U is for Ultrapenciltop!

We looked at these years ago when I did a pencil-top round-up, but one or two more have come in including a rather fetching white one (from Chris Smith or Peter Evans), so I thought I'd do a new shot for the family photo-album and share it with you.

I muttered something about super-boy last time I think, but the top figure is supposed to be Ultraman or some similar 1970's Japanese TV character, the robots don't seem to fit Ultraman's 'Mechas' though so may be from other series'; Manzinger or Gundams or something. Four poses found and five clear colours with a lilac variant of the purple and redder-oranges, or an orangier red!

The new addition, definitely the smartest, he's a minter! I'll thank both the above named as things have been pretty chaotic around here and they've both sent stuff since I called a halt to blogging, while a lot's been combined/sorted and I've shot loads of stuff, but lost track of some origins! 

News, Views Etc . . . Vectis TV & Movie Memorabilia Sale - Palitoy

Vectis' sale next Thursday [week] contains a fascinating series of lots from a former employee of Palitoy (British Cascelloid), who joined just as they became part of the General Mills Group and worked in several departments/roles at the main plant in Coalville, Leicertershire, and the following press release has been received from Vectis Auctions promoting the Lady's sale items.

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Mandy Hurry (nee McCarthy) is an ex-Palitoy employee who worked at Palitoy for 13 years, starting just before the first Star Wars film was released.

Lots from this Vendor include Star Wars figures, loose and in baggies, plus Cascelloid Limited Handbook, and the Palitoy employee personal paperwork, dated from 1977 to Kenner Parker 1990.

Lot 5382

This unique record of employment for Miss M J McCarthy, spans thirteen years, and includes Palitoy Parker Bradgate Conditions of Service and Standard Contract of Service, Statement of Main Terms of Employment, Grievance Procedure, photographs and a detailed account of Miss McCarthy’s role at the factory, plus much more.

A Unique opportunity to acquire part of Palitoy history. NB: from an ex-Palitoy employee;

"My Palitoy Story

On 13/05/1977 Leicester education committee careers sent a letter to my home address regarding vacancies for Factory workers at Palitoy Coalville. As a 15 year old leaving school and looking for employment Palitoy seemed like a good choice as I lived a 5 minute walk from the main factory on Jackson Street. I applied for the position and in a matter of days was given an interview at the main site. On the 24/05/1977 I received a letter from Palitoy HR offering a full time position with a starting date of 13/06/2019, the starting date being 2 days after my 16^th birthday and only a few months before the release of the first Star Wars movie, little did I know how important that movie would be for my time at Palitoy.

Lot 5317

My first job at Palitoy was working on a conveyor belt boxing Pippa dolls, I remember thinking how friendly and helpful everybody was.

A selection of other areas and lines I worked on:

• Assembling Intruder dolls, part of the Action man range.
• Spraying white markings on the head of Action man horses.
• Packing Chic a boo monkeys.
• Starting the Tree House belt, this involved drilling and assembly.
• Making the boxes up and packing Tiny Tears dolls.
• Bagging Play doh accessories before packing.
• Dressing Action men before packing.

Lot 5315

I then moved over to the 3¼” Star Wars figures. When the Star wars figures first came into the Coalville factory for packing onto blisters there were only 2 machines with a team of 4 on each machine, 2 operators working opposite each other. The first person on the line would de-bag the figure and place it in an up-turned blister, second on the line (my job) was to put the blister into a mould and place a card on top of the blister (this was done in pairs), I then pushed the heat machine over to the opposite side of the belt where the operation was repeated and sent back to me, the completed blisters were moved over to the end of the line for cooling and packing. It wasn’t long before the demand for the figures increased and a new automated machine arrived, this was called the ILLIG and it’s the machine that appears in most of the Star Wars related photos taken at Palitoy, my job on the new machine was to open the figure bags and place the figure in the up-turned blister, the machine did the rest.

Lot 5316

I worked at Palitoy for a total of 13 years between 1977 and 1990. During that time I was involved in many games and activities that Palitoy arranged, a ladies football team and a Miss Palitoy competition (I came 3^rd) just to name a couple, the social nights and Palitoy clubs, the Christmas doo’s all fond memories. I had many visits to the factory shop in Baker Street, Coalville. In the early years my younger brothers and sister enjoyed all the benefits of having a sister that worked at a toy factory, in the later years my own children had bin liners full of toys from the factory shop, if only I had kept them all.

It was a sad time leaving Palitoy as it was one big family and looking back it was the best working years of my life. Living in Coalville I still see many people I’ve worked with and we often talk about the Palitoy days.

Mandy Hurry (nee McCarthy)" 16th Dec. 2020

Lot 5383

Lots include: 5315 – 5323, 5382 and 5383

For further information please contact Kathy Taylor on +44 (0) 1642 750616 or email admin@vectis.co.uk

The TV & FILM RELATED SALE will be held on Wednesday 29th January 2020 at 10:30am

Viewing is available before the sale and the catalogue is now online.

T is for Toy Fair 2019 Reports - Bandai - Bits & Bobs

As well as the Anderson stuff I sent to Moonbase, I took a few other hurried shots while gabbling enthusiastically; having blagged my way in to get the Thunderbirds stuff I managed to grab these on the way out.

Bandi are one of the companies who run a closed stand at Toy Fairs, which you have to book-in to, then be escorted round, and preferably you need to be a toy-buyer, -shipper or -agent, or a member of an accredited journalistic outlet, not a blagging Blogger!

SD (super deform) Godzilla characters, I really was rushing the shots, and was taken with the triple-headed dragon, but you can see bits of two others in the background, deforms aren't 'my thing' at all, but they do come in occasionally with mixed stuff and some people will love them!

More Realistic Godzilla figures in two sizes, including the triple-head again in a more realistic form, if anything fantasy can be realistic, but you know what I mean . . . more accurate to the movie version.

Godzilla himself, this is the size where gaming him in 1:76/72nd becomes a reasonable proposition! The funny thing is, even though he's all modernised and professionally finished as a toy, he still looks like a man in a rubber suit!

All kinds of Gundam; from teeny SD's to what I think was a 12--inch monster, with plastic model kits for basher's to have a go at. I didn't get a good look at the 'weapon-sprue' runners, but suspect they are not multi-shot 'overmoulds' but rather slot-or-clip-jointed at the colour demarcations?

Close-up of the super deform, I saw some of these from the 1970's or '80's a few years ago, and you could see why they are so collectable, lots of fine detail, in brittle polystyrene or something similar and lots of metallic stickers, starting to lift at the corners,. To get a whole one in good condition must be quite hard; this modern issue is a more robust propylene type polymer and sans stickers!

Again, the more realistic lines of accurately scaled models, and I think - deliberately - all five display models are of the same character (the AILE Strike Gundam), for comparison purposes. If the HG and RG models are 1:144 (as seems to be the case?) that would make the other two eminently compatible with 1:76/72nd (MG) and 1:35/32nd scales (giant one).

Not much - but a few snatched shots from the 'inner sanctum' of Bandai's stand!