Thankfully I had a better night’s sleep although this was largely due to consuming more beer than the evening before. Fortunately I manged to avoid any sort of hangover and got up on time. The main aim for getting into the show early was to take photo’s while it was quiet. As an IPMS member you get an hour head start over the general public so as soon as arrived I took the photo’s which all appear below. I will keep them attached to this post for as long as I can but as they will make a big dent in my WordPress capacity I will delete them at some point. If previous years are anything to go by then there will be plenty to see on YouTube for those who are interested. As and when I may include some links in future posts.
Next up was “Tea and Medals” and as several of you guessed it was the Wizard’s Tower which won me the Best In Show Diorama. Hopefully during the week I’ll get a further post done with more details about the competition and the fate of the models I entered.
A spot of lunch followed by a few more essential purchases (potential Christmas presents for SWMBO!) and then it was all about packing up, loading the car and starting the long drive home. I had planned to spend another night in Telford but SWMBO rang to tell me the washing machine had broken and a replacement was coming on Monday so I needed to be home to take out the old one and install the new one so I drove back after the show.
All in all a great weekend. I met some great people, talked hobby stuff, drank, ate and generally had a good time. Fingers crossed for more of the same next year. The images below will hopefully provide a flavour of the show and the range of models on display.
Now there is some good news from today, well for me at least, but things didn’t get off to a great start. Last night in the hotel was was dreadful and I didn’t sleep at all well. This isn’t unusual for me these days but having had a couple of beverages as well as a very long day I thought I would get off to sleep in next to no time. It wasn’t to be. Well that’s not entirely true, I did in fact fall a sleep but that was about two hours before I was due to get up and having not set an alarm clock I then overslept! Things then became a bit of a panic and although I remembered to take my Samsung tablet to take some photo’s I didn’t realise until a little later that it hadn’t charged overnight because I hadn’t put the wall switch down! At least I still had a 30% charge which would enable me to take a few photo’s. More on those shortly.
The show opened to the public at 09:00 and I have to say there was a lot of people waiting to get in. I doubt any records were broken but without a doubt the event was going to be successful. Hopefully tomorrow will prove to be just as popular.
Our display attracted a good amount of interest and I enjoyed a lot of chats with people who liked what I had done and had on display. I even had a visit from Dave Berryman, the Editor of IPMS who wants me to write an article for the magazine. I confess to being flattered but am now concerned about what to write. I’ll worry about then when J get back home. The rest of the morning was spent either at our club display or shopping for modelling “essentials”.
The afternoon saw the judging of the competition. Judging takes about 5 hours or so, there are simply so many models for them to look at and judge. For my part I had entered 16 models, I just thought why not? After the judging we were allowed into the show area to see how we got on. In total there are 8 categories and in each category there about 10 sub-categories or classes as they are called. All in all that makes 90 classes and 90 Gold medals (and Silver and Bronze) up for grabs under each sub-category/class with a trophy awarded too for the best model in the category. The eight category winners are then judged to determine the overal National Champion.
Of my 16 entries 7 of them won nothing at all but 3 did receive “Commended” which was nice. Things got better though as I then found out that I had won 2 Bronze medals, 1 Silver and 3 Golds. Having won 1 Gold at the last show which was held in 2019 I was blown away to have won 3 this time around. This was beyond my wildest expectations but then I discovered I had won the overall Diorama category. As winner of the “Best Diorama In Show” I was now one of the eight modellers whose model would be judged for National Champion! Alas that’s where my story ends. An incredible model was awarded overal winner but for a brief spell I was in with a shout and as they don’t have a second or third place I don’t know if I would have come runner-up or eighth. To be honest I really don’t mind. My day was greater than I could possibly have imagined.
So what models of mine won and which of my models didn’t? Well you will have to wait for that but feel free to guess. Tomorrow I will take plenty of photo’s and as soon as I can I will get a post up.
A very few photos appear below. I will take a lot more tomorrow and I will have my tablet and phone charged! The first four are the Plymouth display. Not outstanding but there were only three of us with models so not to bad really. The other shots are pretty random and may just give a small flavour. More will follow, probably via two or three posts, starting Wednesday I hope.
It’s 10 pm and I’ve just retrurned to my hotel room having had a very large meal and several pints. I am bloated, tired and slightly the worse for ware. It has been a long day which for me started at 06:00 when I had stuff to get ready, have breakfast and take the dog out before I began the four hour drive to Telford. Fortunaley I had got everything I wanted to take with me all together the day before so it was just a case of loading the car.
The journey was uneventful but the traffic was heavy and passing Birmingham was a pain in the arse and on several occasions things came to a complete stand still. All to often this is what I experience I find when driving in the UK. A four hour journey turned into five and a half but all was well and that was the main thing.
My first priority was to park the car and check in to my hotel. This went fine except for the fact that I left my phone in the room and therefore have no photos from today! Bag unloaded and a quick coffee later and then it was time to unload the car and get my stuff ino the venue and the area set aside for Plymouth Model Club. Shortly after I arrived the other club members turned up and in no time at all we were set up. With only three of us displaying it took no time at all and befoe we knew it we were on our way to the pub.
What is obvious is this years event is smaller than previous years. That’s not to say it is small by any means. The show normally takes up three huge halls with a further location for the competition entries. This year everything is in two halls. I suspect there are fewer traders and less overseas visitors, the legacy of Covid but at least the event is on and a lot of people are gratefull for that. Tomorrow will confirm the situation as when I left this evening there was still a huge amount of setting up going on. it will also be interesting to see just how many people attend. it has been a long time since there has been a model show to attend so fingers crossed for the organisors.
With no photo’s there is little more to add. Tomorrow I will be sure to get some pictures taken!
This weeks miniature is a solitary Footsore Baron’s War crossbow man. With everything else going on this was as much as I could get done in the time I had. Not sure if I will have a post for Saturday or not. My aim is to try to put something together from Telford if time allows and if of course I can access an Internet connection.
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Well It Made Me Laugh
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Telford
So far this week has been manic and the rest of it won’t be much better. I had hoped to be completely ready by now for Telford but as I look around all I can see is a buggers muddle. In fairness I think I have everything out but it’s the packing that takes the time. Once I get that done and the car loaded I can really begin to look forward to the weekend.
This will be the first show since lockdown and it will be interesting to see if it turns out as I’m expecting. My guess is there might be fewer traders and less people from overseas but anticipate this being offset by a large public attendance as so many people are desperate for a show. Hopefully Salute will fair well too as it is on this weekend also. Time will of course tell and I will be sure to provide an update after the event.
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Give Me Five
This week I thought I would take a look at movie franchises, the sort of thing where the film industry hits upon a winning formula and then keeps repeating it until it ceases to be a winning one! That said some franchises are still going strong. In no particular order the following have provided me with the most pleasure. Apologies in advance to all of you who would have included Start Wars!
James Bond
Mission Impossible
Harry Potter
Indianna Jones
Back to the Future
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This week TIM has been listening to …
“Goldfinger” by Shirley Bassey. Sticking with the movie franchise theme I delved into the James Bond title tracks. There have been several decent ones but “Goldfinger” is way out in front as far as I’m concerned. Great singer backed by an outstanding orchestral arrangement. The best live version I could find but you need to ignore the first minute of the video.
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This week TIM has been watching …
“Raiders of the Lost Ark” starring Harrison Ford. Talk of film franchises had me feeling nostalgic and reaching for my Indianna Jones boxed set. As much as I like the other films in the series the original movie remains the pick of the crop.
This weeks miniature is another Footsore Baron’s War double bill. I’m still doing my level best to focus on the foot figures which need to be completed and managed to get the Maid Marion figure, which I had forgotten about, along with another crossbow man done. Both help to swell the ranks and take me a step closer to completing the outstanding foot figures which I still have to do.
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Well It Made Me Laugh
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Telford
It suddenly hit me that I have just over a week to get ready for Telford. There are only three of us from the Plymouth Model Club going up for the weekend and with 12 feet of display space between us there is a lot to take. Just how much painting I get done this week therefore remains to be seen. I suspect it won’t be much but if I can I might try to get a couple of quick things done for future posts because I won’t have much time in the week I get back either.
I’ve no idea what the Internet access is like at the show but maybe, just maybe I might be able to put out a post while I’m up there. We will see.
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Give Me Five
This week I thought I’d take a look at films starring Tom Cruise and came up with this list as my top five. It was tougher than I thought because I love pretty much all of Tom’s films so to make things a little easier I left out the Mission Impossible films as I will deal with movie franchises as a seperate subject going forward. I was still left with a tough choice though and some great films have been left out. In no particular order I came up with the following:
Top Gun (1986)
Risky Business (1983)
Rain Man (1988)
A Few Good Men (1992)
Far and Away (1992)
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This week TIM has been listening to …
“River Deep, Mountain High” by Tina Turner. I do love Tina Turner, in fact I’m a big fan of singers who can really belt out a bloody good song. This is very much an oldie but still a big favorite of mine.
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This week TIM has been watching …
“The Great Outdoors” starring Dan Aykroyd and the late John Candy. This film came out in 1988 but still makes me laugh every time I watch it. Some great moments and well worth a watch if you have never seen it. I still fancy having a go at an old 96’er steak!
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Remember …
If Covid restrictions prevent you from going on holiday just drink until you don’t know where you are.
This weeks miniature is another Footsore Baron’s War Banner Man. I think I have another three to do so anticipate the others in the weeks to come. As others have said, the banners will add some colour and visual interest to the growing army. I’m keeping the banners simple, perhaps to simple as there is an opportunity to make more of them but in truth I want to move on and trying something more complicated doesn’t float my boat right now. If I ever get the urge to attempt something more elaborate then new banners would be an easy change to make so I’m comfortable with my decision for now.
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Well It Made Me Laugh
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Give Me Five
Following a request from Roger I thought I’d take a look at sequels which, arguably, out shone the original. I think I might have done this one before but it’s important to keep ones readership happy! In no particular order I came up with these five. Over to you Roger!
The Godfather – Part 2 (1974)
Terminator 2 – Judgement Day (1991)
The Dark Knight (2008)
Aliens (1986)
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
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This week TIM has been listening to …
“Missionary Man” by the Eurythmics. I like Annie Lennox, she’s a cool lady in my book and together with Dave Stewart they made some great music. I could have gone with plenty of tracks but this one doesn’t get played perhaps as often as it should.
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This week TIM has been watching …
“The North Water” on BBC iPlayer. A five part drama series about Whalers which I thought was promising based on the synopsis. The story line itself was fine but personally I feel the five hours could have been compressed quite comfortably into two.
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Remember …
If the women in your life said she missed you just make sure she isn’t reloading.
This weeks miniature is a Footsore Baron’s War Bannerman. I’ve intentionally been ignoring the Bannermen until now, not because I don’t like the figures but because I hadn’t been motivated to making and painting the banners. They are an easy enough thing to do, especially if you keep them as simple as this one, but I do have to be in the mood to make and paint them. Having taken so long to get in the right frame of mind I made five banners so all I have to do now is paint them and the remaining figures going forward. Simples.
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Well It Made Me Laugh
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Footsore (Again!)
I seem to be on a role with Footsore which I’m honored by. Much to my surprise yet again Mark Farr elected to give me another shout out, the 4th I have now received, when he wrote the following in his most recent newsletter.
Ordinarily we like to share the wealth when it comes to our community spotlight but this week we are sharing more of David Green’s work. He shared these group shots over on the Barons’ War Facebook group and they are too good not to share. That he said something nice about me has nothing to do with it…
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Give Me Five
I thought I would stick with the theme of selecting my favourite 5 films of an actor or actress whose career has produced an extensive list of memorable movies. This week I decided to take a look at Gene Hackman and came up with the following films. In no particular order:
Mississippi Burning (1988)
Superman (1978)
Unforgiven (1992)
The French Connection (1971)
The Firm (1993)
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TIM’s Plan
As the UK heads towards the autumn and winter months and the inevitable wet weather and shorter days so my mind has wandered towards my hobby plans. Of course there isn’t a hope or a prayer that everything I aim to do will get done but at least it is a well intended aim.
Finishing my Baron’s War Army remains high on my list of objectives and my initial emphasis will be to get the remaining foot figures done. These are quicker and easier than the mounted ones but it is a realistic goal. I also have a modest pile of Hasslefree, Knuckleduster and Reaper figures in need of my attention and these I plan to integrate with the Baron’s War figures so I have a bit of variety going on.
I’m also keen to resurrect “Dio-Bolical Monday” as I have a couple of dioramas that I would like to get underway. I don’t anticipate posting every week, certainly not to start with, but it would be good to get back on track. I suspect any initial posts will be more about planning than painting and building but you have to start somewhere and we will see how things go.
Finally, if I can be asked, I’d like to sort my blog out. There are some areas of the site that I would really like to reorganise in some way and if I really get bored then I might divert my attention to this at some point.
All in all I have no reason to get bored while I wait for Spring to show its face once again.
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This week TIM has been listening to …
“Cat’s In The Cradle” by Harry Chapin. Adjusting to my daughter having gone to University is proving a challenge for me. She isn’t a daddy’s girl but she is my daughter and of course I love her very much. The lyrics to this song relate to a father and son but they still feel relevant. I think I need to play some rock very loud!
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This week TIM has been watching …
“Gunpowder Milkshake” starring Karen Gillan who I find very easy on the eye. A pretty good film and an easy watch following a knackering few days.
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Remember …
If you want to save money at Christmas now is the perfect time to tell the kids Santa didn’t make it through the pandemic.
This weeks miniature is another double bill. This time two Footsore Baron’s War spearmen. I’m making a concentrated effort to stay focused and to at least finish the 20 or so foot figures I still have to do while trying to start work on a few other figures at the same time. I need to clear the decks a little more before I can seriously consider starting a diorama or two otherwise I will simply have to much stuff everywhere. Although the end is in sight for my army’s foot figures there is a very long way to go in respect of the mounted ones. Still it all remains fun and that’s the most important thing.
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Well It Made Me Laugh
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Footsore
As you may have read in previous posts I was delighted to get a mention, not once but twice, in the Footsore emailed newsletter in respect some of my recently painted figures. Well it turns out I was on a hat trick as Mark Farr gave me a third mention!
“As the nights get darker in the UK we are seeing more Knights at night. Something like that anyway. This particular Knight is painted by David Green over on the Barons’ War Facebook group. With custom heraldry and an excellent blue colour he is definitely a knight ready to fight for what’s right at night.”
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Landmark
It seems I recently hit a landmark. According to WordPress my previous post was my 500th. I had very few goals when I decided to start my blog and to be honest I still don’t but it has provided me with a great deal of pleasure. As well as being an audit trail for my own work, which was initially my aim in getting started, it has been a wonderful source of encouragement from those of you have been kind enough to follow me and comment. I thank you all.
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Weather
The weather in the UK, and certainly in West Devon where I live, is set to take a turn for the worst. Not entirely unexpected for this time of the year but a clear indication that summer (did we have one?) is over and and a wet and windy autumn is very much on the horizon. This of course is a mixed blessing.
On the one hand the outside jobs that still need doing will be even more of a chore, on the other hand more time spent in doors will provide greater time for modelling. It is therefore time for me to start putting some sort of plan together once I get me head in gear. I’ll let you know what I come up with in due course.
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Give Me Five
I thought I would adopt a slightly different approach for this week, and maybe for some weeks to come, and focus on actors and actresses who have appeared in a significant number of films. We all have our favorite actors and actresses and one of mine is Tom Hanks. My top five films of his, in no particular order are:
Sully (2016)
Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Apollo 13 (1995)
Road To Perdition (2002)
A League Of Their Own (1992)
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This week TIM has been listening to …
“Something Else” by Sid Vicious. Some people are meant to die young and Sid I reckon was one of those. Twenty one is no age to die but at least he left this track behind.
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This week TIM has been watching …
“The Dry” starring Eric Bana. A mystery drama set in Australia which turned out to be a good watch.
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Remember …
If you die and get cremated get your ashes put into an hour glass, that way you can still participate in family games night.
This weeks miniature is another Footsore Baron’s War Foot Sergeant. The shield design goes by the name of “Party Per Chevron”. A neat and simple design but one I rather like. I manged to get the figure started last week and just about found the time to finish it these past couple of days. Little else to add but at least it is one more done and off of the lead pile.
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Well It Made Me Laugh
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Give Me Five
This weekend just gone we took my daughter off to Oxford for the start of her University experience. She was emotional, not so much for me or She Who Must Be Obeyed, although I’m sure she’ll miss us, but more for her boyfriend who’d previously left a couple of weeks ago to go to Bristol. The joys of young love! Which leads me nicely into this weeks choice, Teen Movies. I think this genre is one of my favourites, so many great films. If I’d known life would be as good as over when I’d reached my twenties I’d have put so much more effort into my teen years. In no particular order:
The Perks Of Being A Wall Flower (2012)
Some Kind Of Wonderful (1987)
Ferris BuellersDay Off (1986)
The Kissing Booth (2018)
The Edge Of Seventeen (2016)
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Hitting The Wall
I’ve enjoyed my journey thus far with regards to my Footsore Baron’s War project but I’m reaching the point where a brief hiatus is called for. I’ve a pile of other figures I want to paint, a wish to do some basic base work, a need to prepare for the IPMS Nationals and a growing desire to begin work on planning and building a couple of dioramas. Something has to give but I am determined to finish what I started so in the coming weeks expect to see a few figures interspersed with the odd Baron’s War figures for a while.
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IPMS Telford
I thought I’d give a heads up to anyone who might be considering going to Telford this year. The event takes place on the weekend of the 13th and 14th November but as a consequence of Covid some changes to the format have been announced already. I must stress these might be subject to change and up to date information will be on the IPMS website but as things currently stand admission is via advanced ticket sales only unless you are an IPMS Member. ALL attendees are required to provide evidence of double Covid vaccinations too. Feel free to contact me for further information but as I say the website is the go to place for full details.
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This week TIM has been listening to …
“Smoke On The Water” by Deep Purple. I thought I would take a dip into the past and have a blast!
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This week TIM has been watching …
“Let Him Go” starring Kevin Costner. I think it is fair to say that I have enjoyed most of Costner’s films. I hadn’t heard of this one though, probably because it came out it 2020 and passed under the radar due to Covid and lockdown perhaps. In any event it turned out to be a good watch and a little different too.
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Remember …
Pleasing everyone is impossible but pissing them all off is a piece of cake.
This weeks miniature isn’t. Well it is but it’s actually four figures with an added bonus. This week I managed to churn out four Footsore Baron’s War Levy’s and, as well as taking a couple of photo’s of each, I also managed a group shot of the four of them. In fairness these figures were, in contrast to just about everything else I’ve done to date on this project, quick and easy.
So what of the added bonus? Well, not quite what I had intended but conscious of the fact that I needed to do something, I took a group shot of the seven mounted knights I have completed and another one of the foot knights and sergeants too. I’ve still to work out any form of base that works for me and of course I haven’t included a photo yet of the spearmen, archers, crossbowmen and levy’s. Hopefully this is something I will eventually put right but for now it provides an indication of the progress I have made to date on part of the project.
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Well It Made Me Laugh
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Give Me Five
I never appreciated just how big the “Biopic” film category was. As far as genre’s go this one is one of my favorites, I do like a good true story (even a Hollywood interpreted one). This time around I’ve placed no parameters on the genre but as and when I revisit it I will look to break the category down. In the meanwhile five films, in no particular order, which I have watched more than once and will doubtless watch again.
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Schindler’s List (1993)
The Social Network (2010)
Philomena (2013)
Into the Wild (2007)
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This week TIM has been listening to …
“Fake I.D.” by Big and Rich Featuring Gretchen Wilson. I have to say I enjoyed the Footloose remake and this particular track, not least of all because it featured Julianne Hough, a very hot young lady who is on my hit list of potential wife replacements.
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This week TIM has been watching …
“The Green Book” starring Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali, neither of whom I’d ever heard of before. The film won Best Picture at the 2018 Oscars although I confess to knowing little if anything about it until I watched it. Turned out to be a good film and one which was based on a true story. Well worth a watch if you haven’t seen it already I’d say.
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Remember …
To err is human but to blame it on someone else shows management potential.
The Imperfect Modeller 