A legendary Camden comic shop has been saved weeks after it was forced to close.
Mega City Comics shut up shop at the end of January when owner Martin Kravetz retired without a suitable replacement found.
The retailer will now reopen with cult entertainment chain Forbidden Planet taking the reigns.
Mega City Comics, in Inverness Street in Camden, became one of the oldest comic book stores in the UK after opening in 1981 when Kravetz was still at university.
At the end of November 2024, the shop announced a massive final clearance sale and a closing date in January when a new owner could not be found.
However Forbidden Planet has now said it is ‘extremely excited’ to be taking over the store.
The chain, which runs ten science fiction and fantasy stores in the UK, said: ‘We’re very proud to be securing the future of this vital Camden institution – and continuing Mega City Comics’ singular relationship with its valued long-term customers in this unique London borough, one of the coolest neighbourhoods in the world.
‘Camden Town is the focal point of the UK music industry, the cradle of Britpop and the epicentre of Japanese anime culture in London.’
Forbidden Planet promised the shop would reopen with a ‘bang’ after a few weeks of behind-the-scenes renovation works.
Previous owner Martin said this handover had come after four months of negotations.
He said: ‘I am delighted to have secured the future of the shop, and hand over the legacy to more than capable hands. It was passed on after careful negotiation, with me selecting FP from a long list of interested parties.’
The store’s two employees, Vik and Jack, have also had their jobs saved by the new takeover, Forbidden Planet confirmed.
Mega Comics started out as a mail order firm in 1981 before moving to a physical shop in Inverness Street in 1987.
In 2010, the shop was highly commended for the King Of Camden honour for excellence in local retailing.
Forbidden Planet’s chief operating officer, Andrew Sumner, said buying the store had been a dream after using the shop for decades: ‘I’ve been a massive fan of Mega City Comics ever since I was publishing magazines out of Camden’s Greater London House in the 1990s.
‘I was a regular three-times-a-week customer of Martin’s and purchased hundreds of the decade’s greatest comic-books from him.
‘I also spent many happy hours chatting with Martin’s lovely dad. The minute I heard Mega City might be closing, I knew we had to keep this exceptional store alive!’
Forbidden Planet’s owners, Vivian Cheung & Nick Landau, added: ‘In this time of unprecedented volatility in the direct comics market, we are both genuinely pleased to have some positive industry news to share.
‘We’re very excited to bring Mega City Comics, our favourite landmark of supremely cool Camden Town, into the Forbidden Planet family, and it is our great honour to be continuing and respecting Martin’s personalised and highly impressive legacy.’