Free Inside Every Box

Being a compulsive collector, I always liked the free toys you used to get in breakfast cereals years ago.

The Gerry Anderson inspired stuff is well documented, and nowadays avid collectors with more money than sense will pay an absolute fortune for these tiny pieces of plastic. Well, who am I to judge!
But there was a wealth of other little gems from around the same time that still jog my sense of nostalgia. I don't possess any of these items these days but I do like to be reminded of them through the adverts of the time.

I'm sure you all remember the atomic subs and frogmen that were powered by soap detergent.

 

 

Anything connected with outer space was a must have.

 

And it didn't matter if they broke or got lost, because you knew that the next packet of Wheety Bangs of Sugar Crunchies would contain a fresh toy.

 

The only downside was if there were several in a set, in which case you'd always have an illusive one that neither you or  your mates had, apart from the one spoilt snivelling brat at school that no one liked. But if he was prepared to do a swap you'd be his pal!

 

 

 

For the larger giveaways you had to collect boxtops and send a postal order.  If you got your parents to take the trouble to sort it you could end up with a cracking little toy.

 

 

I think I'd like some Puffed Wheat for breakfast tomorrow, Mum!

 

 

 

Power of 3

Thunderbird 3 is a beautiful craft, eminently 'rockety' but managing to look completely unique too. Testament to the unsurpassed design genius of Derek Meddings, it has several classic retro future elements including large boosters and the central radiator vanes. Graham Bleathmans FAB cross section book confirms Kevin D's suggestion and shows that the atomic fusion generator lies at the centre of this area and the grey fins shed the excess heat. When Thunderbirds was relaunched in the late nineties for a new audience, large versions of the craft were released complete with new play options such as mini figures, sound chips and other ideas. I picked up the large TB3 on ebay a few years back as it was the least distorted of the toys and was a fair representation of the ship. It features a central lift and two large incongtuous hatches, but still looks quite nice on the shelf next to its old cousin.

Broken by Boxing Day

Many toys which arrived on xmas day would simply not make it through the holiday unscathed, either due to overzealous play or carelessness. Sometimes some of the cheaper Hong Kong toys would just give up the ghost after a few revs of the friction drive across the rug, or would lose their appeal after all the missiles had disappeared down the back of the couch or into the fireplace.

So in contrast to Scoops earlier gallery of beautifully complete and pristine Thunderbird toys, here are the remains of my childhood collection.

The Dinky Tb2 has fared quite well, although the pod door has been replaced. The Tb3 has lost its motor and the decals have rubbed off after many a sweaty hand revved it across the floor. Tb2 had gone now apart from the nacelles and the grey hulled Tb1 arrived from a jumble sale in about 1969. The blue one came from a stateside ebay win.

New Technology

Bill has found a new mobile app for blogging and considering he's successfully  used it for his previous post, I thought I'd give it a go.

But you know how it is, when you get the chance you can't think of a thing to say so here's a pic of one of my old Airfix Angels as a bit of a test.

WHERE TO NOW?

At this point in time, when we all have a moment to reflect on things before preparations begin to usher in 2013,  i'd like to throw a question out to the audience.

Where should we go next?

Would you like to see new topics covered, ir is it a case of - if it aint broke, don't fix it.  More vintage space toys, less modern, more off topic toys or stick to hard core andersonia ?

Answers on a postcard please....

FUTURE PAST

Like Scoop and Bill have said it is hard to know what to do with the loss we all feel today. The fact that we are all feel lost is testament to Gerry's genius. His body of work begun half a century ago will live on as his unique vision of a fantastic future is timeless. Everytime we look to the sky we will imagine it filled with his Thunderbirds. This blog would not exist if not for Gerry Anderson and I dedicate it to his memory, his work, his fans and his family. God bless Gerry.

End Of The Road?

I  echo Bill's sentiment totally and judging by all your comments, like me you feel something very special has passed from our lives.

 

It might seem like the end of a road for now but as many of you have said along with Bill, Gerry's legacy will live for a long time to come within us all.

The Anderson Legacy

While its a very sad time today as we mourn the passing of a cultural hero, lets not forget the legacy that he has left us in the shape of so many fabulous series of programmes, which are probably more popular today than ever. Gerry Andersons work could be considered to have been the 'Avatar' of its day, the groundbreaking techniques used in the production of the Supermarionation series were never matched or bettered by any other producer of tv programmes. The special effects used in the series stand up to close scrutiny even now and the designs of the craft and the environments in the series cannot be faulted.

We at Moonbase Central stand on the shoulders of a giant, without whose work we would not be here today, celebrating the fantastic and inspirational shows that shaped our childhood.

• The Adventures of Twizzle (1957–59)
• Torchy the Battery Boy (first series only) (1960)
• Four Feather Falls (1960)
• Supercar (1961–62) – first Supermarionation production
• Fireball XL5 (1962–63)
• Stingray (1964–65)
• Thunderbirds (1965–66)
• Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons (1967–68)
• Joe 90 (1968–69)
• The Secret Service (1969)
• UFO (1970–71)
• The Protectors (1972–74)
• Space: 1999 (1975–77)
• Terrahawks (1983–84, 1986)
• Dick Spanner, P.I. (1987)
• Space Precinct (1994–95)
• Lavender Castle (1999–2000)
• Firestorm (2003)
• Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet (2005)

(Links courtesy of wikipedia)