Some toys are just so unique, they are iconic. One such space toy is the Cherilea Space Pod. The body was originally used as a very limited run of Dr Who Mechanoids, to go with the Swoppet Dalek they made, but for some reason, they did not continue with the line and retooled the moulds slightly to make a small space capsule.
The pod usually came as a set of two, with three or four Swoppet Spacemen. I had a set back in the late sixties, but due to their swappable nature, they were gradually lost. Since then, I have found a couple more, almost complete. I just need a pair of ladders to make two full versions.
This week, I found a whole body and a lower body, along with a spaceman on ebay. The half body will hopefully get a new 3d printed upper hull, but the full sphere has been simply customised with some Lego retrorockets and new legs made out of sprue!
Its a little bit wobbly, but the lunar surface is unstable anyway!
Nice!!! Love these Wotan! I have the Marx repops of the Cherilea spacemen but not the space pod.
ReplyDeletethe Cherilea figures are unusual due to their size, although a bit big to sit in the capsule, they stand out from their contemporaries
DeleteSuch an imagination fuelled design that couldn't fail lure us into space adventure. I had one as a kid and I'm still captivated by its design. Lovely photos, Bill
ReplyDeletethanks Tony, they are quite unlike anything else. Apart from a Mechanoid of course!
DeleteThe cherilea spacemen always make me think of the Britains range of spacemen, which I assume came later. Do you think they Influenced Britains' design?
ReplyDeleteI doubt it, to be honest. Britains are much smaller and a single piece cast body. They do have clear plastic helmets thst owe something to the early Archer series spacemen though. Cherilea were contemporary with Britains in the sixties, so they would be aware of each others lines.
DeleteWhat a groovy and goofy little thing that is! SFZ
ReplyDeleteThis came before Vostok-like Sontaran ships?
ReplyDeletehttps://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Sontaran_scout_ship
Another spooky likeness
https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/2tm6hz/the_soviet_sattelite_sputnik_3_looks_an_awful_lot/