Enriching Communities C.I.C

29/04/2026

New Dance theme means posing in our new costumes 🤪🤪 Had a great afternoon at Maple Mews Alfreton

23/04/2026

We would just like to thank the local community once again for coming to support our free event last Saturday in honour of Albert Hand , owner of Heanor Record centre and the president of the Elvis Presley fan club of Great Britain and European Elvis conventions, on the anniversary of his passing. The event was aimed at hearing people’s stories of Albert and Heanor Records in order to gather Oral History for the project. We also wanted to bring the community together to enjoy stories, music and some fantastic memorabilia and maybe even bring their own?! Well that’s exactly what we did! We were overwhelmed by the success of the afternoon. We didn’t really know what to expect but we certainly didn’t expect the response we got! People queuing at the door, people sharing stories, mixing, chatting about the memorabilia on display. Asking questions to Albert’s daughter Carole. And of course the afternoon was topped off with both a 1950s Elvis rock n roll set and of course a 1970s vegas set from Albert’s Grandson and Director of the organisation Andy Quinn.
Special thanks to our team for their hard work. Emma Quinn, Becky Ashley, Zita Keats, Grace Quinn and Teresa Quinn. Not forgetting of course Carole and Patrick Quinn for setting up the room and engaging with the community to talk about Albert’s life. Thank you also to Glynn Wilton of the amber valley CVS for all of their unwavering support over this project and helping us through every step of the journey. Thank you the Mayor of Heanor and Loscoe Alan Abernathy for attending and supporting the event. Thank you to the heritage lottery for making this project possible, and finally thank you to you, the community for engaging in this fantastic project. After all, it is for you, the people, and for the knowledge of our future generations and the fantastic heritage we have right here in Heanor!

10/04/2026

Today we visited the Derbyshire Record Office in Matlock to show some of our memorabilia and get advice on safe ways to archive and store our valuable memories of Albert Hand. Thanks to the Heritage Lottery Fund for such valuable funding for this project!

27/02/2026

Andy has made a great start interviewing some of the really important people
Involved in Albert Hands life this last two weeks. Albert’s son John, Dave Kaye (or Dave Knowles) from the Dykons, and of course Great Aunty Joan - Albert’s sister in law and vice president of the Elvis Presley fan club of Great Britain! Some really interesting stories so far!

05/02/2026

This week staff had their oral History training with Colin Hyde from Leicester University a the Oral History Society. Andy has already been out and about for a practice with two very important people. Dave Kaye from Dave and the Dykons, and Albert’s son John Hand! Thank you for making this Happen Heritage Lottery Fund

23/01/2026

We made the news today with our project!

16/01/2026

For those of you asking if you can listen again to the interview with Dave Kaye, Malc Froggatt, and Andy Quinn from the last night's Zone, here it is:

https://www.mixcloud.com/trevormiddleton/my-grandad-knew-elvis-15-01-2026/

Remember, if you have any memories of Andy's grandad, Albert Hand, his record store in Heanor, or of being a part of the Elvis Presley UK Fan Club while Albert ran it (until 1967), the email address for your reminiscences is:

[email protected]

You can also contact Andy through Facebook:
Andy Quinn - Elvis in Concert

10/01/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1HVrL8Xy5F/?mibextid=wwXIfr

🎸 WE’RE ALL SHOOK UP! 🎸
£175,000 heritage grant awarded to tell the story of a Heanor man who helped build Elvis fan culture

A remarkable piece of local history is back in the spotlight after a major heritage grant was awarded to uncover and share the story of a Heanor man whose passion for music reached fans around the world.

Andy Quinn has secured £175,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to research and tell the story of his grandfather, Albert Hand.

Back in the 1960s, Albert ran a record shop on Derby Road in Heanor. From there, he launched the Elvis Presley Fan Club – at a time when getting news about international music stars wasn’t easy.

That fan club went on to connect thousands of fans with Elvis Presley, helping to put Heanor firmly on the map in global music history.

📜 The new funding will support research into Albert’s life and work, preserving magazines, photographs and stories, and making them accessible to the public – creating a lasting legacy for a local man whose influence travelled far beyond Derbyshire.

Local historians say the story has been known in the area for years, but this project will finally allow it to be told on a much bigger scale.

💬 Over to you…
Did you or someone in your family visit the Derby Road record shop?
Do you remember the fan club, the magazines, or the excitement around Elvis at the time?
Or are you just surprised that such a global story has roots right here?

👇 Share your memories, thoughts or photos in the comments – we’d love to hear them.

08/01/2026

08/01/2026

WE’RE ALL SHOOK UP!
We are pleased to send our congratulations to Andy Quinn on his gaining a £175,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to finance a project to research and tell the story of his grandfather, Albert Hand.
In the 1960s Albert was responsible for putting Heanor well and truly on the map when he started the Elvis Presley Fan Club from his record shop on Derby Road.
We wish Andy every good fortune as he takes the project forward and welcome the lasting legacy to his grandfather that it will deliver. In our own small way, we’ve tried to keep the memory alive through our newsletters, but this is on another scale!
When we celebrated our 50th year of newsletters in 2020, we did so by telling Albert’s story. That newsletter is available to download for free from our website by following this link: https://www.heanorhistory.org.uk/50-years-of-newsletters/

06/01/2026

We’ve had some extremely exciting news at Enriching Communities recently!…. But we are waiting until the 8th January before we announce it!! 🤔 Stay tuned for more! 🎉