Mechanical Memories Magazine

First Impressions
By Stuart Dale
It was holiday time once again and this year we decided to return to the Isle of Wight,
and for me the highlight of the holiday was going to be a visit to the Arreton Barns craft
village. Yes you guessed it.. .. they have a vintage penny arcade! I have been to Arreton
Barns before and at that time they only had a handful of machines, but I had been told
that they now had a very impressive collection. Anyway, the day of the visit finally
arrived and as we made our way along the A3056 from Sandown to Arreton, I started to
imagine the type of machines I might see. As the coach turned in to the car park, I made
one final check of my camera, yes all was ok and the battery was fully charged.
We got off the coach and set off in the direction of the Dairyman's Daughter (don 't
worry .... that 's the name of the tea rooms ) and as we passed under the wooden archway I
spotted the vintage arcade to my right. As I walked through the doorway, my heart
started to sink. I looked round the arcade, which in itself was fine , but half the machines
were repro's and working on new 2p coins.
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