Mike McVey on 'Eavy Metal

I popped up north to see Mike McVey! We'd been wanting to film this for a little while now, so it was really great to be able to go visit him and hear him talk about his career through GW and 'Eavy Metal, and have a look at some of the guidebooks he produced back then.
These videos were made in my spare time, and if you wish to pop a donation my way to help support me it'd be greatly appreciated:
Paypal: PayPal.Me/Filmdeg

[@neanderthal-]

These videos are so important, for current and future fans of everything Warhammer.

[@onomatopoeia7505]

Why?

[@neanderthal-]

@@onomatopoeia7505to know how it all started, someday these guys aren’t around to be able to tell there story.

[@Nobleshield]

Also to see how much better things were back in the old days compared to the slop GW puts out now

[@divafever9754]

Whites (and so wargamers) are being erased. No one will interested in toy soldiers in 100-yrs.

[@shaftlamer]

Weird way of saying history is important 😂😂

[@1MHCS]

Amazing interview. Loved hearing about his commando like team that worked on the painting and modeling guides. Crazy they did the first one in 3 months. And thanks for helping to make Privateer Press, that is where I started my career in the game industry.

[@colinwiseman]

My favourite painter of all time! Thank you for this video. ❤❤ (On a side note: he still looks like Matthew Broderick imho 😀😀)

[@MasterShake9000]

Not GW related but would love an interview with him focused on his design of the Formula P3 Paints range for Privateer Press

[@kekela999]

Horus vs the Emperor, this man is a legend for that alone

[@Birkenhead.Raver_YNWA]

Ive just seen that in the Warhammer world tour. It brought back many happy memorys from childhood 😄

[@CaptainNow2]

This guy was a god to me back in the early 90s. I still remember meeting him in 91 (I had gotten to the grand finals of Golden Demon, I still have my little badge!! Sadly I didn't win)...he was very patient with me, very shy. I asked him why he never smiled in his pictures and he said 'I don't like cameras'. He showed me what type of brushes he used so I could improve (Windsor and Newton Series 7). I'll never forget that day, he was sat next to Tim Prow and a few others. I got to chat to Jes Goodwin that day too. I got too close to an original painting because I was studying the brush-stroke only to have Jarvis Johnson bollock me haha, sorry Jarvis if you're reading this. I turn 50 next week and I still read White Dwarf from this era, it's still a part of my life. Thank you for this video, it's an absolute joy to watch

[@MrSmokincodz]

Great Story, man. Cheers budd

[@B1llzy1010]

Same as that mate 👍

[@vivalaliberty]

I am 49. I have collected since 1985. Got most of all the dwarf stuff. This hobby is great. I am now introducing my two kids to Space marines and Tyranids. 😂

[@BlastastiC]

The man, the myth, the legend.

[@boboayame2065]

Mike's HeroQuest miniatures which adorned the sides of the box were my introduction to painted miniatures and remain for me the standard of perfection by which all other paint jobs are judged

[@marcmarti5273]

Amen!

[@paulfarr7]

It's such a shame that the company's become a soulless husk of what it used to be.

[@shaftlamer]

That's what being owned by Blackrock and DEI does.

[@Rafa_el_Vikingo]

LEGEND. Mike´s work is the reason why I started painting warhammer miniatures in 1992.

[@gavconway8737]

This is the video i've been waiting for. From my perspective as a 13 yr old on the late 80's Mike McVey was Games Workshop. Loved Mike McVeys work in those early WD issues. He set the tone for my own painting and his style still influences me to this day. Cant seem to shake those stripes and checks.

[@mikefoster6018]

I started on my GW journey right at the start of 1987. Hearing McVey and others talk is like rediscovering a beloved book from my childhood.

[@samconroy]

This man has probably inspired more people to get into the hobby than anyone else. Absolute lgend!

[@colbillington]

Mr Eavy Metal himself 👍

[@dakkawaaagh13]

mike was hugely influential in my hobby journey, kindly gave me and my friend copies of both of his books around 1996 via his sister who was our pottery teacher at the time. the hours I spent digesting every page of those books still resonate with me today, also learning the names of different horse markings has never let me down 😅

[@HeadCannonPrime]

The thing that I keep hearing from all these interviews is that after the move that sold to investors the company lost so much of its soul.

[@theylivewesleep.5139]

It’s the way of things. Compete or die, but to compete is to die.

[@PNNYRFACE]

Nestle Crunch Time

[@EwbanksAuctions]

Absolutely class guests on this channel!

[@Filmdegminiatures]

Yea, they’re all great people. Still got some new names appearing on the channel to come!

[@michaelhammond1389]

Mike was my childhood hero, I used to spend hours just going through white dwarf looking at the models he painted, and I still remember when the Warhammer quest diorama was 1st shown, and it was surreal seeing it in the flesh last year when I went to Warhammer world for the 1st time

[@adamherring9803]

Right at the end there - "I was always more of a fantasy guy... from reading Lord of the Rings when I was 15..." - and that's my childhood validated in one moment :)

[@botteu]

If ever I had a personal hero, Mike is that hero ❤ Without the absolute fountain of inspiration that was his work, I don’t think I would have pushed myself to be a better painter (and eventually reaching the goal of winning a Golden Demon). Thank you Mike 🙏

[@sj_harris]

I was always especially excited to see any and all of Mike’s painted miniatures in WD, he had (and presumably still has) a fabulous aesthetic. For me, the ‘87-90 were the GW years I loved the most, deeply influential. Fun fact: I painted so many miniatures as a teenager, it buggered my eyesight! How anyone could paint figures full-time I can’t imagine! Good on the pro’s

[@Circles_End]

Mike's dark reapers for 3.rd edition are the best incarnation of the unit in any edition. I will die on this hill.

[@ClassicBikeMagazine]

‘Answerable to nobody’ is a phrase that really resonates. When it’s proven time and again that creatives are at their best when given the time and space to be creative (space mainly - tight timeframes aren’t always a bad thing, as Mike articulates), why do companies consistently find it difficult to do that?

[@njkf]

12:40 I used to work with Jonas Færing at The Army Painter. He always described his time at 'Eavy Metal as a sort of temporary vacancy or part time project, which makes sense now that Mike describes it as a project. We would say to Jonas, "Oh, you used to be an 'Eavy Metal painter!" and he would downplay it and say something like "yeah, but only for a short period". I think he was quite young when he first started at GW. As an aside, Jonas is no longer directly affiliated with The Army Painter (yes, he was one of the founders of the company) - he sold out his shares two years ago and probably doesn't have to work another day in his life if he so wishes :)

[@dylan9025]

Not only are these incredible fun to watch, you are doing some of the most important archival work regarding early Games Workship. Thank you for all your hard work 🙏🙏🙏

[@eomat]

I love that Warhammer Quest diorama. Spent ages looking at it in White Dwarf. Mike really is amazing

[@ilmozzo]

I started my GW hobby long ago, falling in love with his work!

[@raxacor]

Mike was my absolute idol when I started the hobby around 88, his work inspired me so much as I tried and tried to get to grip’s with painting miniatures with next to no help or tuition bar a few pamphlets and the odd White Dwarf ….it took me a few years of perseverance and frustration to get to an ok standard, something you can learn on KZbin in a matter of weeks now a days…..then jumping ahead to 1995 I entered Golden Demon for the first time and went home with the Gold for best Warhammer Command Group, it was like a dream, I didn’t think it possible for an average hobbyist like me to come close! ….Part of the prize was a visit to The Nottingham studio where some of my other work was closely inspected by Mike and to have him give such positive feedback was quite overwhelming for my younger starstruck self, if ever there was a case of imposter syndrome it was me that day mingling with some of the greatest creators in GW history😊 The video was very interesting, especially the part where Mike details his career path…..I had no idea he was involved with so many other well known games and companies when he moved on from GW.

[@cameronjames3499]

Congrats, awesome story!! By chance was that command group a bunch of mounted wights with a giant "Slaves of Krell" banner? You've definitely carved out your own tiny nostalgic part of hobby painting history.

[@GEV646]

When I got my first GW miniatures in around 1995, I remember looking at GW catalogues with their colour plates-- much of which were Mike's work--, and seeing the highlighting and shading on the miniatures and thinking that there was no way I could ever do that... and then I tried using some of the washes in the basic GW set and quickly came to understand that there was more to painting than just colouring in the lines. I don't paint GW stuff much anymore but it is a hobby I still actively practice almost thirty years later and Mike McVey's a big part of the reason why. His Knight Panther model (which was based on a John Blanche art piece I think) is still one of the finest models that I have ever seen.

[@jamesyates7634]

Mike, please start your own KZbin channel with how to's etc! Oldhammer is extremely popular now and your style of painting didn't just influence a generation, you basically (and actually) wrote the book. Many of us now want to revisit those colour schemes. You only need to browse KZbin to see how popular Oldhammer is now.

[@DreadPaints]

Brilliant stuff guys, could listen to tales of oldhammer for hours! Thanks 🙏

[@crimsonorc]

New Eldar for 40k Mike points out. Pretty sure that they are same models still being sold today!

[@SebastienlovesCookieswirlc]

Are those John Blanche originals on the wall? Cool! A shame it's not the Knight Panther Mike made an incredible converted miniature for.

[@Filmdegminiatures]

They are! Sadly I was short on time so couldn’t film any nice b-roll. John Blanche has the original Knights Panther on his lounge wall (there’s some pics on my instagram if you’re interested).

[@AlfonsoTheTraitor]

First off thank you for making these interviews and thank you for making the trip up north to interview Mike McVey . Mike actually gave me a job at Privateer Press to be a Professional Terrain Builder. That was my dream job for a few years .

[@mattmorris857]

Still one of my favourite painters. Such a humble and lovely man. I have Mike's painting guides. They are an absolute treasure.

[@LincolnTank-StillOnTheSprue]

Mike's 'Eavy Metal was cornerstone of my love of GW Hobby. I think everyone wanted to have his skills with paint

[@ClassicBikeMagazine]

Five minis per day!! 😅🤪

[@pauls3585]

Mike is a true legend of the hobby.

[@davidclemmett4372]

Fuzzy felters

[@leonatus221]

No Conversions no sculpters today anymore😢😢😢

[@JayIsOutdoorsy]

I've been a big fan of Mike's work since 87. I applied to a similar WD advert and sent painted samples (from USA, NY state) to Nottingham; received a letter back April 28 1988 from Brian Ansell saying thanks for your interest but we are looking for people from the Nottingham area only.

[@Bleentron]

Have only recently discovered the '94 modelling guide existed, (and apparently I'm not the only one), it's a shame it's the least well known of the old guide books because it's an absolute treasure trove of collected information, particularly for dealing with those metal/mixed metal and plastic miniatures and doing interesting things with them, really laying out the scope of what's possible with conversions from small ones to huge.

[@SentientPickle]

Is Mike the reason why some of those Warjacks from Warmachine had the smooth gently curving lines to them? Just dawned on me they kind of share some of the design aesthetics from those old Eldar sculpts. Love those designs

[@timelwess7787]

Mikes hero quest mage, and wood Elf Army, were two of the three catalysts for me getting into the hobby that has pretty much kept my busy and poor since 1992.

[@jamesmaybrick2001]

You and me both. The hero riding the eagle is burned into my brain from then till now, along with that incredible wardancer that was twirling the thing (i cant find any images of that online now, and my White Dwarf with the article has long since dissapeard into the realm of chaos).

[@mcyolicjones9081]

McVey defined 'Eavy metal to the point of almost single-handedly drawing me into the hobby. Next level dude here.

[@timwegner5176]

Thank you for producing this video. You are doing good work here! To Mike: i am ever grateful for your gift of talent to the rest of us. You inspired at least 2 generations of hobbyists to aspire to yur talents. And, we are forever in your debt for it. Thank you.

[@jeffholt9437]

Listen kids - this man was a god (well, boy-god to be more accurate!) back in the day.....😊

[@Big_Blue_Monkey]

Mike's Green Knight is still one of my favourite painted miniatures

[@charmedimsure8852]

You know, for the last 25 years I had no idea Mike had a Yorkshire accent.... Incredible

[@dicnar]

The only problem those interviews are so short 😅 Thanks man for those little gems and insides of what was happening in GW at their best!

[@jamescostello2558]

I remember the Green knight he painted and reading about int in WD was wow at the time

[@manofaction1807]

I still have all my books... Good to see you again, Mike. Stay Cool!

[@clementtison9120]

Mike est une véritable légende...mon premier contact avec le hobby en 1993 s'est fait avec ses oeuvres ! Ses peintures sont éternelles ! merci Mike !!!

[@benbridges9486]

Great to see the great Mike McVey in an interview. His diaroma's were instrumental in setting the scenes that inspired me

[@polo7155]

Great video! I remember ordering miniatures in the early '80's (when it was still called Citadel Miniatures and not GW) from Montreal, Canada and getting all the newest info on the new minis (in these days I was into D & D and making dioramas) and Citadel's orks, Goblins, wizards, etc. and all were so well casted compared to most other brands...I received the pages of the catalogs with "thank you"notes from the "trolls" at the shipping dept. Then I got hooked on 40K in the 90's and got all my minis from the "Dungeon" stores in my area and finaly my biggest love "Necromunda" which I still play today (at 68) though I like the old '95 version better and I'm glad I kept everything from the old days!

[@alexthompson3447]

Blown away by how quickly the old guides were put together! They really were working at a pace. 😮

[@TheBroz]

Love Mike, had the pleasure of meeting him at a variety of Games Day and Golden Demon events during the 90s. Such a lovely down to earth guy who was happy to talk technique and share his gift. My favourite of his work will always be his Space Hulk diorama. It’s my favourite GW game and it’s such an atmospheric piece.

[@JonMidtan]

More great content. Thanks

[@tomrichardson7792]

I know its a little off topic but a video about his work at wizards would be really cool as well.

[@neanderthal-]

My first discovery of Warhammer Fantasy Battle was reading White Dwarf and Mike McVey's Wood Elf army was featured, and a couple of issues later there was a WFB 3rd edition battle report, with Mike McVeys Wood elf and Wayne Englands Dwarfs vs Alan and Michael Perry's Empire army. I was transfixed from there on, and soon after that WFB 4th edition box set (1992) arrived, and the rest is history. Think I stopped playing in 2002 when Skaven armybook arrived (6th edition, author Alessio Cavatore), the power creep was just too much and I lost interest in playing.

[@johnmakin-shaw3516]

If Alex drawers are good enough for the king of Eavy Metal then they’re good enough for me! Mike defines my views of GW - I grew up with his work on Heroquest, the Horus diorama, eavy metal tutorials in White Dwarf. Absolute legend and by all accounts a thoroughly nice chap.

[@jorgemontero6384]

Some of those guidebooks is how I learned how to paint reasonably well!

[@pandaemoniumminiatures]

Excellent interview! It's definitely fair to say I drew huge inspiration for my last couple of dioramas from Mike's fantastic scenes I pored over in White Dwarf. ❤

[@themott6184]

That original swooping hawk exarch was the first miniature I ever bought, using my paper-round money - £6 or 7 quid if I remember correctly. Such a stunning miniature

[@fredrik241]

Wooow thank you Mike for all the inspiring painting and miniatures I saw in White Dwarf as a young guy getting drawn into the worlds of Warhammer. I grew up in Sweden and religiously bought WD's and the miniature and painting sections were partly the reason why. I loved poring over those Eavy Metal pages and ads, seeing the latest sharpest styles and the constantly changing and improving qualities. I remember being amused by some of the words and phrases that I only half understood as a swedish young teenager, like "subtle highlights". What the heck does "subtle" mean!? :D I'm also now getting back into painting a bit its just a great relaxing and rewarding creative outlet. Sounds like you worked super hard in those years at GW that's just crazy three minis painted a day! No wonder you got great! I don't use Instagram would you consider making some painting youtube videos? Lots of love and thank you again for all that you've contributed to so many people growing up with GW !

[@antoinea3660]

Thank you once again for those living legends interviews. 🤩

[@DS_painting]

Great interview! Mike McVey is a huge inspiration for so many in the hobby. Awesome to hear his story

[@MiniatureRealms]

This was fantastic. Mike’s Wood Elf amry article was probably the first army I fell in love with from a painting perspective, always looked for his articles first.

[@grahamroden8897]

Mike was the biggest influence on my painting. I am slowly building a Sisters army in his style.

[@jeffreyrex8232]

Nostalgia intensifies 🫡

[@matthewrbetts]

What a lovely interview. Thanks for sharing it. It's fascinating to hear how painting styles emerge and evolve in relation to the technology used in photographing it, distributing it, and so on.

[@danielcannon9893]

The Eldar scuplts are gorgeous, always loved them.

[@Kidfry]

Really good to see Mike again. Probably my first miniature painting "hero".

[@jackadams8745]

That's a pretty up-to-date spinosaurus ngl

[@NickD2112]

Thank you, this was great I never knew what he did after GW.

[@adamdavies1872]

Personification of Games Workshop painted miniatures for me. Lichemaster Kemmler vs the wood elves diorama being a favourite. To me being part of early privateer press gave them legitimacy as a games company and I played warmachine and hordes for over 15 years with many fond memories. I am lucky to own miniatures painted by both Mike and Ali and they are some of my most prized gaming possessions.

[@stevenread1676]

That red painting guide (1993) was my personal bible. Remember folks no google, no internet, the only refernce I had to learn was White Dwarf (my first was 142!) every month and this red guide. ordering figures was harder too- mail order or by a shop that sold GW figures- not many stores about my area back then even -heard- of GW or Citadel figures. However it seemed to me that the soul of these games was verybright and vibrant. Not so much now, really, but every now and then the old me notices a new figure and wishes my hands weren't so arthritic so I could paint it up! great stuff, ty for this video!

[@Mugthraka]

The GOAT.

[@GoatTheGoat]

What's up?

[@kevinphillips4743]

The Scarborough printer was called Pindar Press, great operation sadly no longer with us. A friend of my mums worked there in the early 90s and used to give us their books. I think we got the Warhammer 40k Compendium and the Battle Manual and the Warhammer Bestiary. Probably worth a few pence now.

[@chriswolfe403]

Mike McVey was my first painting inspiration and one of three names I first learned at GW (along with Jes Goodwin and Andy Chambers).

[@greybeardgamer2067]

In 1993, I paid Mike 5 quid for the paintbrush he was using. I'm an American and my dream at that time was to do an interview with GW staff for a TV show. He thought I was nutters. Which is why to this day I can't throw out a paintbrush. (Don't know which one it is, you see...)

[@ianalexander7082]

I loved that modelling guide! I finally went to Warhammer World this year and was totally star struck by seeing the Horus versus the Emperor diorama.

[@Pellejones]

This is amazing! But, I have a feeling you added the audio track from the camera, and not from what ever you connected his microphone to. His voice is extremely far away and low quality but yours is crisp and full (behind the camera). If you managed to capture audio with the mic on Mike, please re upload with that sound

[@matjov]

Back when GW was a fun, decent, generous and chill Company, unlike the greedy, corporate shite they are today.

[@troy6882]

Cut and polish or clean with polish tools remember those big old pins on heavy weapons backpacks unfortunately they have a lot off slag but clean them up There still fantastic especially if learning to paint as this straight acetone and start again and especially with paint art today was thinking There would be a few special bits on great metals be fantastic seeing a golden dragon with a golden emperor. 😃😄😁😆😅5 Smile's.

[@nofuxgivens2797]

This was my hobby hero....the Horus duel and dark angels cathedral were so amazing. I even copied the arbites 'rhino' that was open topped with an assault cannon turret

[@connordoyle2296]

I love how Mike keeps apologising for going on incredibly interesting tangents. That's why we're here! I could sit as his feet cross legged and listen all day.

[@MrBertie7]

I remember that red painting guide so well. I was playing Warhammer from about 91 to 95.

[@tomrichardson7792]

Awesome :)

[@andrewharper1609]

I remember having a minor disagreement with Mike about highlighting up to white this was probably the roof of it - I wasn't painting for White Dwarf just for the battlefield.

[@Kolyarut]

I know this interview was focused on his time with Games Workshop and the 'Eavy Metal team, but the way he talked about his move to America to work with Wizards of the Coast (on the short-lived miniatures game Chainmail) sounds like there's a really interesting story to be told there, I hope we hear it some time.

[@johnfarscape]

Sedition Wars was an amazing game, really underated, amazing models and fantastic gameplay, sadly I couldnt get the last few models that were released, as I was made redundant😪, I still play the game whenever possible.

[@jizzwizzard123]

This guy's was my Warhammer hero, he and Jes Goodwin are the reason I started the hobby seriously and am still in the hobby 30 odd years later , although he lied in his articles about how to mix turquoise for swooping hawks , hawk turquoise landed a month or two after the article in WD on how to paint Eldar!

[@valerycharles6007]

Amazing…grey haïr but still teen face:) thank you for all the emotion you gave me during years

[@bianeo7851]

Une icône. Merci à lui.

[@heirwolf6929]

Great interview, Mike's work in White Dwarf was so inspirational back in the day.

[@cjanquart]

First things that popped in my head were his portrait photo in White Dwarf and The Green Knight...sure enough these were here. Also amazed that he still has his hair and same hairstyle, albeit with a touch of gray (better than me that's for sure!).

[@Sevarrius]

Warmachine was great back in the day, haven't heard anything about it in many years though, is it still a thing?

[@daved154]

Yep, it’s suffered a lot in recent years from distribution issues and player dissatisfaction over edition changes, but SFG have just announced they’ve bought the IP and it’s starting to see a bit of a resurgence. They’re going to handle distribution while PP continue to do game development, you can still use old models but the focus is on new factions that have roots in the old.

[@braddl9442]

Mk3 disaster of launch killed the game for many. To the point many just went back to warhammer. It was really a disaster. A lot of the original people that made the game also left to do other things. There was a lot of talent drain at the company.

[@Anuduin]

I love this series! It takes me back to the glory years of GW. It also, sadly, shows how over time GW has lost the soul of creativity and the passion they once had.

[@Birkenhead.Raver_YNWA]

The man is mr eavy metal and as a kid i remember how special his minatures where. Also the Lord of the rings was pretty much how i came to know and love orks and wizards and fantasy in general.