Celebrating 45 years of Swindon Link
Monday 6 November
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Proud to serve Swindon since 1978
Tonight The Ink will be hosts the first of its quarterly community events, with Link founder and former publisher Roger Ogle talking about 45 years of the Swindon Link magazine and all that has changed in the town since its inception in Toothill in 1978. The talk will be called 'Back to the Future'. It will be held upstairs at The Hop Inn on Devizes Road from 7.30pm and will be a chance for readers to also meet the journalists and contributors who have been making The Ink what it is. The event will be free to enter for whoever wants to pop along to listen to the talk and then have a chat with us all. Let us know that you are coming on The Facebook event page here
By Barrie Hudson
When Swindon Link celebrated four decades of serving the town in 2018, founder editor Roger Ogle wrote in a special edition: "For a free magazine to survive for forty years is rather an incredible achievement."
He was not wrong. Over the years during which the Link has operated, Swindon - like many towns and cities from Cornwall to the north of Scotland - has seen a welter of community newspapers, magazines and websites come and go.
Five years on from that special edition, Swindon Link - both in print and online - continues to go from strength to strength, as committed as ever to delivering news and features on the subjects that matter to our readers.
As ever, we do not shy away from reporting the negative but take special delight in highlighting the positive.
The Swindon of 45 years ago, like the Britain of 45 years ago, was a very different place. The Railway Works was still in operation, albeit scaling down its operations, shoppers would be able to stroll the aisles of McIlroys for another two decades or so, and grass grew on the land which would one day be occupied by developments such as Abbey Meads and Wichelstowe.
Some two years before Swindon Link first saw the light of day, the first residents moved into their new-build homes in Toothill, West Swindon. It would be fair to say that the new neighbourhood, which managed the rare feat of being a semi-rural idyll yet having ready access to a 20th century town with a wealth of facilities, was the cradle of the Link.
In 2018 Roger Ogle recalled the foundation of the magazine: "It all started in December 1978 when an 18-page unnamed newsletter appeared through the doors of the 500 houses occupied in Toothill and the 50 or so in Freshbrook.
"Resident Geoff Richmond had put it together and distributed the publication door-to-door with his wife Kathy, pushing a pram with their baby daughter on top and the loaded tray below.
"The second edition in early 1979 carried the title Toothill Link, though the place name was soon dropped as the western expansion grew to include other areas.
"In a rapidly expanding community, communication was essential so that people knew what was going on and were encouraged to get involved."
This principle has guided the Link in all its editions ever since.
For the first eight years of its life, the magazine appeared every eight weeks, the work of a group of dedicated volunteers co-ordinated by Roger. As was the case with many magazines and newspapers of the era, articles were typed on paper, cut out and pasted onto layout boards, while headlines were created using Letraset transfers. The first few editions were stapled by hand. It was a mark of the magazine's growing presence that in 1984 the Link Centre was named after it.
From April 1987 the Link became a monthly publication, with Roger Ogle leaving a job at the old Thamesdown Borough Council to take overall charge.
The objectives set out then, and highlighted by Roger in his 2018 retrospective piece, are as strong as ever today:
- Being available free of charge
- Providing local news and information about schools, churches, charities and community activities
- Promoting opportunities to get involved and help groups and charities
- Celebrating the efforts of people to build their communities
Following a number of expansions over the years, Swindon Link now has two editions, North & West and South & East.
Rivals and would-be rivals came and went. Roger recalled: "But they didn't understand the unique features of The Link, nor the sheer hard work required to create an appealing product month after month. The Link came into being at a time when new technology made it easier to allow in-house control of the production, the first in Swindon to do so.
"We were also the first to use the flexibility provided by digital cameras. By a couple of weeks, swindonlink.com was the second in October 1997 to launch a town-wide website."
The Ink News Briefing
Royal International Air Tattoo reveals themes for 2024 - Organisers have announced the show will be highlighting the vital work carried out by flight test and evaluation establishments, under the theme ‘Pushing the Boundaries in Air & Space’. Read More
Swindon Town 4-7 Aldershot Town - Swindon suffer FA Cup humiliation - The First Round of football's oldest cup competition delivered one of Swindon's most embarrassing results in their proud 144 year history. Non League Aldershot left Town stunned and silenced as they raced into a three goal lead after just 10 minutes. Read More
Youth crime tackled at anti-violence summit - New youth centre just one of the measures put forward during day-long Youth Safety Summit at Steam. Read More
Nearly half of disabled people in Swindon out of work - An equalities charity has said the labour market is "rigged" against people with disabilities. Read More
The Ink Piece
The sunflower lanyard and Autism t-shirt
A column by The Autistic Journalist Tyler Ody. North Swindon resident Tyler has been working for Swindon Link for the past four years. From the age of four Tyler has been diagnosed with Classic Autism.
Hey everybody! Welcome back to Living With Autism. In Instalment number 16, I will be talking about the sunflower lanyard and Autism t shirt.
When I head out to either my workplaces or going out I always wear the Hidden disabilities Sunflower lanyard.
Since its launch in 2016, businesses from every sector including retail, travel, tourism and transport, including 200 airports and railway networks, have recognised it.
The sunflower has now launched internationally in countries such as Australia, the USA, the Netherlands, Belgium and the UK.
The sunflower was chosen as it suggests happiness and positivity as well as growth and confidence.
I have owned a sunflower lanyard since 2020 when the Covid 19 pandemic hit, which has benefited well with me and my family. If I were to get in a tizz the lanyard helps so much, so I do not get stared at and people now have a knowledge that I have a condition.
It has benefited well with myself during the pandemic; I didn’t have to wear a mask but I wouldn't be questioned.
Before I had a lanyard from the age of 16 I used to wear a t shirt which used to say, ‘I have Autism What's your superpower?’
My parents used to love me wearing it because whenever we went abroad I used to wear it when we were around the pool and people got to realise my condition, and a lot of people would comment to say they liked my t shirt and thought what a great idea it was.
Because people are more aware of Autism and people with learning difficulties, with these lanyards and tops it helps people like myself not to feel watched or judged.
It will be interesting to see what people's feedback on it is. I still wear the t shirt when I feel really anxious about going to new places. But I love wearing my lanyard when I go out which makes me and my family feel comfortable.
The Swindon Link Magazine Archive
Over on The Ink’s sister publication Swindon Link’s website you will find an impressive archive of the past 45 years of Swindon Link magazines, giving you a huge glimpse into the town’s recent past from the beginnings of West Swindon to now. You can find the archive here
The latest magazines
For the North West Swindon Link Magazine click here
For the South East Swindon Link Magazine click here