XMAS AT PRESENT

Just before we tumble helplessly toward the big day, I have picked up a few inexpensive items on ebay which bring me warm fuzzies of childhood nostalgia, in a contemporary way. First up is the Lego Hero Factory Crystal Beast (above). This fine figure with its translucent elements puts me in mind of the christmas lights, always the bane of my dad's life and now mine! The Beast is interchangeable with many other figures in the series and infinitely customiseable with most other Lego too. Lego, now more of an art form than a toy has been an enduring presence throughout my life and shows little sign of diminishing.

Next up is the Mattel Disney Atlantis Bridge Builder tank. The vehicle is actually called 'The Spanner', but bridge laying is its prime function. Atlantis the Lost Empire brought forth a wave of good toys (pun intended!) including this range which can be recombined with interchangeable parts, to make different vehicles. The little one inch figures put me in mind of the legions of plastic troops which would be arranged on the rug each xmas afternoon and pelted with rockets, bombs and darts, freshly liberated from their gift wrap. The steampunk vibe in the series make the vehicles distinct and quite unusual.

Finally, a staple of the cheap toy genre, a battery operated dinosaur like creature from Multimac. Taking cues from Zoids and the usual futuristic mech range, this mechanical beast reminds me of the Ray Harryhausen epics that came on tv every xmas - greats such as Jason and the Argonauts, with its wealth of monsters and First Men in the Moon with the alien Selenites and their strange technology.

Christmas for me is always about toys and no amount of aftershave,designer gear or cutting edge tech can ever displace that feeling of simple wonder when I peel back the wrapping and find some brightly coloured plastic nicnac inside. So this year, as always, I made sure Santa came early, so if I do end up with a pile of comedy t-shirts and sensible socks, at least i'll have one or two things to make me smile again.