A History of Notts County fanzines

The Pie
Years active: 1987-2009
No. of issues: 87

The original and longest-lasting Notts County fanzine. Started up by a team which included Selectadisc boss Jim Cooke, Shane Meadows contributor Colin Higgins, beer expert Chris Curtis and Andy Martin. It’s team regenerated over the years and from the late 90s onwards it was run by Steve Westby (Chair of Nottingham CAMRA) and Neil McGowan. Read our interview with the founder of The Pie here.

The Thin Yellow Stripe
Years active: 1990-1992
No. of issues: 9
Launched by Tony and Alison Perkins, active members of The Pie, who took a trip to Belgrade and came back with more material than one fanzine could publish. The fanzine is named after a late ‘80s design addition to Notts County shirt sleeves. The couple now run Partizan Tavern pub on Manvers Street.

Flickin N Kickin
Years active: 1990-1998
No. of issues: 19

Launched by teenager Dave Hindley, FnK covered both the Magpies and Subbuteo. Yes, content created by and for people who spent their childhoods haunched around a table flicking small plastic figures; they even got a nice letter from Waddingtons about it. By issue nineteen it changed its name for a short-lived stint as Piefect Day.

The Wheelbarrow
Years active: 1991
No. of issues: At least 3
Published by a chap called Neil Brennan from Strelley. In the first few issues they launched a campaign to twin the city of Nottingham with Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria. They also appear to have also put on some supporters coaches and pub crawls during the 1991-92 season under the name ‘Barramobile’. 

No More Pie In The Sky
Years active: 1993 - 2001
No. of issues: 43

Run by Ivan ‘Bart’ Bainbridge from Rise Park, who also had a soft spot for Stockport. Ivan went on to a career in the Royal Mail as well as becoming a street artist, which included a couple of commissions for Sleaford Mods. They were also the first publication to publish the work of LeftLion co-founder Jared Wilson. 

The Stylish Magpie
Years active: 1994
Number of issues: 1
 
We’ve only seen the first issue of this, so we presume it was short-lived. Mick Walker was the Notts manager at the time and content included coverage of Anglo-Italian away days to Brescia. Published from Kimberley, three of the five contributors shared the surname ‘Rawson’, so it may have been a family affair?

Magpie Nonsense
Years active: 1994
No. of issues: 1

Another short-lived one, published from Calverton by J Holland. Content included the obligatory beef at Forest and their rotund Chairman at the time Fred Reacher. The editor also appeared to have a soft spot for Moldovan football, with match reports on FC Zimbru Chișinău.

County Til I Fly
Years active: 2000
No. of issues: 1

Published by a chap called Mark ‘Robbo’ Moore from an address in Bakersfield. Jockey Scott was Notts manager at the time, having just taken over from Sam Allardyce and there’s a run-down of his squad alongside an impassioned plea for Michael Brough to get more games. The cover states it might be the first and last issue and we presume that was the case.

Magpie George
Years active: 1994-1995
No. of issues: At least 4

Edited by Anthony Platt and Alex Arnold from an address in Linby. Around issue four (which is the only one we’ve seen) Notts had just signed goalkeeper Darren Ward and centre-back Gary Strodder and the editorial was rightly impressed. Other highlights include the ‘Forest Gump’ cartoon, cut-out car sticker and a guide to Notts County ‘donkeys’. 

Our thanks to Steve Westby, Dave Hindley, Andy Lowe, Ivan Bainbridge, Jono Bullard and Dan Westwell for letting us raid both their fanzine collections and brains in collating this article. 

This article was part of LeftLion issue #171 covering the history of DIY print and fanzines in Nottingham. Click here to read a history of Nottingham Forest fanzines.