CHESHIRE Police is offering a nostalgia trip for residents in the form of a special limited edition magazine.
The Force has raided its picture archives and dusted off hundreds of photographs of policing the county in times gone by, published them in a glossy magazine and is now selling it to raise money for charity.
Force publications editor Chris Wood said: “The Constabulary has its own newspaper which is distributed to serving and retired officers and staff, and one of the most popular sections is the looking back column, which we call “Life On Mars” after the BBC show set in the 1970s.
“We wanted to produce a magazine which we could sell to raise money for charity and we knew that there is a ready market in nostalgia for the 1970s, 60s and even further back. We asked Catalyst readers to send in their own photographs to put in the magazine and dug into the Force archives to find as many previously unpublished pictures as we could find. The result is a unique look at times gone by – a real trip back in time.”
The 100 page full colour magazine features a huge array of pictures, all taken in Cheshire, including:
Behind-the-scenes snapshots of policing Crewe in the early 1980s.
Dozens of photos of Cheshire police vehicles from times gone by, including Morris 1000s, Austin 1800s, Cortina 1600GTs, Anglias, Rover SD1s and Marinas.
The opening of the M56.
Policing foot-and-mouth around Tarporley in 1967.
Cheshire’s involvement in policing the miners’ strike in 1984.
Policing the River Dee in Chester in 1971.
A feature taken from a 1970 publication showing how Cheshire was policed in the “Life On Mars” era.
“The magazine was designed to appeal to a wider audience than serving and retired officers – it would be of interest to anyone who enjoys looking back at old photographs and best of all, all the money from sales goes to charity,” added Mr Wood.
Money raised by sales of the magazine, called “Life On Mars?”, goes to two charities – the BBC’s Children In Need appeal and the Constabulary’s own Force Museum, based in Warrington.
The success of the magazine has already prompted calls for a second edition.
“I have been contacted by officers and staff who, having seen the magazine, now want to send in their own photographs for inclusion in any future editions,” said Mr Wood. “We hadn’t really thought of doing it as a series of publications, but it looks like the interest is there to produce a lot more!”
Anyone interested in getting hold of a copy of “Life On Mars” can send a cheque for £4 made payable to Cheshire Police Authority to:
Life On Mars Magazine,
Corporate Communications / Marketing Department,
Cheshire Constabulary HQ,
Clemonds Hey,
Oakmere Road,
Winsford,
Cheshire CW7 2UA