TVmusic Fairs was set up by punk rock enthusiast Nick Duckett, who held his first fair in Reading simply to try and expand his own record collection by bringing together collectors and record dealers under one roof to buy, sell and exchange their own discs. TVmusic record fairs are now held in Reading, Southampton, Bristol, Oxford, London and Portsmouth.

25 Years later TV Fairs has remained the longest standing music fairs organisation in the country. No, it's not the St Mary's jumble sale, nor is it a car boot sale with Cockney wide-boys peddling the gear they filched from down the Old Kent Road last Friday night. It's more like a giant market of CDs, Vinyl, Cassettes, DVDs, Videos and Memorabilia. There's also arange of accessories on sale such as CD cases, plastic LP sleeves and the like.

Nowadays you'll find a regular show in almost every large town in the UK, attended by hundreds, even thousands of people. People visit these events, week in week out, knowing that they can find a wider range of music products at much lower prices than in the high street chains.

The fairs typically open to the public at around 10 o'clock, and run till four in the afternoon. Once seen as the haunt of the enthusiast minority, they have undergone something of a transformation recent years as more and more users see them as a viable alternative to shopping in the high street. Fair goers seem to enjoy the events socially and often visit with friends for a day out. You can even leave the children at the pool in Reading and Portsmouth. It's not uncommon for enthusiasts to attend a show every weekend.

http://www.tvfairs.co.uk/