All at Hobby and Leisure wish them well

In a few hours it all starts, millions of excited folk eagerly anticipating the event, and in a few more hours many anxious "knackered" presenters and film crew glad it is all over. The Best man's speech eagerly anticipated by a lot of the wedding guests, the realisation that the Queen will be present, may tone it down a bit, but I doubt it.

The speculation about the dress will be over and of course the engagement ring will feature in most shots.

I sure we all wish them well - and long may it last. I for one will certainly toast our future King and Queen

I am told the flag "will have to go!" (until the day)

We used to sell 16 ft. telescopic flag poles, When A&J were at Lancaster and involved with Formula Student. I gave them one to use at Silverstone on race day.

As expected it was "liberated" most nights, which meant a certain amount of "re-liberating" after a lot of negotiating or put another way and more a bit of and one or two but in the main alot of How on earth they
managed to complete each of the three days involved. Jade recons Alex got on average three hours a night

He looks ropey here and this was after the first night. Just as well Marie did not come


Surfaces after a busy night.


Togged up and ready to go.


Last minute debrief before the circuit test - (To make sure the car and driver could stand the pace.)

Behind the small Lancaster team a couple of the French team anxiously
watch there effort head off to the start point.

Andrew (younger brother) just completing first year of three year engine design, sponcered by Jaguar, from sctratch for 1914 Birmingham entry for Formula Student.

When you see these events from these levels one realises the amount of money that is spent and is available for R&D.

But come the event we can find the flag for it.

In under a weeks time

The great thing about BBC iPlayer is one can watch Telly when in the bath. Last night I half watched a missed episode of Doctor Who - The Big Bang. The wedding scene reminded me, in a weeks time Neil & Mairi will have been married a year, Where has the time gone? Yet look back over that year and what changes have happened to our sites, the way we sell, and to our little group. Some of us have moved homes, moved our businesses, changed the way of doing business and started in dealing in new categories. We must not forget a little new member that joined us during the year.

I look back at my first Blog, and can’t believe it was only a year ago that we were going through the Icelandic volcano disaster, and just before that the Bank fiasco, it seems so much further away.

I look forward and wonder what is store for us. On the business front, the prospect of all the changes to the cyber world fills me with dread, the search engines seem to be favouring the larger stores with it wizards in the IT departments, or drive us all into bankruptcy by forcing the prices further and further down. Even the very best service appears to be less of an attribute in this relentless fight to give stock away.


Imagine a big ball of string spinning in the air with one or two loose ends that represent the internet. You see this spinning ball and think “I would like to try that”, so you grab a strand (start selling). You are happy with your piece string, at first, then you pull the string, (get more involved, as you get to understand the working of the internet). As you hold more and more string, one or two other loose ends come in reach so you grab them. Before long you have a real tangle of string, dropping some of it. As you gather more of the string you realise the ball is increasing in size not getting smaller, and more balls of string are on the horizon. From a simple beginning selling/visibility is getting more complicated.

So what is the solution?

But in the mean time if you are a Doctor Who fan

Funny how things shape up

A friend of ours, who seems to have the right attitude to life, is forever “bunking off”.
Let me quickly stress they should have retired, but just can’t. Having spent a life time working hard to bring up the kids and keep the wolf from the door the time has come to take things easier, but unfortunately the bankers have put paid to that for a lot of us. One of the joys of running ones own business with a bit of judicial planning one can “throw a sicky”; “Bunk off”:” Skive” and not feel too guilty. We have always been interested in History,and last summer we took time out to visit some local ruins, and the odd pub (of course)

Three not able sites we visited were:

Kenilworth Castle. ( http://www.kenilworthweb.co.uk/menu/places-of-interest/kenilworth-castle

Boscobel
House http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/boscobel-house-and-the-royal-oak/

and Stokesay
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/stokesay-castle/
.
All very involved in the British Civil War (Round Heads and
Cavaliers)

Our laptop died earlier this year and was replaced it with one that could play Blue Ray DVDs. To test it a second hand copy of Robin Hood (2010) the one with Russell Crowe, Great film made all the more enjoyable as so many of the scenes were
similar to the sites we visited the year before. Such as, Stokesay's magnificent open hearthed great hall, the fine timber roof, shuttered gable windows and a precipitous staircase, all identical to the film set, and reenforces the attention to detail that the film has gone to. The Manor
House is flanked by the north tower, with an original medieval tiled floor and remains of wall painting, and a 'solar' or private apartment block, and beyond this the tall south tower - the most castle-like part of the house, self-contained and reached by a defensible Stairway.

The attention to detail in the film, such as Oak trees in the back ground, and the like was magnificent especial as it is all understated but is there if looked for.

Its almost as if we had no control of our destiny, as this year we took delivery of new ranges of product, last carried six years ago and the first two items picked Robin
Hood, and The
Sheriff of Nottingham, a chance to reenact the scenes by any youngster, or as happened this week end a film Studio ordered a load of models to illustrate scenes to be filmed later.

Pewter Knights "Tomorrows Antiques Today"

We have always been interested in Historical models, and it was only when a customer of ours, in Switzerland asked us for Pewter figures that we even thought of listing them.

We first got involved in pewter figures in 1969/72 when Meccano brought a set of six figures. A Yeoman Warder; Cameron Highland Piper; Irish Guards Side Drummer; Grenadier Guardsman; Life Guard; and Black Watch Piper. These Sovereign figures were about 4 1/4 inches tall and made in England. Britain made good diecast models at he time (Corgi, Matchbox, and Dinky Toys). So pewter seemed to be a natural progression.

The range we carry is from the Myths and Legends Historical Knights Collection. They are all hand painted finish, with a lot of attention given to detail. These figurines are quite heavy, but have a delicacy about them.

Very much with Fathers Day in mind, these knights make great presents and are carefully packed in a presentation packaging. All the pieces are approximately 4.25 inches tall and are to the same scale. We have illustrated two of a growing range. Later in the year we intend to carry larger pieces.

Summer on its way

Youngest - checks his equipment,

In his final year at Birmingham University, Our youngest “does the festivals” every year.

This year his older brother and their girlfriends will join him at Glastonbury. This will be the forth year of festival going and we suspect his last so this one will be done in style. .

We have lost a friend over the week end’

Well if the truth was told, we decided what we think was a WWII water butt ought to be retried. A 15 ft. round 3ft high galvanised steel collapsible portable pool had served as a swimming puddle for 25+ years and before us, other families. Year after year the kids and friends had great fun in it; a place to chill after a game of tennis or badminton on a hot summer’s day.I ought to point out that the pool is shown above in the process of being dismantled. I was quite presentable a few minutes before the photo.

These water butts were placed on street corners during the blitz and were easy access to water for fire crews. Never quite sure how the first family got their hands on it, but needless to say many generations of different families enjoyed it. It was sometimes hard to get to the water for the amount of toys such as these on it.

THe Motorbike Rider and the Kid Surfer were always amongst the favorite

Alternative Easter Eggs

Easter on the horizon, a time to spend time with your younger monsters. Try these - We have just taken delivery of a few Scooby Doo lines. A lot more than just board games

Mornings, Peace and Serenity, and “La Weekend” to follow :-)

I love the mornings.
To "pad" around the house when everyone else is asleep, to have time for a cuppa and reflect, pure heaven made all the more enjoyable when opening the curtains to a cloudless sky. This morning was no exception, besides scaring the heron off as the curtains opened and startling the starling as it bathed, to be greeted with the view of the Magnolia at the bottom of the garden in all its glory, the low sun picking out the subtle colours of the flowers, with little green foliage to distract was a magnificent sight

We do so agree with the article in yesterdays paper by Dinning In “Do Children Really Need More Easter Eggs?” especially when Sheffy states “It's lovely to sit round the table with your children, no television on and have a chat about what everyone has been doing that day.”

A game we used to play with our lads when very small was to hide Easter eggs (small ones) all over the lounge and the eggs they found they kept. With a lot of judicial finger pointing, miraculously they always ended up with the same amount, sometimes finding one hours later - To ensure equal distribution ;-).

We discouraged sweets, but their Grand parents made sure they had their fair share of the sticky sweet sort. One of the results was, until girlfriends came on the scene, both the lads were able to make their Easter eggs last well past their sell by date by rationing themselves.


The game aspect of Easter lasted transferring itself to board games. Every year a new game was bought, played and enjoyed. All the old traditional games were introduced, Monopoly, Risk, Scrabble etc. This year we will play Outrage! In keeping with the “Royal Theme” or Qbits to tone up the brain.:-)

Are you planning a BBQ or street party for the Royals big day? We can off a little something for the youngsters in your party. The sort of silly keep sake that may crop up from the back of a draw or old dolls house, when they have their own children.

Excellence in kit form

As a youngster from the colonies, newly landed in a small Welsh seaside town, there were many delights, many, many new experiences - and very cold winters with loads of fluffy white stuff. Porthcawl had small Woolies, A store bigger than any shop I had ever previously seen. It was on a visit to Woolies that I came across my first Airfix model, A spitfire in a plastic bag with a paper header, It was a love at first sight, in fact an affair that become a business. 50 years have past and the models have changed, becoming much larger, more varied in subject matter, and far larger varied price range. One of the newer examples seen here.

Bring History to Life

So many of the subjects we were taught at school were boring and lacked imagination. Occasionally one came across an inspirational teacher who made the subject come to life and suddenly, without realising it - you flew. We had one such teacher – a history teacher, whose techniques were revolutionary for the time. Remember 50 years ago we did not have “Whiteboards” or computers, TVs were expensive and still finding its feet. Holidays abroad were a novelty – many of the popular resorts of today were no more than a fishing village with a harbour, and if you were lucky a medieval ruin in the background.

War games have been played for many millennia, in many in countries all over the world in different forms. In China flat stones marked on side, in Africa depressions in the soils and the moving of shells; In Persia to Egypt pieces moved on a board; Then drafts and chess relatively new examples. The came models of armies. Wood and paper figures were replaced in Germany by two dimensional tin representations of actual armies painted in regimental colours.

Famous and intellectual giants often played “war games”. H.G.Wells; Edward Woodward were amongst some of the unexpected exponents of the War Game.
In an age before computer games a table top re-enactment could be exciting stressful, emotional, and full of drama. Our history teacher encouraged and often arranged inter-school tournaments. The battle grounds varied from biblical battles; to the medieval period to the Second World War. None of us realised, and at the time and it was not important, the battles re-enacted often were for a period in history that would be covered the following year or term and even “O” levels.

The Uniforms, pre-WW1 reflected the need to be seen by generals some distant away, so were colourful unlike today’s camouflage styles.

Season Shift?.

In response to Sefffy’s blog in The Netsellers Daily http://t.co/YkPLP91 I spent time going through last years The NetSellers forum, the Garden Centre section, to see how the season compares with last year. I felt it was far more advanced this year, but it would appear not.
Our Tomato Growbag greenhouses seem to have started to sell earlier this year as has the Tomato upside down planters.