How a town in Derbyshire became a hub for Elvis fans
BBCThe story of how a printer in Derbyshire helped Elvis Presley connect with fans across Europe will be retold, thanks to a £175,000 lottery heritage grant.
Albert Hand published the Elvis Monthly Magazine from Heanor through the 1960s, became a personal friend of the Presley family and opened the "Elvisville" store, Heanor Records.
His grandson and Elvis tribute act, Andy Quinn, will use the money to create an oral history about his grandad's contribution to pop music to be shared in schools, care homes and community settings.
"I've had a lifetime of hearing these fantastic stories about my grandad and I just want to dig deeper into his history and the local heritage about him," said Quinn.
"Wherever I go singing, somebody always comes and tells me stories about my grandad," he said. "My mission now is to find out more about him."
Hand was a printer at A. Gaunt & Sons, in Heanor, with a passion for popular music.
In April 1959, he persuaded his boss to allow him to print a batch of fanzines about his favourite artist, Presley, which included hand drawings of the star.
The first edition was printed while Presley was taking a break from recording music to serve with the military.
It sold out within a week and gave Hand the confidence to run a monthly publication.
These magazines grew in popularity, distributing 90,000 copies across the continent each month by December 1962.
Hand also became the president of the Official Elvis Presley Fan Club of Great Britain in that year.
"He created a community of Elvis fans that's still here today," said self-confessed Elvis fanatic, Matt Hill.
"It was the social media of its day," he added. "You could put an advert in the back of his magazine so you could connect with other fans and write to them."
Fan mail built up at Hand's home address in Derbyshire, and in 1961 he and his wife Phyllis flew to Memphis to personally deliver them to the music icon.
More trips to Graceland followed, the star sent stage-worn outfits for the fan club to use as raffle prizes and the two families exchanged telegrams.
"It's such an inspiring story," said Hill. "Just because you live in a place that might be a little bit on the edges, doesn't mean that you can't do something amazing."
On the back of the publication's success, Hand opened a music shop, Heanor Records, which boasted a huge range of Elvis memorabilia.
Customers came from Malta, Sweden, Belgium and France, and the magazines continued to be printed from above the shop.
Hand expanded to write about other musicians in his publication, Pop Weekly.
Dusty Springfield, Frankie Valli and Del Shannon were just some of the artists who visited Heanor to be interviewed.
Hand and his family would then party with the stars into the early hours at their home in Douglas Avenue, which they named "Gracelands" as a nod to their Elvis connections.
"It's quite crazy," chuckled Quinn. "That was just the way they lived."
Quinn will retell his grandad's story through the accounts of those who knew him, illustrating his contribution to pop culture and Elvis's huge British following.
He and his wife have formed Enriching Communities CIC and, with help from charity Amber Valley CVS, have secured the £175,000 grant to compile oral history accounts to be retold in community spaces.
"I initially thought I wanted to tell the people of Heanor all about their heritage and Albert, but I feel like I want to tell the world about it now," said Quinn. "It's really exciting."
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