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Kickstart Events and Activities, News

Just One More Sleep – The BBQ Meet is Tomorrow!

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We are nearly there, doors open tomorrow (Saturday 18th July 2026) at 9am.

A Reminder About Ticketing

All attendees must have their own ticket, regardless of age, no exceptions. Although your ticket might include a table that is big enough for two people, any additional guests coming with you to share the table will need their own non-table ticket per person. If attendees do arrive without their own ticket, if we have space they will be asked to pay for a non-table ticket. Please buy tickets in advance to avoid awkward situations on the day. Thanks. The couple of non-table spaces we have left will remain on sale until 5pm today. Then we need to close it off to get ready for tomorrow.

Please Read Your Email

All ticket holders have received the “Big Pre-Meet Email” Please make sure you read this as it includes a lot of important information to make sure you have the best day possible. Top of the list is an update on the parking situation for tomorrow in light of the on-going roadworks that have closed off our usual free car park directly opposite the hall.

Traders

Retro Lemon: Retro Lemon sells a wide range of Amiga and other 8 & 16-bit system expansions, upgrades and accessories. They are exclusive UK distributor for Lotharek.pl. Stop by their table in the Runnymede Room, or get in touch ahead of the meet if there’s anything specific you would like them to have in stock on the day.

Digital Retro Bay: Digital Retro Bay sells high quality retro computing items for the Amiga such as the extremely popular GoDrive floppy drive emulator and switcher, keyboard membranes, accelerators, USB controller adapters, custom joypads and 3D printed add-ons. They will be in the Runnymede Room. Get in touch with them ahead of the meet if there’s anything specific you would like them to have in stock on the day

Amiga Addict: The team from Amiga Addict will be joining us and will have issues of Amiga Addict, Pixel Addict and their special editions, as well as merch available for sale. Stop by their table in the Runnymede Room and say Hi.

Monster Joysticks: Our friends at Monster Joysticks will be joining us. Expect to see a wide range of their fantastic joysticks on display, available in a variety of formats and for a very wide array of systems (including a multi-button stick for the CD32, a huge upgrade over the original joypad it shipped with).

Come Hungry

Kickstart meets are always fully catered, so you don’t have to worry about having to find lunch, a drink or a snack. It ensures you can make the very most of the day. We will supply the following on Saturday:

  • Tea, Coffee, Milk, Sugar, Artificial Sweetener (there’s a hot water urn in the kitchen for instant boiling water for self-service drinks all day)
  • Disposable Coffee Cups
  • Bottled Water
  • Canned Soft Drinks
  • Assorted Biscuits
  • Assorted Crisps
  • Assorted Chocolate Bars
  • BBQ Lunch (Burgers, Chicken, Pork & Cumberland Sausages)
  • Kickstart Cake for Dessert

We Have Merch!

I’m really excited to announce we will have a selection of Kickstart merch available, the essential accessories for any Amiga enthusiast:

  • Mugs
  • Mouse Mats
  • Keyrings
  • Stickers

The Kickstart Merch Table will be set up near the main entrance. Everything is priced as low as possible and 100% of all funds go back into Kickstart to fund future events. We can take cash and cards.

Any Questions or Problems

If you have any questions, please ping us using the contact form above, or message us on our WhatsApp group or Facebook Group.

Kickstart Events and Activities, News

No Tables Left for Kickstart 7, But Non-Table Places Available

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It’s just three weeks until we all return (and some join us for the first time) to Ottershaw Village Hall in leafy Ottershaw, Surrey for another Kickstart Amiga Group meet. Kickstart 7 is, as the number suggests, our seventh all day meet since we restarted in-person meetings in 2023 – concludes our celebration of 40 years of the Amiga in 2025. Everything is in place for a fantastic day of good fun, good friends and a whole day of Amiga fun.

At the time of writing, we have sold out of tables, but a small number of non-table tickets are still available if you want to join us.

https://kickstartamigagroup.sumupstore.com/product/no-table-ticket-kickstart-amiga-group-september-2025-meet

Kickstart Events and Activities, News

Looking Back at Kickstart 5

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As we are getting ready for Kickstart 6, our summer BBQ, it’s about time we did a little recap of our last meet, which took place back during a surprisingly nice sunday in early February 2025. You may have already read the great article in Amiga Addict covering this meet, but here’s an extra look at what went on. A big thank you to Mark White, who’s excellent photography is being used here. You can see all of Mark’s photos from the meet over on our Facebook group.

As always, our home venue of Ottershaw Village Hall was absolutely banged out for our first meet of the year.

Continue reading Looking Back at Kickstart 5 →
Kickstart Events and Activities, News

Amiga Addict at Kickstart 5 this Sunday

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Ian Griffiths, editor of Amiga Addict will be joining us at Kickstart 5 on Sunday.

The essential read for all Amiga owners and fans, Amiga Addict is a fantastic magazine and a great supporter of the user group community. Ian will be bringing a range of back issues and Amiga Addict merch with him, but again, do get in touch with him ahead of the meet if there’s anything in particular you are after.

https://www.amiga-addict.com

Kickstart Events and Activities, News

Retro Lemon at Kickstart 5 this Sunday

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Jakub Kosiec from Retro Lemon will be joining us once again at Kickstart 5 this Sunday.

Retro Lemon sells a wide range of upgrades and accessories for the Amiga, as well as other systems such as the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, various Atari systems and more. If there are products you are interested in, it’s worth contacting Jakub ahead of the meet.

https://retrolemon.co.uk

Kickstart Events and Activities

One Month Until Our Kickstart 2 Meet

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Time has flown by and as I write this, we are just a month away from Kickstart 2, the next Kickstart Amiga Group meet. There are some new announcements below about the February meet around our special guests. I will be emailing out and posting the final update with all the logistics info two weeks before the meet.

The big thing to say is that we have just two table spaces left for Kickstart 2 in February, so if you are not already in, time has almost run out!

Kickstart 2 – Our Next Meet – February 2024

Special Guests

David Pleasance

David Pleasance, Commodore’s former UK MD, will be joining us at the February meet. We’ll be having a chat with David on the stage after lunch and he will have his latest book available for sale and signing, as well as his previous books. David will also be bringing a range of Commodore merchandise for sale as well.

Jakub Kosiec from Retro Lemon

Also joining us will be Jakub Kosiec, who sells a wide range of Amiga and other system upgrades via his company Retro Lemon. Jakub will be bringing a range of Amiga add-ons for sale, along with some of his Medusa retro scandoubler boxes and Hydra SCART switches. However, if there’s anything in particular you want from his range for your Amiga, Atari, Sinclair or Commodore machine and you want to save some postage, please drop Jakub a line at info@retrolemon.co.uk and he’ll bring it with him on the day.

Continue reading One Month Until Our Kickstart 2 Meet →
Kickstart Events and Activities, News

2024 Barbecue Meet Confirmed for Saturday June 22nd 2024

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One of the things we really wanted to get in the diary for 2024 was a barbecue. The annual barbecue was a mainstay of the Kickstart Amiga Group annual diary, providing a great social environment as well as the fun of a regular meet.

We are pleased to confirm that we have booked Saturday 22nd June 2024 for the Barbecue meet. Ticket price includes the barbecue and tickets are on sale now, along with a few remaining tickets for our February 2024 meet:

Key Information

  • When: Saturday 22nd June 2024
  • Where: Ottershaw Village Hall, Brox Road,
    Ottershaw, Surrey, KT16 0HG
  • Time: 9am-9pm
  • Cost: £14-16 per person
    (price includes BBQ lunch, snacks and soft drinks throughout the day)
  • Ticket Link: https://kickstartamigagroup.sumupstore.com/
Continue reading 2024 Barbecue Meet Confirmed for Saturday June 22nd 2024 →
Kickstart Events and Activities, News

Kickstart 2 Confirmed for Sunday 18th February 2024 – Tickets On Sale Now!

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Hot on the heels of the success of our first meet, we are pleased to announce the date and details for our second meetup. Following a survey of members coming to our first event, we have confirmed Sunday 18th February 2024 for the meet. Tickets are on sale now, so please be quick as we did sell out of table spaces for our first meet.

Key Information

  • When: Sunday 18th February 2024
  • Where: Ottershaw Village Hall, Brox Road,
    Ottershaw, Surrey, KT16 0HG
  • Time: 9am-9pm
  • Cost: £14-16 per person
    (price includes lunch, snacks and soft drinks throughout the day)
  • Ticket Link: https://kickstartamigagroup.sumupstore.com/

For our second meet, we are once again holding it where it all began – Ottershaw Village Hall. This is where the Kickstart Amiga Group originally held its monthly meetings back in the 1990s and early 2000s, as well as the first three Kickstart Amiga Shows. Back then, it was called Brook Hall. Not only has the name changed, but the venue has had a substantial makeover and is a wonderful place to hold our meets. You can see some pics from our October meet here, as well as on our Facebook Group.

Kickstart is a non-profit event. The price we are charging is purely to cover the cost of renting the hall for the day and for the cost of the refreshments. If by some miracle, we have money left over, 100% of it will be put towards the cost of booking the hall for the next meet.

Continue reading Kickstart 2 Confirmed for Sunday 18th February 2024 – Tickets On Sale Now! →
News

A Great Day at Zzap Live!

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Firstly, a big thank you to everyone who stopped by the Kickstart stand at Zzap Live this past weekend. It was great to see so many people and to talk about our plans for the group. We even met a few Kickstart Originals (members from before hour hiatus) which was wonderful.

We had a double table in the Amiga room at Zzap, where we originally had five machines on display for people to use as part of our promotional efforts, but soon we were down to four after a customised A1200 we had on show decided to malfunction. We think its a Chip RAM issue, so should be easy enough to fix.

For the day, the remaining four machines were an example of member-owned computers, either modified and updated for 2023, or brand new hardware.

Continue reading A Great Day at Zzap Live! →