Handyside Arcade

Got to give a mention to the Handyside Arcade in Newcastle's Percy Street, long since razed to make way for more of that stuff that fills up the centre of the town now. The Arcade itself, which was built around the beginning of the last century, was horsehoe shaped and stuffed to the brim with a bizarre array of establishments selling all the things you couldn't get anywhere else in town and, most importantly, home to a ramshackle shop known as the Kard Bar selling badges, t-shirts, assorted flotsam and jetsom and vinyl.

At the beginning of the 80s it seemed the only place (excepting mail order) where it was possible to get hold of music other than Rush/Yes/Van Halen, on the one hand, and Angelic Upstarts/UK Subs/GBH, on the other. I might be making that up a bit, but it's certainly the memory I have of what was available beyond the realm of Woolworths.

(Jan 04,2015) Used to go to most Saturdays in the early 70, to get my Oz magazines from Ultima Thule bookshop as well as books such as JimMorrisons Lords and New Creatures. My wife used to buy handmade clothes from a shop on the first floor. It was a centre for what was Newcastles vestiges of the hippy generation. A special place at the time. What a shame it was demolished given the potential to develop as a historical location. Comment: Jeff Stubbs

(November 5, 2015 )I loved this place , Early 1980s was buying old smelly 78s on Uk issue labels from the 1950s and other shops had clothes i could buy stuff from....Why do they call it progress when this has gone....Comment: Joe Beamonforse.

Name Kev King

Comment: How I miss the arcade and often find myself reminiscing about wonderful days gone by...in the late 70s,early 80s.Me and my friends used to make a weekend pilgrimage to Newcastle to buy our patchouli (hippy juice)and vinyl from Kard bar and even better Fynd..which sold groovy velvet tops and flares and REEKED or 70s bohemia! We just loved it.Turning over the posters in the kard bars swinging wall racks and ogling at the weird and wonderful images contained therein. Upstairs where few seemed to venture there was a great little art studio owned by David hinge and we loved to go and watch him work.His surrealist paintings were a real joy.Very Magri tte!I actually bought one and saved up for weeks to get it.Rivendell was a late addition to the handyside,but it was a treasure-trove of vinyl and tapes. Such a bloody shame that such a beautiful feature of Newcastle had to be erased. (Oct 3, 2016).

Name Paul Thompson
(2020)
Comment
Used to go there on a Saturday late 60's as it was the place to hang out. On the left hand side of the photo there was a shop that sold hippy gear and accessories (no idea what it was called). Passing one time I spied a box of vinyl 45's (singles), they were advertised as ex radio 270 (pirate radio) stock, all 'advance promotion' copies. I bought 5 of them (either 6d or 1/- each). Sold 4 of them recently for very good money but kept one as a memory.

There was also a coffee shop on the upper level, very dark inside and a bit scary for someone mid teens.

As the previous person wrote 'Such a bloody shame that such a beautiful feature of Newcastle had to be erased'.

Comment
A once in a lifetime place to have been. Left to decay by a city council who couldn't recognise or understand the alternative elements of society and made a conscious effort to bring about the demise of their meeting places.. Eldon garden!! - ffs! Just died on its arse. On a par with the bus station where the Broken Doll was. Absolutely needless, but engendered to stop like-minded folk getting together. The worst pat is we're still being governed by the same sort of the self-serving fuckers who'd dominated 80's politics. It's a shame the Involuntary Euthanasia Society never went mainstream in the late eightties, we'd be rid of the shite we have to tolerate today, their progeny never having been born.
Name
Paul Bamber

Comment
Hi Fi Opportunities in here sold some classy kit to play your records on.
Name
John Stafford
​(2022)