News, Views Etc . . . Forthcoming Events - Saturday 9th-Friday 15th November 2019

Labour gutted by Watson's departure? He was a slightly-left Blairite-allie! If they are to get fully behind the utterly-useless Corbyn (nice guy, but he hasn't got a leadership bone in his body!), the last person they need hanging around is Watson.

Tories Gutted by the departure of two sexists and a fraudster? Qell souprise Rodder's! We've had 40 years of selfish, intolerant, pocket-lining Thatcherite-Reganomic Tories and/or Tory policy, yet they are apparently 10% ahead in the polls? There must be a tribe of Daily Wail-reading Trumpundbrwreakshiteers who haven't got it yet, who will never 'get it'?

Are you going to vote for either shower of shite? I'm voting Liberal and I never thought I'd be doing that again after 2010.

In Chile the police have blinded more people with baton-rounds (rubber bullets) than the RUC and IDF put-together, managed over 50-years . . . and they've managed to do so in about three weeks!

Brazil's Lulla de Silva's out and Bolsanaro's sweating . . . while in Bolivia the locals took their corrupt ruling-party Mayoress and shaved her head, painted her red and burnt her office to the ground, almost a good-news story, and at least she's alive!

Trump's also had a bad week, oh, he's had a terrible week, but then he's clearly insane and living on Planet Donald, so I'd imagine he's the least worried of all of them!

Luckily there are still some old toys to buy! Loads of 'em . . .

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Toy Fairs

Saturday 9th November 2019

Herne Bay - SRP Toyfairs

The Kings Hall, The Beacon Hill, Herne Bay, Kent, CT6 6BA

Web. - http://srptoyfairs1.co.uk/

eMail: srptoys1@hotmail.co.uk

Tel. - 07739 998 012

10:00 - 14:00hrs

Admission charge unknown

Torquay - Events Frontier - 'Devcon'

Town Hall, Castle Circus, Torquay TQ1 3DR (venue)

56 Radford Park Rd, Plymouth PL9 9DP (promoter)

Web. - www.eventsfrontier.com

eMail - eventsfrontier@hotmail.com

Mob. - 07508 548 938

Hours unknown

Admission fee unknown

Sci-fi, film and comic convention

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Sunday 10th November 2019

Buxton - Barry Potter / BP Fairs

The Octagon Hall, Pavillion gardens, St. Johns Road, Buxton, Derbyshire, SK17 6XN

Web. - www.bpfairs.com

Tel. - 01604 846 688

Mob. - 07966 527 177

10:30-15:00hrs

Admission £3.50 (early-bird £6, from 08:00hrs), OAP's £3, Children £1

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

Rayleigh - SRP Toyfairs

Sweyne Park School, Rayleigh, Essex, SS6 9BZ

Web. - www.srptoyfairs1.co.uk

eMail: srptoys1@hotmail.co.uk

Tel. - 07739 998 012 (Paula or Gerry)

10:00 - 14:00hrs

Admission charge unknown

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Auctions

Saturday 9th November 2019

Elstree - Excalibur Auctions

The Village Hotel, Elstree, Hertfordshire, WD6 3SB (venue)

Chiltern Business Centre, Woodside Road, Amersham, Buckinghamshire, HP6 6AA (office)

Web. - www.excaliburauctions.com

eMail - enquiries@excaliburauctions.com

Tel. - 02036 330 913

Free Tea or Coffee

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Sunday 10th November 2019

Bury St. Edmunds - Lacy Scott & Knight

Web. - www.lsk.co.uk

eMail - oleggett@lsk.co.uk

Tel. - 01284 748 600 (general enquires)

Tel. - 01284 748 623 (Oliver Leggett - auction)

Toy and Collectors Models

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Other Events

Saturday 9th-Sunday 10th November 2019

Tolworth (SW London) - Hampton Court Model Railway Society - 'Showtrain'

Tolworth Recreation Centre, Fuller's Way North, Tolworth, Surrey, KT6 7LQ

Web. - www.tolworthshowtrain.co.uk

Saturday 10:00-17:30hrs

Sunday 10:00-17:00hrs

Admission £7.00, children £3.00, family ticket (Saturday, 2+2) is £15.00 (a five pound saving), on Sunday only; child free with every adult

Free parking (limited disabled spaces)

Free bus-link from Surbiton station

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I haven't found or been notified of anything else which is toy, figure, military, space or pop-culture related worth listing here this week, there's the Classic Motor Show at Birmingham's NEC (National Exhibition Centre, from today 'till Sunday 10th) which will be fun for vehicle collector's, but that seems to be about it?

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Overseas Events

Saturday 9th November 2019

Auvernier (Switzerland) - J. Schetty - Toy, Train, Die-cast, Doll & Bear Show

Salle Polyvalente, Auvernier NE, Switzerland

Tel. - ++0327 312 212

Godorf (Germany) - Uwe H. Breker - Antique Toys & Technology Auction

Auktion Team Breaker;

PO Box 50 11 19, 50971 Köln, Germany (mail)

Otto-Hahn-Straẞe 10, 50997 Köln (Godorf), Germany (offices)

Web. - www.breker.com

Tel. - ++492 236 384 340

Fax. - ++4922 363 843 430

Office hours 09:00-17:00 Tuesday-Friday, Central European Time

Joure (Netherlands) - E. Kramer - Model Vehicle Fair

Zalencentrum 't Haske, Joure, Holland

Tel. - ++0513 416 571

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Saturday 9th & Sunday 10th November 2019

Chartres (France) - Galerie de Chartres SARL - Toy Auction

10 Rue Claude Bernard, ZA du Coudray, BP 70129, 28003 Chatres Cedex, France

Web. I - www.ivoire-chartres.com

Web. II - www.interencheres.com/28001

Bidding - www.interencheres-live.com

eMail - mailto.chartres@galeriedechartres.com

Tel. - ++33(0)237 882 828

Fax. - ++33(0)237 882 820    

Saturday sale - General toys, toy soldiers and model figures, boats & 'planes

Sunday Sale - Model railways; O-gauge, I-gauge and real steam

Houten (Netherlands) - R. Hobma - Train Show

Euretco, Houten, Holland

Tel. - ++0481 353 288

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Sunday 10th November 2019

Dublin (ROI) - Chris Dyer Fairs - Dublin Toy & Train Fair

The Talbot Hotel, Stillorgan Road, Dublin, Eire

Web. - www.chrisdyerfairs.co.uk

Tel. - 01643 702 757

Mob. - 07966 694 579

10:30 - 15:00hrs

Admission £4

Just off N11 trunk road

Langenfeld (Germany) - Jürgen Hörner - Toy Fair

Stadhalle, Langenfeld, Germany

Tel. - ++0210 351 133

Oostmalle (Belgium) - Dipro BVBA - International Collectors Fair

Logistiek Centrum Frans Bevers, Lierselei 177, Oostmalle, Belgium

Web. I - www.dipro.be (organisers)

Web. II - www.verzamelbeurs.net (event)

Tel. - ++032 395 638

10:00-16:00hrs

Toy, Train, Die-cast, Doll & Bear Show

Spa (Belgium) - Retromobile Club de Spa - Toy Vehicle Show

The Casino, Spa, Belgium

Tel. - ++087 795 353

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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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Links

McDonald's (who recently announced they would be phasing-out toys) are re-issuing some old favorites!

Ross Mac's moving tribute to Stuart Asquith, which in turn links to other obituaries

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H is for How They Come In

After a couple of quiet weeks, it's been a bumper week, probably as people empty their cupboards to make way for Christmas gifts, Christmas guests and other merry-festive stuff?

Last Friday's trip to town procured the three on the left; a small quartz or white ('ish) jade tortoise which will be a small present for someone else in seven weeks (SEVEN WEEKS!), the boy (110mm with plinth) is some crypt/nativity thing; 'Hong Kong' (after an Italian figure, I suspect) and a key-ring of some recent cartoon character I don't recognise.

Then - on Saturday -  a friend went to the Maltings in Farnham (not the big, annual one I listed a few weeks ago, here, but the regular 1st-Saturday-of-the-month flea-market) and managed to find these three; A nice (but slightly chipped) Reisler drummer, flanked by a Pyro/Kleeware truck-crewman (with his locating spigot and no signs of glue - a clue as to his survival, loose,  in this condition!), along with a piece of ivory (or very fine bone) which I think might be Don Quicks Hot . . . Don Key Hoe Tay . . . Don Kay Hottie . . . you know, the one who tilts at windmills, or; his faithful servant Sancho Panzer.

Monday brought the third item for my collection/the Tag-list by 4M, it's a bit basic or juvenile/novelty-like, but it can go in the box with all the other siege engines! It needs a proper spoon . . . bowl . . . cup . . . you know, the thing the rocks go in! Rock holder?!!

Tuesday netted a bag of Chinasaur-dinosaurs, the big one's Schleich, the little one is a proper 'Chinasaur', the three at the bottom are the ones I was buying from WHSmith a few years ago, while the four larger ones at the top seem to be from the same maker, but a different line-code . . . and not carried by 'Smith's?

This little lot was also Tuesday, a three-quid-something speculative-bid on evilBay (or BIN? I can't rememeber!), and the poorest thing here is the Hillco Indian and horse who are both tatty (the other side of the horse is covered in mud or sand - in all the crevices) so they'll get stripped and washed.

I think the white horse is the Lone Ranger's, but I'm hoping (in the absence of the Zorro clone) he may take the actual Zorro which 'Wotan' Bill from Moonbase (cheers Bill) sent me a while ago (err . . . about seven years ago!?), even if Zorro's horse should be black!

I'm quite pleased with the early Timpo solid Indian (from a hollow-cast mould) and the Marx cowboy is in one piece, but has been mucked-about with I think; paint-wise, so I'll strip him with the Hillco's.

Which leaves two original Dulcop French Napoleonic factory-paints - to go with my unpainted PW-imported re-issues.

Finally yesterday (Thursday) brought two more bags of mixed dinosaurs. The upper shot has a large sample of 'Mini's', a glow-in-the dark raptor who must have been fixed to something as he doesn't stand up but has semi-ring hands?

The little orange one is pretty unique, but may be from a set of mini-wild animals as he has as much in common with a Komodo Dragon as he does with a more esoteric species of dinosaur! The other four are three small and one full-sized Toy Major's.

The other bag included more of the WHSmith set, and their cousins, a couple more Toy Major's, A large Safari, another Schleich and a 'new' (to me) set/handful of medium-sized dino's (the more colourful ones), along with a real cheap'o Dimetrodon (pink and jade, middle-right) who's really an old-school 'rubber jiggler' (hollowed out, cartoony) but in a more rigid material.

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Missed

The 'East Coaster' in the 'States which is daft 'cos I must have seen it you-know-where a couple-of-few-weeks ago sometime, but obviously didn't note-it at the time, so, well, at the end of the day this listing is never comprehensive and will never be definitive!

I also missed the Hanson's auction on 24th October with the Mike Stockwell tinplate collection, which is very naughty as I had the flyer, but it sort of got buried under all the other paperwork here!

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Toy News

The sad news of Mothercare's collapse this week has a direct bearing on our hobby, as they had bought the ELC (Early Learning Centre) stores awhile ago. I believe the franchised stores abroad will continue to operate - at least for now - but for how long, after watching the speed with which the Toysaurus collapsed worldwide, is anyone's guess.

It also means any figures with ELC on the base can now be considered 'vintage' . . . at least by the standards of evilBay's use of the word, that is! Although I think the same firm which supplied ELC (Bullyland?) is responsible for the similar 80/90mm fantasy and medieval stuff found in Wilkinson's/Wilco?

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Other Stuff

It should be big enough, if I just try harder I'm sure I'll fit . . . don't just sit there taking photographs, get behind me and push!

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A is for Archive - K is for Kindler . . . and Breil?

These two were among the papers in the James Chase Collection which went through Christie's and SAS over several sales about 14-years ago; they were taken from an unknown paper or Model Railroad magazine, probably from 1947-49'ish.

Is this the Kindler of Kindler und Briel (Kibri) the European model railway accessory company, there is a lot of railway stuff in the above shot (albeit O-gauge rather than Kibri's later HO and N) of the pre-war stock? I used to think not, now I'm sure he is.

Not many US factories were 'burned in war' except by accident, but a German one almost certainly would have been, maybe he's visiting the New York Toy Fair, or drumming-up some press-coverage at the 200 5th AvenueToy Building; the German outfit began their journey through toys  in 1895.

I'd kill for one of these lorries, obviously and only if I was 100% sure of getting away with the er . . . mercy killing (well . . . if they'd lost their truck!); there'd be no point in obtaining the wagon and then going to gaol! Looking at them, they are Mercedes trucks with an Allied star huh? I think this is Kibri's Mr Kindler?

I can't work out if their wheels are on the forecourt's surface, or if they are attached to some mechanism that maybe moves them round to each-other's place? Has anyone ever seen one of these, at auction maybe, or on feebleBay? And what happened to Mr.Kindler, when did he meet Mr Briel?

D is for Do I Not Like That Beadally-beadally Bass'tud!

Said no Turnip-head, never! I really didn't like the poxy thing, is was the ersatz idiot-kid/fluffy-dog (Daggit)/K9/R2D2 of the Buck Rogers in the 25th Century franchise, not that I was that enamoured of the series as a whole. The majority of the budget seemed to have been spent on the opening titles and the episodes were mostly Dr. Who quality, but without the action?

Anyway, Corgi had a poke and produced these two as 'enhancing play-value accessories' to accompany a die-cast space-fighter model - 647 A1 - Buck Rogers Starfighter. Polystyrene, the robot chromium-plated over neutral plastic, Buck in white with minor paint highlights.

Kill 'em, kill 'em all, or they'll keep coming with their mildly witty, slightly saccharine, child-like asides and platitudes, kill 'em now, all of 'em! Twiki? I think I called him Twiggey last time - I don't care, I hated the little bleeder!

I'm afraid I can't do that Dave, I'm not tall enough.

F is for Failed Fighting Force

With one dying, one wounded and crawling away hors du combat and another already surrendered and walking from the field unarmed, while an officer stands there doing very little, this has to be one of the most hopeless sets for army-building ever made, but the box still needs to be ticked . . .

. . . for Cherilea's Germans. They came in various shades of grey (as Wehrmacht or Waffen SS) or green (as Deutches Afrika Korps), and were reissued more recently by the Marlborough-Dorset-Hill's enterprise in an interesting shade best called field-turquoise! Six poses becomes seven with a wardrobe change for the Officer!

Colour variations of both paint and plastic exist, although I have yet to track-down any dark-grey Germans I know they are out there. Also a base-shot from one of the reissues, it's the standard full set of marks you find on a lot of the earlier figures, especially the 60mm ones.

The DAK chap is the copy, he's smaller and has lost detail from his pockets, badges & decorations and on his face, where the monocle has become a nasty scar on his cheek! By pantograph or other method they copied their own figure and gave him shirt-sleeve order with baggy shorts.

Comparison with a few other German infantry; as well as being a useless fighting force, they are two large for most other figures you are likely to have, except the Marx Warriors of the World, but they are very different looking.

D is for Demolition Men

As the pond becomes hideously over-used I have found it necessary to look further afield for photographing wildlife and found myself on the Army land the other side of the Motorway this summer, where I encountered these . . .

. . . eleven sand pits, each a few feet across, and about 10/15-feet (five meters) apart. They are arranged on a well-mowed field, like the playing-pitch of some weird French ball-game no-one else has bothered to learn the rules to! The actual pit is only a foot or two but the 'spillage' makes them look bigger.

About a 150 feet away (60/70-odd meters?) is a similar structure or arrangement, this time of ten 'holes' arranged in a circle, as if someone from Central Planning has marked out the position of a Henge with sand, for builders, coming later with a load of Blue Granite!

The foreshortening of the photographs necessitated the rendering of this quick sketch to explain the above 'crop circle' and a sort of blunt arrow-head! However, scattered around the field and/or half-duried in the sand are the clues as to the sand's use;

Detonators . . . or their remains! These pits are for the young engineers to learn one of the tenets of their craft, namely; blowing stuff up! And further, to learn sequential detonations.

We often hear them at this end of town and in the past it was a case of thinking "Oh that's the engineers learning to blow stuff up", but now I count the explosions, and sure-enough; they often come in ten's or eleven's!

Presumably the ring is used for simple sequences or synchronised 'blows', while the arrowhead can be used for alternate detonations, or paired explosions running up to the point, or back from it.

And using just detonators or small charges, the whole can be observed safely by students and instructors from the hill on the other side of the road - you can see in the background of the first shot?

Some of the other paraphernalia associated with the exercises, which was lying around. To be fair - and given the frequency with which they can be heard - they do a good job of cleaning the site between visits, but once I was 'on the case', I quickly found these which had been blown about the field by wind or explosive-design!

I must stress that with the exception of the labels; which I posed for the camera, I didn't touch or move anything, it's just not worth the risk.

Possibly a piece of smoldering hessian from the sandbags they may place over the charges or maybe a piece of white phosphorous, if they also learn how to destroy munitions at the same location? It looks like something which came down from space . . . Thwaaak!

In high summer this is the sort of thing which starts 'range-fires' and leads to (or contributes to-) those dark, cloudy backgrounds on otherwise clearly sunny days, you see in old photographs of Barbarossa, or Kursk; two years later.

News, Views Etc . . . Walking Wounded

Aye . . . it is a truth universally recognised that a man in need of some kindling must be in line for a life-lesson of some kind . . .

. . . on the left you see my left thumb as it is currently decorated, on the right is my other thumb, over which has been superimposed the magical Dwarfen rune-mark of Kuttheer, which - you may have guessed where this in going - I applied with some success to my left thumb earlier today (Saturday)!

The instrument of my success and a mock-up of the method employed. It lacks the finesse of a Swan Morton, I'll be the first to admit, being - I think - an old meat-clever but did the job in the split second I took my eye off the ball and my mind off the task!

Still, it'll stop throbbing in a day or two - if it knows what's good for it; Of course, had the bone not halted the exercise, I would have lost the tip, which Frimley Park could have cauterised and it would have been usable in a few days, but instead I have a flap which is part thumb, and part thumb-nail, which is - itself - part attached to the flap and part attached to the rest of the thumb-nail, so there will be some interesting developments as that all grows-out and sorts itself!

I tell you all this not to elicit sympathy; I don't deserve it for such an act of pure idiocy, but just to report that it has slowed me down a bit - even opening the click-shut bags or take-away tubs I keep everything in is suddenly not so easy, it turns-out that civilisation is prerequisite not just upon the possession of opposable-thumbs, but on having a minimum of two of them, both working!

I do have lots of stuff in Picasa, so I'll cobble some articles together, but I may drop-off the posting-rate for a week or two.

Having just had the third-equal best month ever (if I'd been paying attention I would have got one more out for a new record!) and being already in the second best year, I think I can ease-off as we head toward the holiday season and a glorious sunlit upland of Lib-Lab-Green-SNP squabble-feast coalition!

Smell that? No, not fireworks . . . the death-liquor of Brwreakshit, as the remains of the Conservative party (now mostly semi-fascist, Tory-boy piss-ants) and Farage's fuckwitted ner-do-wells go head-to-head over the ideology of isolationism in a global world! Well . . . cross-fingers - 'cos I can't do a double thumbs-up!

M is for May May and Maybe Not (nothing to do with that fatuous woman and her Brwreakshit not-a-plan)

I have loads and loads of unknown flats, usually very small samples; in the case of today's subject - only the one, but it's been ID'd, it's another name in the canon, so let's have a shufftie!

Here it is, probably male and some sort of mountain sheep-goat-deer thing; call me a discriminatory, speciesist Nazi but all those high-altitude, ungulate ruminants look the same to me . . . and some of their women-folk have horns as big as the men!

Heh-heh! Bill B's catalogue says May May, and another shooting game, when I recognised them I thought I had two, the polar bear looks familiar, so I may have him in a TBS pile somewhere, but I don't think so; I'm pretty sure I've sorted all the flats now.

'Berserker' knows when he's beat and makes a hasty retreat while on the other side an elephant of smaller stature, but with similar paint treatment and who bears little resemblance to 'Euro-flat' premiums is shown as a possible from a similar (even cheaper?) shooting game?

He may never get another chance to shine so he gets both sides in close-up now while he's in the spotlight! While he may be from another shooting game, he may be from a snow-shaker; they often have these cruder finished flats in them?

Have I just got a whole Blog-post out of two crappy, flat animals? I think I have! AND; another name for your book, discs or dongle - May May.

M is for Many Ways to Make a Medieval

We're looking at the figures I lost (the images of) and which in the searching-for, managed to lose a near finished article due to my inherent fuckwittery . . . and the fact that Lenovo gives you half a split-second to cancel a shutdown, and even if you manage it, then overrides your [two] instructions and shuts-down anyway!

Cherilea's small scale (50-mil-odd) knights in armour, they come in at least two sizes (small and smaller!) and various versions, plastic colours and paint-ways. The figure top-left is a metal original, and the reduction in size between him and the larger plastics isn't down to a pantograph, but just that plastic shrinks more than metal as it cools - from the same mould.

The smaller ones however, may well be the result of copying by pantograph? Although a quick study of the plumes will reveal there are at least two cavities (or tools) in each size, possibly more.

My arranging of them has no real significance, but from this angle you can see further variations in base-shape and mould release-pin marks, while painted and unpainted on various colours of plastic are to be seen. The jade green pair are a more modern reissue, but still - now - fifteen to twenty years old?

The Crusaders; The two on either end of the upper row are the metal ones this time and the one on the right doesn't seem to have been carried-over to the plastic line. Again, two clear sizes (visibly three for the standing pose actually) and a variety of finishes including gold mail, but no coloured plastics - bar the re-issue. I think the fifth and sixth from the left on the top row have suffered at the hands of their owners' artistic callings!

The cross on the metal one's shield is much broader so it must have been re-cut when they prepared the mould for plastic-production, or they went straight to new tools . . . or I haven't found a plastic one with a broad cross yet?

The 'enemy', especially if you are a Kurd cut-loose by the Orange Loon! These are all brittle and I have a sample as large as the other two sets, but most are damaged. A third pose existed in metal (carrying standard), but I've not seen it in plastic, and it's usually broken when you find it in metal!

And, clearly a different sculptor, these and the other two metal poses are far more animated and anatomically different from the more relaxed or statuary knights and crusaders. The metal range was all together bigger with the four Saracens, four crusaders and three knights that I know of.

T is for a Tale of Two Forts

Written for the second time as I lost the first edit when I shut the laptop down looking for something! In a nice piece of synergy this week I managed to shoot the larger Cherilea Fort even as Chris Smith was sending both to me!

This is Chris's light-grey version of the small fort we looked at (for the second time) the other day. Chris thinks it's Cherilea, and mentions the glue as a clue, and while it is a good clue, and I myself have mentioned Cherilea [in hope] each time, other people did use the same brown snot (proprietary brand in the UK was Evostick (or 'evilstick'!)), even as far afield as Hong Kong where Blue Box (and others) could ruin a toy before it was sold with a great blob of the stuff!

Figures - MPC small set

I think the better clue is in the style and patterning as well as the variation - between samples - of the flecked/marbling of the coloring of the forts? Last time we looked at the larger fort (either side above) it was a silvery-gray one (which I haven't found yet?) now in storage, while here Chris has a darker grey one (far left)  to my brown one (far right).

Now my yellow smallie is very similar to the colouring of some of the shrubbery-bushes (some were to be seen in the background of the 'Paul Rocks' .gif a month or two ago), while Chris's smallie is similar in colour-way to my older, missing one, and collectively they are close to other examples of the small scenics we saw the other day.

Close-ups of the brown one

So the evidence would certainly seem to point to Cherilea, and it's hard to place anyone else there (Speedwell maybe, as I might have suggested the first time, but it's hard to make it stick?), but despite seeing dozens of the smaller boxed-sets from Cherilea I've never seen the small fort in one, has anyone else?

If we accept it (the small fort) is also Cherilea (we know the large one is, it's always in those boxed sets!), we can ask another question or two . . .

. . . firstly; given the differences between the 'ears' on the small fort, and the tiny 'fort' ruin we saw the other day (and the lack of ears on the largest fort), could the smooth ears on the tan 'termite hill' - question-mark last week - be another variation of Cherilea standing-up mechanism?!!

And secondly; could that thinner, smooth-backed copy of the loophole'd sandbag defence be Cherilea? It'll all be answered in time!