Meet Elvis

Elvis had/has millions of fans. One of his biggest fans was a slightly built Englishman from Derbyshire. Albert Hand ran the Elvis Fan Club (from 1962 taking it over from others) and published the Elvis Monthly magazine and the hardback “Elvis Special” (what we in the UK would more usually call an “Annual”) along with numerous other Pop periodicals through the 1960s until his untimely death in 1972. In 1962 Albert and his wife made the trip to the States to meet Elvis. Once back in the UK he lost no time in producing a magazine about his hero. It was a quality publication with some unique photos, lots of info, and a list of the 183 (?!?) songs Elvis had recorded up to that point.

Meet Elvis

Here is Albert’s shop with his car and local band Dave Kaye and the Dykons parked outside.

For many years afterwards UK Elvis fans would make the pilgrimage to Albert’s record shop to shake the hand of the man who had shook Elvis’ hand.

PS: I wonder what books Albert was presenting to Elvis? Had his first Elvis Special/Annual already been published?

PPS: Hard to believe, but in the 1960s there was no dedicated Elvis monthly magazine in his own country. Yes, he featured regularly in all the pop magazines, movie magazines and of course fanzines there but the most rabid of Elvis fans in the States would subscribe to Albert’s UK Elvis Monthly for wall-to-wall Elvis.

PS: Eventually, ill health led to Albert passing on the Elvis Fan Club UK to Todd Slaughter who, despite his own health issues, is still running it 50 years later. 

https://www.elvistoday.com/index.php/oepfc-great-britain/about-the-fan-club.html