Checkpoint Archive

Skip to year: 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979
First series (fanzine reviews): 1968 • 1969
Subject index in issue 100 • Artwork index

An on-line archive of Peter Roberts's famous 1970s British SF/fan newsletter Checkpoint, including the issues edited by Darroll Pardoe (#47 to #62) and Ian Maule (#63 to #73). The issue list at the right is expanded from the Memory Hole Fanzine Bibliography. The last remaining issue of the second series was uploaded on 7 September 2006, just over a year after this project was launched. On 18 February 2007, the first-series archive was also completed. All 111 issues are now on line.

Checkpoint continued the British sf newsletter tradition of Ron Bennett's 1959-1971 Skyrack, whose entire run is also archived on line (well done, Greg Pickersgill). With Peter Roberts's blessing, Checkpoint was succeeded by Ansible.

Thanks to all the following for transcribing Checkpoint:

Sandra Bond (6 issues)
Claire Brialey (7)
Bridget Bradshaw (1)
Ned Brooks (9)
Bill Burns (+)
Rob Jackson (16)
Earl Kemp (+)
Dave Langford (21+)
Jim Linwood (1)
Samuel Mcdonald (3)
Ian Maule (4)
Murray Moore (1)
Mark Plummer (1++)
Alison Scott (1)
Peter Sullivan (36+)
Paul Vincent (5 -- including the long and tedious subject index)

A couple of points for pedants: the above figures add up to one more issue than the reality, since in a bout of early enthusiasm two of our heroes transcribed the same Checkpoint. The + (as in Ralph 124C41+) is extra credit for a supplement or for doing just a page or two of the long issue 1:1, which was eventually assigned in small sections to make it less intimidating -- Jim Linwood gets the main credit, for rekeying six of its foolscap pages. Just for historical interest, here are the guidelines that were (sometimes) followed by the transcription crew.

Fliers and other extras

Asterisked items rode with Checkpoint.

*TAFF ballot forms, passim
Hoax advertisement from the Eastercon 22 programme book, discussed in Checkpoint 1 and Checkpoint 3
*British Weird Fantasy Society flier, included with Checkpoint 10 and Checkpoint 15
*"Paranoia Fandom" flier, included with Checkpoint 13
*Lurk fanzine flier, included with Checkpoint 14
1972 DUFF ballot form (for the first-ever DUFF race), included with Checkpoint 16
*Madcap fanzine flier, included with Checkpoint 19
*Contact, included with Checkpoint 27
*mi 3:6, included with Checkpoint 34
*"Newcastle in '74" Eastercon bid flier (the convention later known as Tynecon) -- included within Checkpoint 35
*Review Supplement included with Checkpoint 41
[*]Post-Eastercon Supplement to Checkpoint 46 (distributed both separately and with late copies of #46)
Not Checkpoint 96 -- "alternative" fan poll
Fans as Animals: Bruce Townley's impression of several UK fans of the Checkpoint era, drawn in 2006
Notes and Queries -- 21st-century comments and corrections

Checkpoint regularly carried voting forms for TAFF and other fan funds -- duly linked if available on line. Another regular extra was Eric Bentcliffe's mini-fanzine mi (aka AmiZINE STORIES), containing reviews and/or gossip. One example has been rekeyed since it cross-refers to Checkpoint itself. Peter Weston kindly provided a scan of the hoax ad from the Eastercon 22 programme book, discussed in two early issues.

Issue breakdown

How we got 111 as the total number of issues:

• First series
All issues
• Second series
Trial issues #0 and #00
Main run #1-#100
#46 later supplement
#63a poll supplement

Total

7

2
100
1
1

111

Thanks for other help

When this project began, various paper issues of Checkpoint were missing from the Langford hardcopy file. I'm deeply grateful to the following benefactors for providing needed photocopies and/or scans: Bruce Gillespie, Rob Jackson, Murray Moore, Peter Roberts, and Robert Lichtman.

Thanks finally to Checkpoint's editors for giving permission: