Caught on camera: videos and film of CF

These days, everyone carries a high quality camera in their pocket or bag, so documenting day to day life really isn’t a big deal. But finding the same sort of moving images from the 1990s is always rather special. The images are grainy, the clothes are a bit LOL – but it’s a rare glimpse into a place and time we all loved. On a precious few occasions Commodore Format and its staff did find their way onto TV. Or video at the very least.

KIDS READ CF IN THE SCHOOL PLAYGROUND!

This one’s taken from a Discovery Channel documentary about computer games. It’s a clip of the guys behind the Dizzy games – but at 55 seconds in, you’ll see a glimpse of Commodore Format issue 28 (the Nick Faldo one, which we talked about here.)

COMMODORE FORMAT WEBSITE ON BAD INFLUENCE!

We asked a while back if anybody could find the remains of the old Commodore Format website. Unbelievably…it was actually featured on TV once. You can see it, briefly, from 16’38 here. Aside from a single screenshot in very late issues of CF, we think this is the only documented evidence of the website’s existence. Agonisingly, it started up – and shut down again – mere months before web archive services started collating everything forever!

Thanks to Patrick Furlong for finding this – and up yours, Violet Berlin! (That’ll make sense when you watch the video – Ed)

STEVE JARRATT IN THE MONMOUTH STREET OFFICES

From 1991, anyone buying a new C64 in the UK got a free sampler issue of Commodore Format in the box. You can read that in the Extras section of our website.

New Amiga 1200 owners, meanwhile, got a VHS video introduction to their computer presented by…former CF editor Steve Jarratt! See inside Future Publishing here. Judging by the issues of the magazine surrounding Steve, this is around mid ’94/95.

DAVE GOLDER TALKS ABOUT FUTURE IN THE ’90S

Dave Golder is one of the hosts of this Google Hangout – he talks a lot about launching a magazine in the 1990s and “the days before market research” at Future Publishing. If you were a fan of Commodore Format, Your Sinclair, AA and all the rest from Monmouth Street back in the day you will really enjoy this video.

CF fans might remember adverts for SFX in the last 3 issues (1995).

FUTURE PUBLISHING CHRISTMAS VIDEO 1996

Ah, the days of the “bonkers” Christmas party video! This one’s labelled as being from 1996 but actually includes footage from various years. Look out for Dave Golder sitting at his desk in CF at 1 minute 15. That’s likely taken from 1993/4 and his time editing both CF and Amstrad Action (there’s a Commodore Format binder behind him and what appears to be an Amstrad Action spread laid out on his Mac monitor). Andy Dyer is at 1 minute 50. Ollie Alderton (art editor) is at 2 minutes 21. And Steve Jarratt’s at the end, 2 minutes 33!

CF IN THE STORY OF THE COMMODORE 64

So much to love in this 25 minute documentary. It’s beautifully well made, with frequent mentions of all sorts of stuff CF fans will love – including a mention of the magazine and Simon Forrester at 20 minutes 19.