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[DCM]
Chief Deputy Sub Assistant Trainee Squig Handling Intern
The Filmdeg interview with John Stallard is particularly interesting in that regard.
When the big push to establish more stores came, they had a clear system. Essentially, look for a town with two existing retailers. Early Learning Centre, Marks and Spencer’s.
Both are middle class high street stalwarts. And specifically? ELC went for the same store size as GW. Which is an excellent example of working smarter, not harder. Like the Midichlorians of the UK High Street, their presence indicated the right environment.
I’d heard the M&S thing before, and whilst it kinda made sense and correlated, I was never sure if it was just correlation and urban myth.
Which is another good reason to explore the two Channels I linked above. It’s surprising how many GW Urban Myths are actually true - or mostly true.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2025/11/28 12:50:36
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[DCM]
Chief Deputy Sub Assistant Trainee Squig Handling Intern
In terms of marketing and that? It was during Kirby’s era that WD hit its golden age, with Fat Bloke and Robin Dews at the helm.
As a widely available magazine? It stood out in the racks, as there was nothing else quite like it. I don’t think I’m being unrealistic in suggesting that my friends and I pouring over the latest issue would’ve been a pretty common experience back then.
Not just regular new rules, but clear, well written and incredibly engaging battle reports. Hobby guides, short stories.
It’s actually pretty mental that it was an in-house magazine promoting a single company’s offerings.
That was all under Kirby’s watch. And even before the management buyout? Kirby didn’t just come from nowhere. He was the General Manager from 1986, so even in the crazy creative “sod it we’ll give it a try” days, his hand was helping on the rudder.
Hence I maintain he was kind of a victim of his own success. The company grew, and the world moved on. His issue was not moving with it.
Whether that was out of stubbornness or ego or just things moving too fast too soon? Who really knows. But the facts stand that for a good 30 years? He was a major driving force that brought us the company we know today.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Crispy78 wrote: Ah, was their big expansion that early? I think around that time I was still going to their initial Hammersmith shop...
Yarp.
Source
It’s fairly modest at 20 minutes, but fascinating and informative. Also quite nostalgia for me, as I’ve frequented Maidstone, Brighton, Torquay and Edinburgh.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2025/11/28 14:09:10
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sigkill wrote: I'm offhand not aware that Tom Kirby wrote rules at all. I never stumbled on his name in the books, although I'll admit I don't have a photographic memory of every single author list. It is folklore in the community that he was a hobbyist, as were I think most people who were part of GW in the late 80s - why else would you be there? I cannot find any concrete information on his own models, or whether he stopped playing/painting at some point, but that is not necessarily an indictment. Publishing your hobby stuff is a relatively recent idea. If I was a prominent senior executive I probably wouldn't reveal too much about my private life, including hobby achievements, as I wouldn't want my business decisions to be attacked simply because I am a mediocre painter. (Fortunately I have a career in which nobody cares that I am a mediocre painter.)
I think it is too easy to criticise Tom Kirby for killing beloved but niche games. After all, it was under Kirby that games such as Epic (2nd edition anyway), Battlefleet Gothic, Mordheim, Warmaster, etc arose in the first place. It is fair to criticise some of his later decisions in particular, but GW did really good things under him as well.
I don't have any of the rules from the early 80s, but as I noted previously, Kirby authored "Drums of Fire Mountain," an excellent D&D module published under the TSR UK label. Many other names people will recognize are in the credits as playtesters. I still have it, and have run it several times.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2025/11/28 14:21:15
I’d heard the M&S thing before, and whilst it kinda made sense and correlated, I was never sure if it was just correlation and urban myth.
Which is another good reason to explore the two Channels I linked above. It’s surprising how many GW Urban Myths are actually true - or mostly true.
The M&S thing was quoted explicitly in this month's White Dwarf's 50 years of GW retrospective, it was indeed one criterion they used. Annoyingly that article only uses first names for each contributor, but that's Tony Cottrell. Over 40 years at GW for him, too.
