News, Views Etc . . . Forthcoming Events

So in the end I had six days in the garden as today (Thursday)'s rain never really materialised!

Last weekend there was a dwarf daffodil out, the tail-end of the pale purple & white crocuses in the lawn and a single imperial purple one in a bed, along with next door's Mirabelle just coming into blossom . . .

. . . now the pink cherry-plum has joined the Mirabelle (which means they will both be pollinated and we might get fruit - if all the pigeons die first!), loads of daff's including most of the dwarves and some full-size, dozens of white, cream and yellow crocuses, one of the quinces is in blossom and the weeping cherry is about to explode.

But, it doesn't bode well for the future - the mild winter has killed the last bit of the witch-hazel, most of which was killed by last year's mild winter! While fuckwits like the Trumpton bang-on about Global Warming like it's a comedy sketch, the scientists talk of 'Climate Change', and as I hit 55 (any day now); I'm old enough to know climate change for myself, when I see it!

Not only was this the third, fourth, fifth (?) mild winter in a row, but after the summer's heat wave, the ground is bone dry. As very few people are doing anything meaningful about it, and governments even less, the message remains; buy old toys - while you still can!

Public area in Basingrad on the 22nd

I'll be at BP's Sandown Park on Saturday; the last one before Brwreakshit and I already know a couple of 'Euro-dealers' who won't be there . . . May's show will be the bigger test though.

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Toy Fairs

Saturday 2nd March 2019

Plymouth - Events Frontier - 'Devcon 19' Sci-fi and Comics Convention

Plymouth Guildhall, Guildhall Square, Plymouth, Devon, PL1 2BJ

Web. - www.eventsfrontier.com

eMail - eventsfrontier@hotmail.com

Mob. - 07508 548 938

Admission - "From £6"

Hours unknown

Sandown Park - Barry Potter / BP Fairs

Exhibition Centre, Sandown Park Racecourse, Esher, Surrey, KT10 9AJ

Web. - www.bpfairs.com

Tel. - 01604 846 688

Mob. - 07966 527 177

10:30 - 15:00hrs

Admission - Adults £6.50p, seniors £6, children £2, early bird (from 08.00hrs) £10.00

Tons of free parking

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Sunday 3rd March 2019

Eastleigh - Steven Clements Fairs

Barton Peveril Sixth Form Collage, Chestnut Avenue, Eastleigh, Hampshire, SO50 5ZA

eMail: clementfairs@aol.com

Tel. - 01380 725 322

Mob. - 07958 101 891

10:00 - 14:00hrs

Falkirk, Scotland - McLaren Models

Tel. - 01324 624 102

(All other details here)

Haydock Park - Barry Stockton Fairs

The Exhibition Centre, Haydock Park Racecourse, WA12 0HQ

Web. - http://barrystocktonfairs.co.uk/
Tel. - 01513 343 362
10:30 - 14:30hrs
Admission - Adult £2, Children £0.50p

Kidderminster - Tony Oaks Toy Fairs

Guilt Edge Leisure Centre, Zortech Avenue, Kidderminster, Worcestershire, DY11 7DY

Internet presence unknown

Tel. - 01270 652 773

Mob. - 07825 631 323

10:30 - 14:00hrs

Admission £1.50p

Free parking

Needham Market - Stowmarket Railway Club (club event)

Needham Market Community Centre, Shool Street, Needham Market, Sulfolk, IP6 8BB

Web. - www.stowrailclub.org.uk

Tel. - 01449 672 698

10:30 - 15:00hrs

Admission - £1.50p, accompanied children free

Wheelchair access, free parking, refreshments

York - J&J Webb - 'York Racecourse'

The Knavesmire Stand, York Racecourse, York, Yorkshire, YO23 1EX

Web. - www.j-jwebbtoyfairs.com

eMail - jandjfairs@virginmedia.com

Tel. - 01522 880 383

10:00 - 14:30hrs

Admission £2.50p, seniors £2, 1st child £1.50p

                         ..........ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ◈◇◆◊☼◊◆◇◈ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ..........

Wednesday 6th March 2019

Hertford - Joe Lock Fairs (Evening Fair)

Richard Hale School, Hale Road, Hertford, Hertfordshire, SG13 8EN

Internet presence unknown

Mob. - 07866 641 215

19:00-21:00hrs

Admission £1

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Auctions

Wednesday 6th March/Thursday 7th March 2019

Stockton-on-Tees - Vectis Auctions (2-day sale)

Fleck Way, Thornaby, Stockton-on-Tees, TS17 9JZ

Web. - www.vectis.co.uk

eMail - admin@vectis.co.uk

01642 750 616

Military & Civilian Figures, Equipment and Accessories

More info./imagery will probably be added to this section in the week.

Wednesday 6th -

"The Military & Civilian Figures, Equipment & Accessories sale to be held on the 6th of March features The Philip Dean Collection, 525 lots of pre and post war figures and sets, including Britains, Charben, John Hill & Co, Pixyland Kew, Timpo and many others. Series include Wedding party, Circus, Farm, Village, Railway Station, Garden, Sports and Space plus many more.  Further items in this sale include 79 lots of post war CBG Mignot ranges, including Napoleonic, Ancients, WW1 and 18th/19th and 20th Century Ranges."

Thursday 7th -

"Day 2 of the Military, Civilian Figures, Equipment & Accessories sale starts with Modern and Contemporary Issues from Britains, King and Country, Figarti, Thomas Gunn and more. There are 19 Lots of Grenada Studios, Lead Army, Aeroart studios and similar in the Connoisseur Miniatures From Russia; plus Britains Motorcycle Series and Civilian Issues from Benbros, Timpo and Britains Racing Colours; and Plastic Issues including Connoisseur Selection. The sale continues with Britains - Boxed & Unboxed Military Issues, Un-boxed - Special Editions & Paris Office, Militaria including medals, uniform and clothing, and Toy Soldier & Military Books and original Airfix Archive artwork."

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Friday 8th March 2019

Taunton - Greenside Taylor Hunt (GTH)

The Octogon Saleroom, 113a East Reach, Taunton, Devon, TA1 3HL

Web. - www.gth.net

eMail - antiques.saleroom@gth.net

Tel. - 01823 332 525

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If you are an event promoter/show curator/auctioneer and you want your toy, model, collectable or popular-/youth-culture type sale/exhibition/event listed here -  FOR FREE  - or linked to; please eMail me -

maverickatlarge[at]hotmail[dot]com

- stating the date/s of the event, address of event, contact details, opening/viewing times, admission pricing and any other relevant facts/details or features - parking, travel notes, disability access, availability of refreshments, event subject matter &etc.

And please mention any flyer-art or poster-/leaflet-scans but send by separate eMail, in case they go to the 'junk' folder, from where they can be recovered and marked safe, but only if I know they're there!

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H is for How They Come In

They just keep coming-in! The last seven day's charity-shop purchases, nothing exiting; less than a fiver for the lot, but you've gotta' love the Central European (Bulgarian?) bottle-stopper couple!

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Toys in the Media

It's a well-known construction toy system (Hestair-Kiddycraft's bricks!) tied-in to the half-term movie for these Add's from DFS furniture warehouses!

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New Publication

Dodgy photograph but out there now if you're also a fan of old comics!

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A is for Are you kidding? I'm in the garden!

Bed's on Saturday, boarders yesterday, front and firewood today, weather's too good to faff-about indoors with toy stuff, it's a worrying trend; May weather in February, but I'm going to make the most of it!

Did take some nice pictures over the weekend and managed to get everything off the damaged dongle, but it's mostly been anonymised and mixed-up with out the folders, so still fighting that one, I know it's all there as I got some of them back, complete with folders, but only by fluke!

Anyway may be something here tomorrow, may not be, maybe nothing 'till the weather turns later in the week! Try and get out there while it lasts!

Q is for Question Time - Soviets & Suchlike!

A call for help by Chris Smith today, to which I've added a maybe-clue, maybe red-herring! And we're back in the East for the first one, but I suspect further East, indeed; the Far east for the second?

These are the real question, Chris believes they came from behind the former Iron Curtain, but knows nothing else about them, and I couldn't help beyond the feeling they may be based on kit figures from a Western enterprise like Tamiya?

The first one looks to be based on a late-war German Panzergrenadier with MP44 assault rifle, although given a Russian helmet, the second is not so obvious, in fact he looks like he may have started life as a horse-rider? The third is larger and they are almost three scales!

The discolouration is due to some poor painting which has been removed and they are not kits themselves, being single moulding with integral bases, in a polyethylene/propylene type plastic?

Does anyone know anything about them? Recognise the sculpts? Polish, Czech?

Chris is also looking for help ID'ing these copies of the Airfix WWII Russian infantry, they are scaled-down substantially, but seem to have retained a high degree of detailing compared to the normal run-of-the-mill Hong Kong or Chinatroop shite.

The smooth flat bases are quite distinctive with a gentle ogee-edging and broad coverage of the ground and you can tell there is solidness to them even at this distance! Chris has found a few now, but always and only this pose (so far) and wonders if they accompanied a die-cast vehicle perhaps?

To which (the Airfix pirates) I'm adding this British Paratrooper clone, he seems to be poorer quality than Chris's figures, but there are similarities in the base, and solidness and when Chris first sent me his image I immediately thought of this chap.

I suspect the colour is similar too, but the photographs a very different with Chris using a flood of natural light, and me shooting flash against a pale background.

I don't know about the lable, the stock/product/order code is similar to the tampo-printed stuff we've seen a few times now, both at the top-end from Hasbro and at the bottom end with the similar clones from HTI (or HGL?), but the fact that it seems to have been scissor-cut from a larger sticker is a bit of an alarm-bell?

Although I'm not sure about the MMP branding, I'll stick it in the tags, and anyone clicking on the tag will find this caveat!

Can anyone help Chris, me or the rest of the loyal-readers with some more info/details on any of the above?

T is for Toy Fair 2019 Reports - Amerang - Jada (+?)

I think these are all Jada, but I'm not so sure about the last two shots! The trouble with the Toy Fair is you have several hundred stands to scope-out, several dozen to cover and only limited time and you're making lots of mental notes which might as well be written on the beach as the tide comes in for all the use they are weeks later, or even the next day!

However Amerang are a wholesaler, so whether Jada or not, they are here, in the UK, now'ish and to be looked out for if you fancy them.

Batmobiles, Bat-tanks, Bat-beasts, bat-bollocks! But they all come with a really nice die-cast and plastic 70mm-odd (1:24th scale) figure!

More of the same - in closer!

To cool for Bat School! This will be issued later in the year and it's lovely - look at it; I think it's nicer than the old Corgi one, but; at around 1:18th for this, miles off the 'original' and plenty of room for all the extra detailing.

Some other dude in a spandex body-suit, I wasn't pay any attention to who this chap was, but if you're a fan you'll know instantly, 'Livepond' . . . is he? Beyond him is a Transformers franchise in two sizes, I'm not sure on Jada for these but I think they were all the same section of the Amerang stand? Except . . . the flyer is for Transformers, the vehicles are from a Japanese anime series called Initial D!

Again two sizes; 1:24th and 1:32nd, how can you not like these. They perfectly illustrate how accuracy falls with scale-reduction; note the window bars/roll-cage uprights get larger (in scale) as the vehicle gets smaller - the limitations of die-casting alloys! Sadly the 54mm-compatable one doesn't have figures, well, actually - neither of them do - "Who yer gonna call?"!

The other one I'm not sure was Jada; and can't remember where (culturally) it came from - Halo, or some Vin Diesel thing? Nice-looking little hunter-killer APC, runabout thing anyway, although the road-wheels look a bit girly!