Autumn Stampex, BDC,London. September 13-16.

I too had an enjoyable day meeting Londonbus1 and his entourage of Facebook friends. I feel a bit red faced about meeting Alex Candy, as I hadn't realised he was a TSF member.

Michael and I met at the Collector's Fair near Charing Cross, for a rummage through the few tables that were there before going on to Stampex. This was a first visit for me, and like Michael, I had a spell of not feeling too well. Things picked up though and I bought a few pieces which were predominantly cinderella themed, including a Hong Kong cover with an exhibition label I had never seen before (nor knew of its existence). I shall be posting some of these presently.

I did look at the Hong Kong stock of a couple of dealers on the main floor, but material was thin on the ground. What I did find was in a price range that seemed to reflect the huge fees that these dealers paid for their stands.

I asked one dealer on the upper floor (the cheap seats), how much was charged for a stand. He stated that the minimum was around £800, rising to thousands for those on the main floor.

What I did not like was there being no seating at the main floor stands, which meant standing uncomfortably looking through material under rather badly positioned strip lighting. I had to prop albums up on a portfolio I had brought, angling it lectern fashion in order to eliminated the reflections. Strangely, a member of another forum whom I know, went to Stampex a couple of days earlier and during his visit, seating had been provided in the main area. So the organisers must have felt that there was a logistical problem and decided to remove them, in time for our visit. 

Another reason for meeting at Stampex was for Michael to hand deliver a large packet of cinderellas I had bought from him on another site. This also included a nice selection of 'freebies'.

Having just spoken to him a few minutes ago, we are hoping to meet at an Indian restaurant near me for a meal tomorrow.

This will be a welcome distraction for both of us. I am 'home alone' at the moment, as my family are away on a West Caribbean cruise; Michael is incarcerated in a small hotel near Chelmsford, visiting his Mum amongst others.

I'm really looking forward to us meeting again to continue our eclectic discussions, which is a delight for me as it is rare for me to meet anyone who is such good company.

No doubt Michael will be writing an article about Stampex in a forthcoming newsletter, so I shall go no further with my observations.