Eagle Number One Found in Coronation Street!

philcom55 · Post by **philcom55** » 30 Jan 2007, 02:14

The first issue of Eagle would be a pretty desirable object for any collector, but the copy owned by Coronation Street's Roy Cropper must be especially rare as it's the only one I've ever heard of which still contains it's "free ray-gun"!!! ...Strange how none of the reference works ever mentioned that!

Phil Rushton

Kashgar · Post by **Kashgar** » 30 Jan 2007, 11:58

Last night on 'Coronation Street' Roy Cropper was offered ?1500 for the complete first year of 'Eagle' and the Ray-Gun. I'm not a regular viewer but wasn't the Ray-Gun he was referring to actually a piece of spin-off Dan Dare merchandise complete in its box rather than a free gift. I don't think it was implicit that he meant it was a free gift with the first issue, which of course it wasn't, as Eagle didn't go in for free gifts in those early days. Surely the researchers wouldn't have got it that wrong.

colcool007 · Post by **colcool007** » 30 Jan 2007, 16:16

The ray-gun was indeed a spin-off piece of merchandise. One of my uncles got it for his birthday/Xmas many many moons ago. Saw it once on a visit to my Granny and thought that it was a cool piece of kit then.

This is the model that my uncle had.

[img:640:424]http://www.2000ad.nu/spacefleet/merchan ... capgun.jpg[/img]

Heavy bit of kit if I remember it rightly. But may not be the same gun that featured on Corrie as they seem to have been several Dan Dare guns.

Lew Stringer · Post by **Lew Stringer** » 30 Jan 2007, 18:08

Kashgar wrote:Last night on 'Coronation Street' Roy Cropper was offered ?1500 for the complete first year of 'Eagle' and the Ray-Gun. I'm not a regular viewer but wasn't the Ray-Gun he was referring to actually a piece of spin-off Dan Dare merchandise complete in its box rather than a free gift. I don't think it was implicit that he meant it was a free gift with the first issue, which of course it wasn't, as Eagle didn't go in for free gifts in those early days. Surely the researchers wouldn't have got it that wrong.

The researchers have gotten things wrong before, but in this case you're correct: I think the ray gun referred to a boxed item that Roy also held back from the fishwife-type character.

I haven't watched Corrie for ages but just happened to see that scene last night. Why was Roy's wife annoyed with him for wanting to sell the Eagles?

Incidentally; I wonder where the researchers got those Eagles from? Maybe they're the ones sold recently on EBay?

Lew

philcom55 · Post by **philcom55** » 30 Jan 2007, 18:56

Kashgar wrote:wasn't the Ray-Gun he was referring to actually a piece of spin-off Dan Dare merchandise complete in its box rather than a free gift.

Ah! That explains it - I only saw a bit of the episode! I never had one of the ray-guns myself but I did have one of the utterly brilliant Dan Dare Space Radio Stations made by Merit in the 1950s, complete with a couple of very early 'mobile phones' in stylish red plastic! In fact Eagle was quite ahead of its time in the sheer number of spin-off items they licensed, not the least of which were the 'Riders of the Range' braces! (or did I imagine that?)

As a matter of interest can anybody remember other early comics which inspired their own toys? I seem to have a vague memory of something relating to Captain Condor from Lion...

Phil Rushton

chrissmillie · Post by **chrissmillie** » 30 Jan 2007, 19:17

Why was Roy's wife annoyed with him for wanting to sell the Eagles?

Didn't see it myself but remember Roy's wife was a boy (sex-change), so maybe (s)he was a fan?

Chris

Kashgar · Post by **Kashgar** » 01 Feb 2007, 12:25

Now I've had a think about it surely Roy Cropper wouldn't be old enough to have collected 'Eagle' from the first issue? He would have to be at least 65 or so to have had any interest in the paper when it was first published 57 years ago and I would only put him in his mid to late fifties age wise.
Besides that another thing that irks me a little about this storyline is that it had to be shopping-bag toting, purse carrying Roy Cropper that had comic gems from his childhood stored away. Admittedly it doesn't make him a comic collector as such but I still think it does reflect on the sort of adult individual that they imagine is interested in such things. Why wasn't it Dev and his collection of 2000AD? Where does the notion come from that as a comic collector you must fit into some part of the inadequate social spectrum somewhere between the likes of Roy Cropper and the comic-book guy from The Simpsons?
You can imagine the scenario- Nerdy and bullied at school with an inherent inability to play any type of sport.Glasses optional but they certainly help to explain dreadful hand to eye coordination. Terminally shy around the opposite sex but a boys best friend is his mum so that's OK.
Can't get a girlfriend but never mind I'll sit at home with my parents and read through my complete collection of 'Valiant'. By this standard Norman Bates probably had a great comic collection that he kept in the cellar along with the dessicated remains of his mother!

Gary Northfield · Post by **Gary Northfield** » 01 Feb 2007, 12:37

I pretty much agree with you there Kashgar, that really irked me too. Although it's fair to say that Roy has always been a bit partial to collecting so-called nerdy stuff like old Hornby railways etc., but yeah, it's always the cliched stereotyped socially inadequate who have comics on T.V.. But in his defence, Roy is probably the nicest chap on Corrie too, so nice he married a sex-changed tranny cos he was too polite to run for the hills screaming.

Not that I ever watch the programme.

Steve Bright · Post by **Steve Bright** » 01 Feb 2007, 13:40

Oh wad some power the giftie gie us To see oursel's as others see us!

(R. Burns)

What delightful righteous indignation, chaps!

Lew Stringer · Post by **Lew Stringer** » 01 Feb 2007, 14:08

Kashgar wrote: Where does the notion come from that as a comic collector you must fit into some part of the inadequate social spectrum somewhere between the likes of Roy Cropper and the comic-book guy from The Simpsons?

I remember that in his early appearances, Martin Platt was a comic collector on Corrie too. (He bought a sixties Silver Surfer comic from Rita's shop as I recall, ... which was somewhat odd considering it was the late seventies or early eighties so what a 60's comic was doing there was poor research. Anyway, mention was made that he "collected those things".)

Of course, that was all soon forgotten as Martin became transformed into the usual bland no-hobby character like everyone else in soapland.

Lew

Cap Haggis · Post by **Cap Haggis** » 01 Feb 2007, 14:21

Strangely Lew, when my family moved from Glasgow to a small (but not tiny) town about 7 miles south of the City I went to one of the many local newsagents and found a mint copy of issue 11 of the "Silver Surfer" (which was late 1969 I think) and this was in mid 1976, not bad. Thankfully I didn't have to marry Gail Platt though.

Kashgar · Post by **Kashgar** » 01 Feb 2007, 15:12

Steve Bright wrote:Oh wad some power the giftie gie us To see oursel's as others see us!

(R. Burns)

What delightful righteous indignation, chaps!

Do I sense that you think we protest too much Steve! Maybe we do, but as a bit of a 'rugger-bugger' in my youth and being still in the posession of a wife that still bids fair to look like Daisy Duke and a family of kids and grand-kids I find comparison with, admittedly nice guy, Roy Cropper and the Simpsons comic-book guy a bit incongruous.

Gary Northfield · Post by **Gary Northfield** » 01 Feb 2007, 15:38

I guess it's being fed-up with the lazy writers who take their biggest nerd, the butt of every other corrie character's jokes and make him a comic collector too, cos he fits in so neatly with preconceived ideas of what a comic collector is.
It's a bit like the lazy journalism that starts off any news article on comics with "Crash! Bang! Pow!". Kind of gets your goat after a while.

Not entirely sure I know what a "rugger-bugger" is though (not too keen to google it either seeing as I'm at work).

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