Space Models of Feltham 2: Will's Skydiver

Hi Woodsy.

What do you make of this? 

My Skydiver model, about 19" long . Made of resin I think, on a wooden base, which has an intriguing label on the bottom! 

I suspect it is just a skydiver model that someone has stuck a Space Models of Feltham sticker on. Or?

 I've had it for nearly 30 years, bought off a Scalex dealer from North London for about 50 quid if I remember. 

Wouldn't it be nice if it was really one made by space models.

 I doubt it but who knows! Do you?

Will O,

UK

C E N T U R Y 21 F I L M P R O P S

This is interesting about a separate company within Century 21 called Century 21 Film Props. Read more here on the Catacombs website:

https://catacombs.space1999.net/main/crguide/vccprops.html#Century21

There's also an interesting thread on the same subject and one Don Fagan on this old SHADO forum:

https://www.shado-forum.com/Don-Fagan-and-Century-21-Film-Props-td1513651.html

Kevin's Scratchbuilt Space 1999 Spectro X Scanner

Hi,

I've made a scratchbuild of the scanner that Bergman uses in the Space 1999 episode 'Earthbound '. I managed to find the same model of Braun hairdryer that they used to make the original prop.

Cheers,

Kevin

TANNERS TOYS

 image: Security Hazard

It looks like Christmas Day down at Tanners in the Thunderbirds episode Give or Take a Million!

Check out all those original toys!

What do you recognise readers?

BIRTHDAY MYSTERY: Case Cracked! Investigating the Investigator Car's Origin

I've always like the Investigator car designed by Reg Hill.

There've been many posts by me, Scoop and Wotan on the vehicle and its Dinky incarnations over the years here on the Base.

Although, I personally never had the Dinky version as a kid I don't think. I still haven't got one. For some reason they're not commonplace at car boot sales, my go-to place for old die-casts to do up.

Having looked several times for its origin I've posted similar vehicles before on Moonbase like this old Disneyland ride car.

So its a birthday treat to report that I was amazed to recently find the actual inspiration of the show's prop Investigator Car courtesy of the cool six-wheeled vehicle French site Six Mania. Result!

Its a West German sports car from the 1960's, the red Porsche 914! Wunderbar!

A little tinkery shoppery on my part and you can really see the resemblance! I wonder if Reg Hill had one of these Porsches?

I'll have to find a cheap Dinky toy and paint it red one day to go with my Coastguard car.

In the meantime, my favourite photo of the Investigator car so far has to be this one I've borrowed again from Six Mania. It shows Nicola Austin, a car mag model in the Seventies filling up the car with the two puppets sat inside! Love it!

All I need now is for someone to tell me that it was made into a pedal car!

Anyone got the Investigators car in any form, Dinky or otherwise or indeed any merchandise or interesting facts about the cancelled pilot?

SHOP OF THE PROPS

 Check out the London Prop Gallery's [mostly] sold lots of UFO props! Some totally amazing stuff!

Do you own any of it?

https://www.thepropgallery.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=UFO

KEVIN'S SCRATCHBUILT SPACE 1999 MOONBASE ALPHA CHEST PACK

Just made this replica of the spacesuit chest pack from Space 1999.

Glad to get that off my chest.

Kevin

UK

What a Reg! The Original FAB1 Number Plate!

This looks like it was a great Bonhams 2008 Auction!

Original FAB1 number plate! 6.5 x 23.5cm (2½ x 9¼in); 

together with original cover artwork for Thunderbirds Colouring Book, 1966, gouache on board, framed, 41 x 33cm (16¼ x 13in); Dinky Toys Thunderbird 2, JR 21 Toys models of Thunderbirds 1, 2, 3 and 4, all in original boxes

Somewhere out there is the original FAB 1 without its number plate!

and that original colouring book artwork looks stunning. I wonder who the artist was?

A CENTURY 21 PROP SHOP?

I read this today on DVD talk. It mentions an old Century 21 Prop shop at Pinewood. Anyone know what that was?

Note from correspondent/author Mel Martin, 6:28:08:

Good review of Journey. When I lived in London years ago I took a trip out to Pinewood and walked through the Century 21 prop shop. They had some really cool stuff in there. While I was there someone mentioned the 'teleconference scene'. Apparently they had problems with getting the monitors to sync, so they gave up and put people on stools behind the flats with holes cut for the screens. They put some mesh to fuzz up the picture, and presto... teleconference! Best, Mel

SEEPY HOLLOW: THE BLOW MOULDED RACER USED BY DEREK MEDDINGS

I saw this picture on an auction recently. I immediately recognised it as a plastic racing car I'd posted before on MC.

Its such an interesting toy and what it got used for, the World Navy Sub 27, so I'm re-posting the 2019 post here. Anyone got one of these cars? Does it appear in any other episodes? Anyone know the toy's name and maker?

There is hardly anything about the World Navy Sub 27 online. Old contact Marc Frattasio described the sub's origins way back in 1995 and re-described it on the old TVCentury21 site years later, something I just hadn't read until now!

This is Captain Jordan's submarine, the WN27, as seen in 'The Man from the Navy'. The actual model was about 12 inches long and had a hull made from a toy or kit midget racing car. The car body is turned back-to-front and the front of the conning tower fits into what would be the back of the driver's cockpit. This model was dressed up with Airfix SRN1 hovercraft kit turbine parts and repainted bright orange for use in the Thunderbirds episode 'The Man from MI5'.

I wonder where the original Century 21 prop ended up?

*

2019 Post:

Yorkie's ace observations in the comments about this mystery toy racing car and its possible use as a Century 21 prop were so good that I had to post them.

Yorkie said that in the Stingray episode 'Man from the Navy', the World Navy Sub 27 is a converted racing car toy or model. A conning tower has been added and the rear of the car becomes the front of the sub. It could be the toy pictured.

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/stingray/images/4/47/Wn27.PNG/revision/latest?cb=20170721030724

Yorkie said it also appears in Thunderbirds painted red in the episode The Man from MI5.

https://securityhazard.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/themanfrommi500015.jpg

*

Woodsy added in 2019:

Since posting the 'mystery' racing car post I've realised where I first saved the picture from. It belonged to modeller Mike Delamar and I asked to use it nearly 10 years ago on an online thread. You can see the thread on the Eagletransporter Forum [you may have to register after a while]. Mike's a master scratch builder and the old thread detailed his search for original parts to create the World Navy Sub 27 from the toy racing car. Sadly the thread peters out and the finished model is not shown.

*

Woodsy adds in 2023

I've realised that I may have very nearly bought one of these toy racers way back in the Noughties. We visited an old toy shop at the top of Shipley Glen Railway and after spending £15 on vintage items like this stack of Bravestarr mugs I'd run out of cash. The racing car was in cellophane on a shelf above the counter. I didn't have any more cash! Darn it!

Anyone ever seen one for sale on Ebay? The racing car.

MIKE TRIM'S UFO MARKERS UNIVERSAL TRACTOR

 Continuing our thread of the 1964 GM tractor ....

here's some pictures and footage of the similar Markers Universal Tractor designed by Century 21's Mike Trim for the TV show UFO.

The prop was listed on the Prop Gallery site.

The full listing is as follows:

https://www.thepropgallery.com/filmed-in-miniature-the-models-of-ufo

Scoop reported on the prop's appearance at SHADO Con 2 in 2018.

https://projectswordtoys.blogspot.com/2018/07/shado-con-2-original-props.html

Here's a clip from SmurfyDan I found too on You Tube showing the prop tractor and model trailer being remotely-controlled at the convention

Do you like this vehicle?

HAVE YOU GOT A SPARE £100K FOR A CENTURY 21 PROP?

This is the most expensive prop the Prop Gallery has for sale, a cool £99,995! It also happens to be from Gerry Anderson's output, namely the Crablogger base station in Thunderbirds and the ambulance in Captain Scarlet. 

Here's the Prop Gallery's listing, which is an interesting read.

https://www.thepropgallery.com/crablogger-base-control-ambulance-filming-miniature

I assume this vehicle was designed by Derek Meddings himself. Does anyone know?

I wonder who would buy this? Who could afford it? What a Christmas gift it would be!

SECRET SOFAS

Years ago I saw reference to Stanley Unwin's sofa prop on the Gerry Anderson Prop Gallery site. Its always fascinated me that out of all the hundreds of props that were made for the various Anderson shows its odd items like a sofa that survived.

You can see it fleetingly in this Secret Service trailer, a brown floral settee.

Here's the Gerry Anderson Props entry, just scroll down http://www.gerryandersonprops.com/models.php

The Secret Service sofa prop was sold by Bonhams In 2011.

Here's a very similar brown flowery sofa in an unidentified episode of Joe 90 I think. I imagine the two brown sofas are related, maybe made by the same prop maker?

Looking for more couches, I was amazed to find further furniture props like this from Gerry's show still in existence too. Here are some from a Bonham's auction and listed as from unknown productions.

Does anyone recognise them?

THE STINGRAY B1 BATHYSPHERE

I don't recall this B1 sub from the Stingray episode The Golden Sea in 1965, but then again I was only 4.

I do like the look of it. Do you? I understand that there are loads of different subs in Stingray.

Kit detective Marc Frattassio described the B1 as an underwater gold mining bathyscaph 12 inch model and was built from balsa wood with kit parts and plastic or metal tubing details [TV21 website]

At first glance it reminded me of the unlicenced SHADO Sky 8 sub toy from Japan, but on inspection not really.

B1 does remind me of DIVER 1 from the Project SWORD Annual a few years later.

I wonder if the B1 prop survived the ravages of time?

GERRY ANDERSON ORIGINAL PROPS

I was amazed when I checked into the Prop Gallery to see which Gerry Anderson props there were available. 

The original Derek Meddings sketches are just stunning. I love the Thunderbird 6 artwork. It would have made a great Century 21 toy! I'm unsure if its ever been a kit either.

Imagine owning a drawing Derek Meddings has actually done!

The Joe 90 Snowmobile is pretty cool as well!

What do you think? What would you buy if you had the dosh?

What an fabtastic birthday prezzie an original prop would be!

https://www.thepropgallery.com/gerry-anderson-all-artefacts?p=1

KEV'S MINI ORAC FROM SCRATCH

Hi,

Just made a scratchbuild replica of the mini Orac from the Blake's 7 episode 'Gambit'. In the episode, whilst Blake searches for information that will aid his revolution, Avon and Vila decide to go and cheat in a casino! They smuggle a shrunken Orac in to help!

Mine does lights and sound.

Safe bet,

Kevin

UK

Moonbase Alpha Airlock: The Scratchbuild

Hi,

Another quick scratchbuild, a Moonbase Alpha airlock sign.

No pressure,

Kevin

UK

HELIJET PROP

 

I've blogged this before I think, a prop I just love and saw on a Ewbanks auction site. I saved the pics as its so darn cool. I forget exactly but I assume its from Terrahawks the TV show.

Do you like it?

SALEROOM EXCALIBUR AUCTIONS LIVE NOW! GERRY ANDERSON PHOTOS AND PROPS

Check out these auctions live now from Excalibur auctions.

There's a pile of photos and negatives https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/excaliburauctions/catalogue-id-excali10057/lot-d74c793d-1660-4ea2-9055-ae2f00e7d8ef plus many more lots like this pile.

and a Joe 90 prop https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/excaliburauctions/catalogue-id-excali10057/lot-f0b95ad7-3d87-4492-91d7-ae2f00e7da5d

Here's the search I did for Gerry Anderson. There's loads of auctions all today!

https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/search-results?searchterm=gerry%20anderson

SPACE 1999 SCANNER

Hi,

As mentioned, here is the replica Moonbase Alpha scanner that I made from an old camera flash.

Bright idea!

Kevin D

UK