Fanzine reaserch and review

A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleasure of others who share their interest.

The punk subculture in the United Kingdom spearheaded a surge of interest in fanzines as a countercultural alternative to established print media. The first and still best known UK 'punk zine' was Sniffin' Glue, produced by Deptford punk fan Mark Perry. Sniffin' Glue ran for 12 photocopied issues; the first issue was produced by Perry immediately following (and in response to) the London debut of The Ramones on 4 July 1976. Other UK fanzines included Blam!, Bombsite, Wool City Rocker, Burnt Offering, Chainsaw, New Crimes, Vague, Jamming, Artcore Fanzine, Love and Molotov Cocktails, To Hell With Poverty, New Youth, Peroxide, ENZK, Juniper beri-beri, No Cure,Communication Blur, Rox, Grim Humour, Spuno and Cool Notes. Of these, Tony Fletcher's Jamming was the most far reaching, becoming a nationally distributed mainstream magazine for several years before its demise.

In the UK, there were also fanzines that covered the local music scene in a particular town or city. Mainly prevalent in the 70s, and 80s, all music styles were covered, whether the bands were playing rock, punk, metal, futurist, ska or dance. Featured were local gig reviews and articles that were below the radar of the mainstream music press. They were produced using the technology of the time, i.e. typewriter and Letraset. Examples include Bombsite Fanzine (Liverpool 1977), Wool City Rocker (Bradford 1979 - 1982), City Fun (Manchester), 1984, Spuno (Bath 1980)  No Cure (Berkshire) and Town Hall Steps (Bolton) and more recently ''mono'' (fanzine), (Bradford) with many more across the country.