Help needed with book about Portsmouth’s music history | Nostalgia

Paul Newell has produced another of his Victorian tales books following on from the superb Shocking Tales from Victorian Portsmouth Volumes I and II, plus Dear Sir, Letters From Victorian Portsmouth.
By Bob Hind
Published 5th Jan 2020, 20:00 BST
Some of the many pop stars who will be appearing in a new book about music in Portsmouth from the 1970s to the 1990s..Some of the many pop stars who will be appearing in a new book about music in Portsmouth from the 1970s to the 1990s..
Some of the many pop stars who will be appearing in a new book about music in Portsmouth from the 1970s to the 1990s..

All three were hits with the Portsmouth book-buying public, but his latest work A Victorian Portrayal of Ghosts and the Unexplained is, I fear, a complete miss. Mind you, the fact that I am a total disbeliever in all things supernatural does not help. I take it all with a large pinch of salt.

More than 160 cases of unexplained and ghostly apparitions are dealt with but, on reading the text, you will find most can be explained.

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It appears to me that the majority of the stories were made up by Victorians to fictionalise ghost stories.

Dave and Mick’s original book about the 1960s. You can be part of the new book from the 1970s to the '90s.Dave and Mick’s original book about the 1960s. You can be part of the new book from the 1970s to the '90s.
Dave and Mick’s original book about the 1960s. You can be part of the new book from the 1970s to the '90s.

Everything that occurs outdoors appears to have happened on foggy damp nights somewhere in the UK. Many of the tales are from overseas.

I can only find two stories relating to Portsmouth in general and the majority of the stories are far too long and overly detailed. And, as I said, most end up having a rational explanation.

However, if you like to believe in spooks and ghosts and things that go bump in the night it will be your cup of tea. It has more than 160 pages, is published by Moyhill and is available from New To You Books, Cosham.

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n You may recall music historians Dave Allen and Mick Cooper publishing a book a few years ago called Pompey Pop Pix which dealt with Portsmouth’s music history of the 1950s and 1960s.

Paul Newell's latest book.Paul Newell's latest book.
Paul Newell's latest book.

They are planning another, this time covering the 1970s to 1999. They hope to publish it in late March/early April.

It is hoped that many pictures of pop stars will appear in the book, but if you have any rare pictures you can send them or any photographs or information from those years, please contact Mick.

They had hoped to get funding but despite strenuous efforts have drawn a blank. So now they are going down the crowd-funding path.

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Should any reader be kind enough to send/donate £10 in advance of the going-to-press date of February 15 they will receive any early free copy of the book (collection preferred but postage UK and elsewhere is available at cost) and their name on the subscription list inside. If you haven’t yet achieved fame, you will now!

All profits after sales are exhausted will be given in full to a Portsmouth music charity. Once published the price will be £10.

To help with the publication orif you have material to send, you can contact Mick on (023) 9237 1018 or drop him a line at: 3, Artillery Close, Paulsgrove, Portsmouth. PO6 4HD. Cheques made payable to M Cooper please.

Related topics:PortsmouthVictorian

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