In scenes that echoed those of the past few years, plenty of people lined up in Newcastle city centre on Saturday morning for the return of an ever growing national event.
Grainger Street was the place to be for Free Comic Book Day 2019, with stores opening before 9am as fans flocked to pick up their freebies, some happy to wait for a good few hours, despite the less than warm temperatures that greeted Tyneside for the start of Bank Holiday weekend.
There was an extra incentive for people to line up at Newcastle's Travelling Man store on Saturday.
On Friday night, the popular shop, which also has branches in Leeds, York and Manchester, teased a very special giveaway that would be taking place.
The team behind Thought Bubble Comic Con, a huge event taking place in Harrogate in November, had offered a free ticket to a lucky shopper in each of Travelling Man's stores.
To get their prize, customers have to keep an eye out for the one golden ticket that will be hidden in each branch.
A few doors along at Forbidden Planet, there was also plenty of takers for some Free Comic Book Day action as the shop gave away free grab bags that gave a taste of the massive variety of comics out there - including Stranger Things, The Avengers, Spider Man and RoboTech.
And the 2019 festivities will go well onto the afternoon at Forbidden Planet as they host a special guest appearance from Dan Mcdaid who will be signing copies of Firefly and The Fearsome Doctor Fang from 1-2pm.
Dan is a comics writer and artist living in the wilds of Scotland. He is best known for his work on the Doctor Who comic strip in DWM, but has also worked for DC Comics, Image, IDW, Oni Press and Blank Slate Books.
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