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It's Halloween!

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Paul's Airfix and Dan Dare Kiosk

Hi Woodsy

Here is a bizarre little crumb of modelling trivia – a connection between Airfix and Dan Dare – Pilot of the Future. Not being an expert on Dan Dare, I do not know if this is already well known among DD fans, but it was new to me.

At the most recent Auckland fair, I spotted a box of built-up railway kiosk kits – mostly by Airfix. There were five kiosks (small shops), four of them from the Airfix Kiosks and Platform Steps kit.

This kit was first released in 1958, and it stayed in the Airfix range until the early 1980s, when the entire Airfix railway kit line was sold off to Dapol. It contained two kiosks – a newspaper stand, and a tobacconist; and a set of railway platform steps.

To decorate the two kiosks a number of colour signs were printed on the glossy paper header of the original plastic bag. Later kits, in the 1978 style box, had the signs on a separate piece of paper.

Most of the signs and magazine covers are too small to read, but some of the larger posters are for real publications. 

Among them are newspapers such as The Daily Mail, and The Observer – and one for the comic Eagle, and its lead feature Dan Dare – Pilot of the Future.

Eagle was a British weekly comic for boys, originally published between 1950 and 1969. It was founded by an English vicar named Marcus Morris, as a morally up-lifting alternative to all those dreadful American horror comics coming in to Britain at the time (and which would eventually be banned under the Children and Young Persons (Harmful Publications) Act 1955).

Eagle was most famous for the space-adventure picture strip Dan Dare, which graced the cover of the very first issue; and its magnificent double-page, full colour cut-away drawings of machinery.

Eagle is not a publication I ever read, but I was aware of its existence, and it has often been mentioned on Moonbase Central. So when I saw the Dan Dare poster on this Airfix railway magazine kiosk, I just had to get it.

The Eagle logo, of an Eagle in flight, was also used on the boxes of Eagle kits, made by Eaglewall Plastics Limited. The boxes saying 'By Permission Eagle'.

This range comprised a mix of 1/96th scale aircraft models, and 1/1200th WW2 warships. Even the display stand in the aircraft kits included the Eagle logo.

Towards the end of the company, Eaglewall Plastics dropped the Eagle name from its kit boxes, and used Eagle Wall instead. They also dropped the flying eagle logo.

(Eight photographs – three are mine, and five from Worthpoint)

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Batman V. Alien!

https://youtube.com/shorts/KfE_9VFvD9I?si=LJaID2KZ89rdmMMu 

check this out!!!

MJ

Arto's Dan Dare Cosmic Ray Gun as advertised by Telex

Whilst delving deeper into the history of the Finnish toy manufacturer and importer Telex, I came across this advertisement in our main newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, date November 18th, 1958

The grainy illustration is clearly taken from the box of the Palitoy Dan Dare Cosmic Ray Gun (1953).

(Palitoy Dan Dare Cosmic Ray Gun photo - courtesy of internet)

Incidentally, this discovery may shed some light on the surprise find I made last summer at the Loimaa car boot sale. Laying among all the bric-a-brac on a simple plywood table in bright sunlight, I spotted the same Dan Dare gun (yellow version)

(Loimaa photo)

Missing some bits but with body intact, it really seemed so out-of-place not only in regard to all the other items, but also in regard to everything I previously knew about Finnish toy imports. My first thought was that the toy must be a homecoming gift from Britain for some lucky lad.

The ad above, however, puts the question in a different light. Was Telex importing the original Palitoy gun, box and all, or did they produce their own box for the toy? The gun is marked "Made in England" on the grip.

The Finnish launch comes full five years after the gun first came on the market in Britain, which is a long interval between issues. 

Dead stock perhaps?

Arto

Helsinki Base

 Dan dare

Tomorrow!

Articles by Arto and Paul

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The Super Jet Boat

 Sometimes something comes along which knocks me off my feet.

This is such a one seen on Tradera.

The Super Jet Boat  - from Yonezawa I think.

Wow! I love its simplicity and primary colours!

Google Lens came up with the Plaston Supercar. I can see why. 

My own mind's eye thought of the fabulous Submarine Aircraft Carrier from JR21 Toys.

There's also a hint of the Sea Bird I think. 

Has anyone got a Yonezawa Super Jet Boat?

Field Trip

 I took Moonbase Junior in the field next door the other day. Currently fallow, It's a big field with lots to see like a reed bed and old sheds.

The wildlife moment of the hike was an aerial mobbing of a Red Kite by five angry local Buzzards. It was amazing and Junior and me wuz thrilled.

A keen budding archeologist, Junior had a real good look around the hedge edges and the waste tracts for interesting bits.

This is what he found just lying around.

Golfballs, a Shippams potted beef glass jar, a Country Way milk bottle (no idea if the jar or bottle are old), fragments of pot and brick, a shell casing, a bulb bottom ...

.... and this curly bit of ornate glazed pottery, which he said was the best catch.

Amazingly Google Lens ID'd it and it turns out to be the foot of this German lustre ware pot basket! Again, no idea of age. You?

Still, Junior was chuffed with his field trip!