Happy Shopper shops - Sheffield (closed)

There are still a few Happy Shopper shops around England and Wales.

Here's a look at the Happy Shopper in Sheffield, South Yorkshire.

Check out this blog post looking back at our visits to Happy Shopper shops since 2020.

View my YouTube Playlist of Happy Shopper shop videos.

The demise of Blockbuster Video in the UK

The last Blockbuster Video shop ceased trading in the UK on this day in 2013.

Blockbuster Video entered the UK video rental market in 1989 following the purchase of Ritz Video.

In 2013 there were over 500 Blockbuster locations in the UK. Throughout that year the number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. On the 16th December 2013 all stores ceased operations.

It's amazing that there are still clearly visible remnants of the brand on the high street and on retail parks eleven years later.

If you're lucky, and know where to look, you might find a QuikDrop box hiding in plain sight

The first Blockbuster Video store had opened in Dallas, Texas, USA on the 19th October 1985.

The very last Blockbuster Video store in operation is in Bend, Oregon, USA.

Until January this year there was an abandoned Blockbuster Video store near us here in Manchester. It was always an eerie, interesting and nostalgic thing to drive past the old shop at Fallowfield Retail Park.

Blockbuster Video in Fallowfield, Manchester

The sign about the closure was still visible on the window there before it was demolished.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 Blockbuster stores around the world. 500+ of which were in England, Scotland and Wales. Interestingly in Northern Ireland the Xtra-Vision brand was used by the owners in-line with the Republic of Ireland.

Blockbuster certainly wasn't the first video rental shop brand, but it was at one time the market leader.

Blockbuster Video store locations we've visited on our travels

Our interest in lost brands and retail history has taken us to several former Blockbuster stores:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Lost brands

Emily and I have spent the last few years reminiscing about 'the good old days'. One of our areas of interest is in old retail brands - we're both marketers by profession and two of my first jobs in the 1990's and the year 2000 were at Tandy and Toys R Us, while Emily's first job was at a Happy Shopper shop. It's been fascinating to find remnants of these brands - and a number of other lost, dead and defunct brands - on the high street and at retail parks around the UK.

Video rental shops in the UK (December 2024)

A look at movie rental shops in the UK.

By my reckoning there are four 'video shops' still in operation offering physical media movie rentals in the UK. They are:

• 20th Century Flicks in Bristol
• TVL Allstar Video in Haverhill, Suffolk
• Snips Movies in Bebington, Wirral
• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

Unfortunately B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton closed in July this year. We visited that particular video shop on Video Shop Day in 2020!

It's brilliant to see there are still businesses active in the sector though!

Signs and traces of video shops

There are still traces of former video shops to be found on the streets, shopping centres and retail parks of the UK. Most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores. But there are still signs of independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky (and actually visit and rent from if you're really lucky!). Some of those I've snapped over the years include:

• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films in Ashton-under-Lyne
• B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton (closed in 2024)
• 20th Century Flicks in Bristol (still operating, but closed on the day of our visit)
• Video Express in Swansea
• Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham
• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds (still operating, but closed on the day of our visit)
• TVL Allstar Video in Haverhill (still operating)

Blockbuster Video shops

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date include:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Do you still have a video rental store near you? Please let me know in the comments if you do!

Happy Shopper shops - Ashwellthorpe

There are still a few Happy Shopper shops around England and Wales.

Here's a look at the Happy Shopper in Ashwellthorpe, Norfolk.

Check out this blog post looking back at our visits to Happy Shopper shops since 2020.

View my YouTube Playlist of Happy Shopper shop videos.

Happy Shopper shops - Lowestoft

There are still a few Happy Shopper shops around England and Wales.

Here's a look at the Happy Shopper in Lowestoft, Suffolk.

Check out this blog post looking back at our visits to Happy Shopper shops since 2020.

View my YouTube Playlist of Happy Shopper shop videos.

Happy Shopper shops - Burton on Trent (closed)

There are still a few Happy Shopper shops around England and Wales.

Here's a look at the Happy Shopper in Burton on Trent.

Check out this blog post looking back at our visits to Happy Shopper shops since 2020.

View my YouTube Playlist of Happy Shopper shop videos.

Happy Shopper shops - Sittingbourne

There are still a few Happy Shopper shops around England and Wales.

Here's a look at the Happy Shopper on Chaucer Road in Sittingbourne, Kent.

Check out this blog post looking back at our visits to Happy Shopper shops since 2020.

View my YouTube Playlist of Happy Shopper shop videos.

Happy Shopper shops - Burton on Trent

There are still a few Happy Shopper shops around England and Wales.

Here's a look at the S & A Singh Happy Shopper Supermarket on Sydney Street in Burton on Trent.

Check out this blog post looking back at our visits to Happy Shopper shops since 2020.

View my YouTube Playlist of Happy Shopper shop videos.

Lost Shops - Blockbuster Video Express store in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex (April 2023)

Taking a look at the former Blockbuster Video Express store in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex.

The signage at the old Blockbuster Video Express store in Westcliff-on-Sea is no more, and work is underway on the unit to create two new shops and flats.

Here's what it looked like when we visited in April last year.

Blockbuster Video in the UK

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 stores around the world. 500-plus of those were in the UK.

Blockbuster ceased operations in the UK in December 2013. At the start of that year there were 528 Blockbuster locations in the UK. The number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. The last stores closed on the 16th December.

There are still some visible remnants of the brand on the high street and on retail parks. And we've been to most of them on our travels!

Check out the posts about former Blockbuster Video stores we've been to in:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Lost brands

Emily and I have spent the last few years reminiscing about 'the good old days'. One of our areas of interest is in old retail brands - we're both marketers by profession and two of my first jobs in the 1990's and the year 2000 were at Tandy and Toys R Us, while Emily's first job was at a Happy Shopper shop. It's been fascinating to find remnants of these brands - and a number of other lost, dead and defunct brands - on the high street and at retail parks around the UK.

From Blockbusters NQ to Rewind NQ in Manchester

The video rental shop themed bar formerly known as Blockbusters NQ is now known as Rewind NQ.

The inside of the bar is still packed with old VHS tapes!

It was fun having a drink in a 'video shop' speakeasy.

Check out the Rewind NQ website for more information.

39 years of Blockbuster Video

Not completely gone, and not completely forgotten.

This was the sign at the Blockbuster Video store in Nuneaton, Warwickshire when it was uncovered for a short period of time in 2021

The first Blockbuster Video store opened in Dallas, Texas, USA on this day in 1985.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 stores around the world. 500-plus of those were in the UK.

There is now just one Blockbuster Video store left open. It's in Bend, Oregon, USA.

There has been a boom in nostalgia for the brand - which back in the day was seen as something of a 'category killer' that saw off many smaller operators.

Blockbuster in the UK

The remains of the Blockbuster Video Express store in Billingham, Teesside in 2020

Blockbuster ceased operations in the UK in December 2013. At the start of that year there were 528 Blockbuster locations in the UK. The number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. The last stores closed on the 16th December.

There are still clearly visible remnants of the brand on the high street and on retail parks. And we've been to most of them on our travels!

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited

Check out the posts about other former Blockbuster Video stores we've been to in:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

A ghost sign at the old Blockbuster Video Express store in Shanklin on the Isle of Wight in 2021

Lost brands

Emily and I have spent the last few years reminiscing about 'the good old days'. One of our areas of interest is in old retail brands - we're both marketers by profession and two of my first jobs in the 1990's and the year 2000 were at Tandy and Toys R Us, while Emily's first job was at a Happy Shopper shop. It's been fascinating to find remnants of these brands - and a number of other lost, dead and defunct brands - on the high street and at retail parks around the UK.

Video Store Day 2024

Today is Video Store Day.

Do you still have a video store near you?

International Independent Video Store Day is observed on the third Saturday of October each year.

This year is the 14th Annual International Independent Video Store Day.

By my reckoning there are three video shops still in operation in the UK. They are:

• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds
• 20th Century Flicks in Bristol
• Snips Movies in Bebington, Wirral

Unfortunately B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton closed in July this year. We visited that particular video shop on Video Shop Day in 2020!

It's nice to see there are still some businesses active in the sector though!

Northgate Video & DVD Video Rental and Sales shop in Bury St Edmunds, August 2024

There are still traces of former video shops to be found on the streets, shopping centres and retail parks of the UK. Most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores. But there are remnants of independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky. Some of those I've snapped over the years include:

• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films in Ashton-under-Lyne
• B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton
• 20th Century Flicks in Bristol
• Video Express in Swansea
• Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham
• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date include:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Find out more about the event on the International Independent Video Store Day website.

The Blockbuster Video Store in Fallowfield, Manchester - Five Years On

A look back at the old Blockbuster Video store in Fallowfield, Manchester.

This is what was left of Blockbuster Video on Fallowfield Retail Park back in October 2019

I found the preserved remains of a 'dead brand' - Blockbuster Video - while in Manchester five years ago today!

It became the first of many former Blockbuster Video stores Emily and I travelled to once we found that there were still some other visible remains of the brand to be seen on high streets and at shopping centres around the UK.

Oh, what happened to this sign?

Dark clouds gathered over the brand in 2013

Blockbuster Video entered the UK video rental market in 1989 following the purchase of Ritz Video. In 2013 there were over 500 Blockbuster locations in the UK. Throughout that year the number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. On the 16th December 2013 all stores ceased operations.

On the visit to the old Fallowfield shop in October 2019 the Blockbuster Video store sign was prominently displayed on both sides of the main sign at Fallowfield Retail Park and the windows of the shop still retained Blockbuster signage.

A sign in the shop window

Most of the shelves inside had been removed, but the walls and desks clearly retained the brand colours of Blockbuster.

The window graphics still looked fresh

Clearly still recognisable as a Blockbuster on the inside

The shelves were bare

There is currently one independently owned franchise still operating as a Blockbuster Video in the USA and you can find it in Bend, Oregon.

Quik Drop box to nowhere

We made several more visits to the abandoned Blockbuster Video shop at Fallowfield Retail Park, including one last look as it was being demolished in January 2024.

Other Blockbuster Video stores

Here's a list and links to the other Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Independent video stores

There are still traces of former video shops to be found on the streets, shopping centres and retail parks of the UK. While most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores, there are remnants of (and in some cases still operating) independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky. Some of those we've snapped over the years include:

• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films in Ashton-under-Lyne
• B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton
• Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham
• Video Express in Swansea
• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds

Do you still have a video store near you?

By my reckoning there are three video shops still in operation in the UK. They are:

• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds
• 20th Century Flicks in Bristol
• Snips Movies in Bebington, Wirral

I've been to two of the above, with Snips Movies on my to visit list in the future. Hopefully I'll be able to get a membership card for the shop too.

Do you have a favourite defunct brand? Are the remains of an old brand still visible near where you live or work? Do let me know.

International Independent Video Store Day 2024

This year is the 14th Annual International Independent Video Store Day.

International Independent Video Store Day is observed on the third Saturday of October each year.

Do you still have a video store near you?

By my reckoning there are three video shops still in operation in the UK. They are:

• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds
• 20th Century Flicks in Bristol
• Snips Movies in Bebington, Wirral

Unfortunately B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton closed in July this year. We visited that particular video shop on Video Shop Day in 2020!

It's nice to see there are still some businesses active in the sector though!

Northgate Video & DVD Video Rental and Sales shop in Bury St Edmunds, August 2024

There are still traces of former video shops to be found on the streets, shopping centres and retail parks of the UK. Most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores. But there are remnants of independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky. Some of those I've snapped over the years include:

• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films in Ashton-under-Lyne
• B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton
• 20th Century Flicks in Bristol
• Video Express in Swansea
• Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham
• Northgate Video & DVD in Bury St Edmunds

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date include:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Find out more about the event on the International Independent Video Store Day website.

Toys R Us inside WH Smith at the Trafford Centre

Toys R Us has opened at the Trafford Centre in Manchester.

The new Toys R Us concession is now open inside WH Smith at the Trafford Centre.

I spotted signs for the new Toys R Us opening inside the WH Smith at the Trafford Centre in Manchester on a trip to the shopping centre in June this year. 

While the last of the original Toys R Us stores in the UK closed on the 24th April 2018 the brand returned to the UK in 2022 with an online presence, and further expanded in 2023 with the opening of nine concessions inside WH Smith.

There are currently 39 Toys R Us concessions in WH Smith shops, with more planned to open through 2024. Visit the Toys R Us website for more information.

Working at Toys R Us

My first job while at university in the year 2000 was as one of Geoffrey's helpers at the Luton store. I worked on the video game and electronics section.

Toys R Us concessions in the USA

Emily saw a Toys R Us at a Macy's department store in Fort Worth, Texas and a sign for one at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport on a trip to the USA earlier this year.

The old Toys R Us

It's been very interesting to find that there are still remnants of the brand on some retail parks in the UK and we've visited several of these closed, abandoned, derelict and demolished Toys R Us locations on our travels.

Former Toys R Us locations we've been to on our travels:

• Brighton Hill Retail Park in Basingstoke
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Cathedral Retail Park in Norwich
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Gateway retail park in Reading
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• St James Retail Park in Northampton
• Teesside Retail Park in Stockton-on-Tees
• The Leisure Plaza in Milton Keynes
• Trafford Centre in Manchester
• Western Esplanade in Southampton
• Wolverhampton Road in Oldbury
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby

Lost Toys R Us Stores

My book about Lost Toys R Us Stores is available to buy from Amazon.

There were once 105 Toys R Us stores in the UK. The business ceased trading in 2018 and all of those shops closed. It is still possible to find traces of the brand on some retail parks and shopping centres around the UK. The book takes a look at some of those old stores between 2019 and 2021.

Buy Lost Toys R Us Stores on Amazon.