urbanglasgow.co.uk

kev · Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2009 9:27 pm Post subject: Does anyone remember Gratispool

Been talking with my mum about old pictures for the site and she told me about a company that traded out of Glasgow called Gratispool who sent a free film with your prints She then found this site.. Fasinating
http://www.photomemorabilia.co.uk/Gratispool.html

Alex Glass · Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2009 9:44 pm Post subject:

I don't remember the building but it was one of the main photo processing companies and most people would have got their films developed by Gratispool I think.
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escotregen · Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 2:53 pm Post subject:

I well remember Gratispool. They seemed to gro big time in the 70s by heavily marketing the angle of ‘buy and develop your spool (and yes we did call, them spools) from us and get the next one free’. They had a big shop down at the Saltmarket that I can remember. They were welcome alternative to having to put your film into the local ‘chemist’ for developing – the chemists were a) expensive b) you usually had a bit of a wait for the developed film c) they were sometimes sniffy about what prints you could get ( even maybe about whether you got the negatives without asking).

It wasn’t until the first time I was in France on holiday in that period when it struck me … French for free is ‘gratis’… we called the film a ‘spool’… so we got ‘Gratispool’… Duh, that’s pure dead brilliant, we thought! Oh how we entertained ourselves in those days before street lights, VCR and digital TV.
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rotten milk · Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 11:58 pm Post subject:

didn't know where/what/how, but 'gratispool' is etched on my brain from when i was a youngster, mainly from looking through family phots, esp. the 70s - it was either on the 'wallet' or a bit of paper inside

when it was mentioned, i had a rake through phots i have (the rest are at my mum's) and came up with these:

photie wallet

inserts

just imagine, a glesga photie service with the emblem 'FFS'

also, never mind 'new york, london ,paris, etc.' when you have 'maidenhead, glasgow, brum, amsterdam, brussels'

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cybers · Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 2:41 am Post subject:

Aye but the Amsterdam ones were always blurry ...
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Alex Glass · Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 9:10 pm Post subject:

Isn't it strange how fate always place a hand with some things.

Whilst working on a wee project for a friend I came across a photo with this cover.

Funny how these things seem to happen at the right time.
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I had a dream today

ALEX G @ flickr

Fjord · Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 9:18 pm Post subject:

Is that the Turin Shroud?

Alex Glass · Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 9:22 pm Post subject:

I couldn't leave the photo in it as it is a very personal photos of someone and I don't think they would have been to pleased if I posted their school photo all over the internet

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I had a dream today

ALEX G @ flickr

John · Deep fried Mars bar Joined: 07 Aug 2007 Posts: 1278

rotten milk · Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 10:08 pm Post subject:

bloody hell, of course!

even with no photie in it, as soon as i saw the frame, i was thinking 'school photie'

mind ye used tae get two big photies and about 6 wee yins

and for some reason these photies always brought out the worst in yer haircut

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hey, d'ye think it's ootside yir in?