Customer profile
What was the name of your video store?
In the back of some car spares store
Where was the store located?
Coxhoe, Durham, Other (United Kingdom)
When did you start shopping at this store?
1982
Describe your video store - what did it look like? What were its distinguishing
features?
It stunk, the tapes were in a terrible state. The boxes were all mashed up. It was pre the VRA witch hunt which struck in 1984 so there was a lot of cool titles available for rent. I used to call in on my way home from school with my mate, later that night we would exchange tapes and watch each others. I was watching two movies a night (at least) for around eight years!
What were the employees and/or owners like, and what kinds of interactions
did you have with them? What particularly memorable exchanges or events
do you remember?
There was this big fat old bloke who hated kids, and he let us know it. So we used to hassle him even more. There were the occasional arguments over our ages, usually while trying to hire I Spit on your Grave or Cannibal Ferox etc. You'd think he would know how old we were since we were in school uniforms! We always got the tapes we wanted.
What other services/products did the store offer besides the rental or sale
of videos? Did this change over time?
They sold car spares.
What video formats did the store offer (i.e. VHS, Beta, Laserdisc)? Where were
different formats kept in the store?
Mostly VHS, some BETA.
In addition to mainstream Hollywood movies, what other kinds of videotapes
(for example children's, exercise, or X-rated) did the store rent/sell? Where were these
videos found in the store, and how often did you rent or purchase them?
We nearly always used to rent horror or X-rated stuff. The Mad Foxes, The Bogeyman, Let Me Die a Woman, early John Waters stuff, The Exterminator. Porn sometimes Pretty Peaches and Pink Champagne I remember clearly :-)
Did you tend to rent or buy videos? Why?
Rent. I was only 14 and had no money. Since then I've accumulated a large VHS, Laserdisc and DVD collection which exceeds 2,000 titles.
During the period that you shopped at this store, what changes did you see?
The "dodgy" stuff eventually phased out post VRA, then it just kinda went dead.
Is this store still open? If not, when did it close?
It's still a Motor Car Spares store, they just don't rent out videos anymore :-)
In your own words, tell the story of your first VCR/video player. Where
and when did you buy it, and why did you decide to make the purchase?
It was a big old BAIRD Ferguson Videostar, a top loader. It was rented, no-one bought the hardware back in those days, it cost way too much.
Did you ever rent a VCR or other hardware (a camera, for instance)? If so,
how often and why?
Just the VCR.