A walk round what used to be OCEAN SOFTWARE, 6 Central Street, Manchester

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Ocean Software rented the basement and the 2nd floor at The Friends' Meeting House back in the 1980s. It’s where many of their most popular titles were written, including versions of Chase HQ, Robocop, Wizball, Renegade, Head Over Heels, Hypersports & Daley Thompson’s Decathlon. On 16 March 2023 we were kindly granted access to the building to see what it looks like now.

Many thanks to Sarah Donaldson at the Friends' Meeting House for granting us access and for taking the time to show us around. It was very much appreciated.

To find out more about what it was like to work here download my FREE PDF: LOAD DIJ DIJ -
5 years of writing, 253 pages & 180,921 words (1987 to 1990 would be the key chapters to read)
GD:
DB:

Music: Main title theme from 'Daley Thompson's Olympic Challenge' on the Commodore 64 by Jonathan Dunn (1988).

A guide to who's who in the vintage photos:
0:00 - Outside
0:42 - Jon O'Brien (Jobbee)
0:46 - Lee Cowley (standing with back to camera), Bill Harbison (standing with back to camera), Martin MacDonald (pointing)
0:50 - Ivan Horn
0:55 - Rocky Ming & Bill Harbison
1:00 - James Higgins
1:10 - Ivan Horn, Andrew Deakin, Zach Townsend
1:16 - Steve 'Jolly' Thompson
1:20 - Ivan Horn, Andrew Deakin (posing for filming, this wasn't their desk)
1:24 - David Blake (leaning against wall), members of BBC TV film crew. Colin Porch very right sitting at his desk.
1:32 - Steve Lavache (Tech guy)
1:38 - Gary Bracey
1:42 - James Higgins (back), Andrew Deakin (in front)
2:19 - Dawn Drake (running into a room), Paul Hughes (trying to stop her), Gary Bracey, James Higgins
2:24 - Mike Lamb, Dawn Drake
2:28 - Paul Owens (back) & Mark R. Jones (Jnr)'s (front) desk
2:30 - Mark R. Jones (Jnr), Simon Butler (sitting at Mark's desk)
2:38 - Allan Shortt & John Palmer's desk
2:44 - Rick Palmer, John Meegan, Jon Dunn, Andrew Sleigh - kitchen entrance is in background
3:27 - David Ward & Tracey Crooks at Ocean's reception desk
3:35 - Carl Pugh receives a 'birthday greeting' while staff look on
3:37 - Gary Biasilo, Paul Hughes, Jenny Beattie, Jane Lowe, Hilary Greenwood, Christmas party 1987
3:40 - David Ward