LONDON FILM MUSEUM

Just got back after a short break in London and one of the places I visited was the London Film Museum situated on the South Bank.

It’s full of info on British film studios past and present and its numerous rooms are full of film props and costumes.

There’s the full size Thunderbird 4 prop from the recent Thunderbird film. Although the film itself is best forgotten this little beauty is quite impressive.

There’s a room dedicated to the work of the late special effects wizard,  Ray Harryhausen.

Another room is filled with exhibits from the Horror genre. Some of which looked pretty gruesome to me.   Here’s Pinhead from Hellraiser holding his Puzzle Box.

Sci-fi horror.  There were props from Event Horizon, Sunshine and Lost in Space. This impressive Alien Queen from Aliens filled the room.

This is an ape mask from Stanley Kubrick’s, 2001: A Space Odyssey.

More monkey business. This outfit from The Planet of the Apes shares the room with exhibits and props from various Batman and Superman films.

You couldn’t have a film museum without a contribution from Star Wars.

Remarkably you’re not allowed to take photos of Stars Wars items for copyright reasons, although you can have your picture taken with Darth Vader for an extra charge!

Thankfully, there was no such restriction on taking photos of these Dalek props. I’m led to believe that the Tardis at the back was originally used in the two sixties Amicus films.

The Daleks at the front strike me as having a more dubious pedigree. One looks like it might well have been used in Daleks Invasion Earth 2150 AD, the other looks more like an example used in the TV series, but who cares. Isn't that part of the appeal of the silver screen? Things are not always what they seem.

THE CRANE IN SPAIN

 

Yesterday I posted these two pictures of an unusual crane version of the Spanish Molto Jeep, itself a large version of the SpaceX Cricket.

 

 

I began to wonder if the normal radar attachment, seen below, simply detached and the crane was then inserted.

 

Below is what the empty rear socket would look like. But did Molto actually make a crane?

 

Yes they did! and here it is! It's the same one pictured in the Jeep illustration at the top. I'm assuming it's detachable. Anyone got one?

Chicken Pie and Chips Over At Woodsies Circa 1973

Hi readers, I'm lead on the sofa listening to the album Squawk by Budgie. Its a record of pounding heavy rock and the most haunting of electric ballads. Budgie were a Welsh power trio at the vanguard of British hard rock and I absolutely adored them as a young teenager For me their golden years were in the early Seventies but for other fans I know it came later. Budgie were quite simply heavy. In the parlance of the day amongst young Prestonian greasers like me at the time we simply said  that they were 'soft'!

Listening again to Squawk now makes me think of so many good things: my dear old late Mum who bought it for me in Bradies Record Shop in Preston around 1972 [she asked for Budgie by Squawk!], my two older bro's whose musical tastes for Motown Soul and Stax so influenced me and my all-consuming love of all things Budgie back then, culminating in seeing them live at, I think, Lancaster Uni, around 1974 maybe.

But above all, listening to Squawk makes me think of long carefree Saturday afternoons, where I would make a lads dinner for my mates and we'd listen to Budgie whilst we ate. So join me on a nostalgic head trip to one of those rock-fuelled Saturdays!

First up we need a spider-guarded chest freezer in an old out-house like the one my parents had, where we find at at least 4 frozen chicken and mushroom pies.

 

Next up we need an old chip-pan full of congealed fat brimming with yesterday's crispy bits, looking like something you'd see floating down the canal! Once said fat is boiling and clear amber we drop in a goodly bundle of thick cut spud chips creamy white and hard. The pies are in the oven and the peas are simmering in the pan. Finally comes the lads' gravy. Using a blob of butter and a swish of flour to make what us adults now know as a roux, I slowly add the hot pea-water and crush in a chicken oxo cube stirring like a madman!.

 

Hang on readers, there's someone at the door! Hey, its my hairy headbangin' Preston mates circa 1973; John Mason aka Masey, Nick Rowe, Micheal Crook aka Crookie and John Casson aka Cass. Sit thissen down lads, the grub's ready! Eh voila! Chicken and Mushroon Pie, home-made thick-cut chips and garden or marrowfat peas  - gravy's on its way!. Mmmm! Not bad for a 13 year old, eh!

 

All that's left to do is stick some music ont music centre for whilst we scoff our nosh. Heads up, get ready for Squawk by Wales' finest, the one and only Budgie, who else!

 

 

Enjoy and thanks for comin' over to Woodsies house! See yaz same time next Saturday!

 

NEW TO THE BLOG: PROBE FORCE 2 LOOKALIKE, THE APOLLO ROCKET

Earlier in the summer I was lucky enough to acquire a vintage plastic rocket. The new toy is simply called Apollo Rocket.

There are no maker's marks, only the standard 'made in Hong Kong'. It does have the look of a T in a Circle toy. It's battery operated.
 

 

It comes in a nice window box.

 

which is neatly illustrated on the sides.

 

When I first saw it online I noticed a resemblance to the Project SWORD Probe Force 2. Once it had arrived at Moonbase I was able to compare them directly.

 

I added the Tarheel pink Nova rocket too to the group shot.

 

The  fronts of the SWORD Probe Force 2 and the new Apollo are almost identical particularly the teardrop cockpit windows.

 

The rear engine housings are clearly related too.

 

As are the engine exhausts.

 

So what do you think readers?

MOLTO BENE: NEW MOLTO JEEP 'CRICKET' CRANE BOX ART

 

This box art above is new to the blog. Its from the rear of the MOLTO JEEP box made in Spain. We've seen the front side before. The top picture has been a little photoshopped to make it rectangular. The Jeep is a deadringer for the SpaceX Cricket.

 

 

Below is the original I saw onlne. Excitingly the artwork depicts an as yet unseen version of the Molto Jeep with a crane. It may just be artistic licence but you never know! Anyone got one!

 

Kevin D's V Saturns

In response to the post about Saturn V's, I've photographed the few I have (none have a gantry, the launch complex is mine and woefully out of scale!).

 

SCRATCHBUILD (with a drainpipe!) 1:90 scale

The Dragon one is quite accurate, plastic and was bought stage by stage. It must be about 1:388 scale.

 

The 3D puzzle is a fairly modern one, can't remember who made it, it is around 1:725 scale

 

The keyring one is a plastic one marked 'made in china', again I can't remember its source, it is around  1:907 scale

 The Space Voyagers one, comes complete with LM, moonscape and has built in sound effects, it is around 1:141 scale.

DRAGON

PUZZLE

KEYRING

SPACE VOYAGERS

CENTURY 21 CAPE KENNEDY SET BOX ART SIGNED AT TV21

 

 

My C21 Project SWORD Cape Kennedy Set box top, signed at TV21 in 2010 by:

 

 

Mike Trim, C21 vehicle designer

Alan Shubrook, C21 modelmaker

Shane Rimmer aka Scott Tracy

Gary Files aka The Hood in Thunderbird 6

Dennis Nicholson, Author of the  Anderson Memorabilia Guide

Plus one other which I can't make out!

INDIAN MARS MISSION

India has sent a rocket to Mars today. Good on 'em! Their critics say its misguided and a waste of precious money, which would have been better spent on the poor and needy.

I disagree. The human race is mired in struggles and troubles, which as history has shown us, will stubbornly remain forever. Despite all this we are somehow able to rise above it all and grasp a grander vision of our place in the Solar System and journey into space. Its a noble thing.

What do you think readers?