! There seems to be a diorama obscured by the eager red coated gamer. Anyone got any ideas what it could be?

Three: Rogue Trader participation game at the Golden Demon 1988. Nice to see that Izzy Stradlin' from Guns and Roses managed to get a game in there on the left! (; On a more serious note, photographs from this game appeared in White Dwarf for several years to come. The twin skulls (off centre) are quite obvious in these. Go hunt!

Four: Gary Chalk, of artistic and Lone Wolf fame, shows off his scenery skills using the Mighty Fortress at Golden Demon 1988. Not sure who the chap is at work on the left, though? Anyone recognise him?

Five: GW artists (I think Knifton is closest to the camera, though I maybe wrong here) taking requests for avid fans. "I'll have two Thruds and one of the Mighty Avenger please!" Can anyone name these scribes more accurately than me? Note the Realm of Chaos artwork on display in the background and more smoking and drinking evidence. The depravity!

Six: Phil Lewis at work photographing miniatures. Phil was a vital part of GW at this time and we would love to interview him, so if anyone knows his whereabouts today please contact me. Remember kids, Phil worked at a time when you couldn't see the photograph until it was developed. I'd imagine that snapping hundreds of models all day must have been hard work indeed. Note the two lamp set up, very good for getting the most out of your miniatures, and the overloaded plug socket that would have today's health and safety executive closing down the Golden Demons and evacuating the county. 

Seven: Bryan Ansell, Phil Lewis, John Blanche and others judge the entries to the Golden Demon Awards in 1988. 

Eight: Here is a shot of Peter Armstrong ,who was manager at Dalling Road (the first GW store) in 1988, getting on with a bit of painting. Note the Citadel Colour paints and his Master Painter T-Shirt. 

Nine: Setting up the gaming area just before the doors opened on the Golden Demon Awards 1988. Look at the size of some of those fortifications. The figure obscured by the fortress may well be Pete Taylor. 

Ten: A shot of an art display at an unknown GW event. Note the Genestealer (and WD120) cover art top left, Orc Mechanicks cover from WD 119, Advanced Heroquest, Lost and the Damned and three I cannot identify. Anyone know anymore?

Eleven: The Trade Stand at the Golden Demon 1989. Note the Runequest Ninja supplement, Chaos Marauders, Squats blister and loads more besides. What can you spot? Love the plague marine T-Shirt on the chap on the right.

Twelve: Golden Demon Awards 1989. Ivan Bartlett ('Eavy Metal painter) surveys the entries. 

Thirteen: Games Workshop Southampton in the late '80s. Do you remember the wallpaper table gaming boards? Or playing on the floor? This table needs the extra support of multiple copies of Space Marine to hold it up! Big tongues on those trainers too! They were all the rage.

Fourteen: GW Maidstone in 1991. Walls and walls of great stuff here and isn't lovely to see all the blister packs hanging there? Great shorts mind!

Fifteen: This is an interesting idea. Using the old Bloodbowl pitch as a courtyard for the Mighty Fortress. From Torquay GW 1990.

Sixteen: GW Derby. Store front at night. Great products on sale there.

Seventeen: Inside the Derby store in 1989. Loads of painted models in that cabinet, and can you see? The famous walker I mentioned at the beginning of the article is in there too! On a side note, there are enough copies of Adeptus Titanicus to buy a house today stacked up there. Saw a box sell for £200 the other day!

Eighteen: Inside GW Torquay. Playing Space Hulk first edition on what looks to be a table tennis table. Can you spot the famous walker model on the small poster above the till? I told you that model got places!

Nineteen: Gaming on the fantasy table at Torquay GW. Looks like Rogue Trader though. This general must be planning his moves carefully. The stock in the background would give an Oldhammerer a heart attack these days!

Twenty: Games Workshop Edinburgh opening. Any two marked games for a fiver! A great deal for 1989!

Twenty One: Games Workshop opens up in Maidstone in the early 1990s. Lovin' the shorts there bro!

Twenty Two: A very young Tim Prow gives a painting demo inside GW Torquay in 1990. Looks like he has been working on Orks from the Ork Books of the early 1990s. Lots of shorts oh show here too. Oh, and razored jeans! Remember them?

And here ends our photostory. I would just like to say a big thankful to Guy for sharing his photographs with us. You'll be hearing a lot more from him shortly.

Until then,

Enjoy.

Orlygg.