5 C

I should start by saying I'm no fan of McD's but must confess to the occasional visit of the "3am and nothing else is open" variety, so I am familiar with their offerings. Yes, the coffee is universally horrible and tastes like no other coffee I've ever drunk. Among their many "dupes", Aldi sell something called The Big Stack. In suspiciously familiar packaging, it's their version of the Big Mac. Curiosity got the better of me and I decided to try one. Preparation would appeal to the kit builders on here, as it's a self assembly job. Specialist tools are a toaster, microwave and a cup of boiling water. The end result is quite remarkable. It manages to taste the same as a Big Mac, yet somehow better at the same time (not hard). Aldi also do faux Chicken McNuggets and some fries though I have sampled neither. For the full effect it probably should be consumed in a Vauxhall Corsa with the stereo turned up loud and a box of "whipped cream chargers" on the passenger seat. I haven't gone that far.

Just remember, no (flight) plan ever survives contact with the enemy. I'm sure Dave was just happy to know his navigator was keeping a good look out.

It was great to meet and chat with John, Les and Steve who were demonstrating loco building and signals at the recent Preston show. It's good to know that they are undeterred by recent events and are continuing to develop the layout and building up the loco fleet to replace the losses. Thanks @Steve Hewitt for the updates and the videos. Keep them coming please!

I've seen a number of impressive Dutch layouts over the years. They obviously take their railway modelling very seriously and like many things, they seem happy to travel in search of quality modelling. I've often heard Dutch accents at the shows in this area. Regular and cheap flights to Amsterdam probably helps.

Lots of barn find videos on this channel but this one's a little bit special. A remarkable survivor. Hard to believe it's sixty years old.

It's been on tour to the UK. It was definitely at Warley one year with crowds several rows deep around it (admittedly it's not very wide). I'm sure I also saw it around the same time at another show in the south of England, possibly Railex or maybe one of the specialist gauge shows.

B. A. Bodil. Quite brilliant.

This talk of vans is all very well but what I really want to know is which was the classier of the two eateries - the Knott End Cafe or the Knott End Restaurant?

A few more of Euxton Junction.

A good day out at the Preston show on the Saturday. A first time for me as I normally frequent the south east England exhibition circuit. Some excellent layouts on display and good to catch up with John Holden and the Lime Street crew. Good to hear they are undeterred by recent events and are continuing to develop their excellent layout and building back the loco fleet. Had a good old rummage through the various second hand items and bagged a few bargains including a non-runner (now running) Bachmann Jubilee from the club stand. Finally a few pictures of Euxton Junction. Fantastic to see this layout in the flesh as I grew up nearby. I couldn't quite see my parents' house (my lodgings for the weekend) as in scale terms it was probably the first track of the fiddle yard.

With a Wagon Wheel chaser?

Wot? No Lyons Maid?

I miss Corona's Dandelion & Burdock.

Actually my erstwhile predecessors in the Vauxhall marketing department needn't have gone that far. Luton Hoo is practically next door to the factory. Before it became the luxury hotel and spa it is today, I visited the house on a couple of occasions. Despite being tucked between the factory, the airport and the M1, once you get beyond the gates it's difficult to believe you're anywhere near somewhere so urban.

It also felt like there was a good number of families there too, which is always encouraging. Being neatly positioned at the end of half term it's an ideal event to be promoted as a holiday activity, particularly for parents in search of a cheap day out at the end of the week.

I suspect the attendance figures were more than had been anticipated. I've regularly attended this show in the past and the numbers yesterday definitely felt as if they were up on previous years. I arrived an hour after opening and the queue was out of the door and the overflow car park nearing capacity. I left shortly before 2pm and there was a noticeable second wave arriving, again queueing out of the door. A small show yes but with some good layouts on offer. Trade seemed quite busy too. I managed a quick chat with TW and had a good look at what he'd done with the Horny Generic pre-grouping coaches featured on Wright Writes. A good local show and great to see it back on the roster.

On the subject of paint stripper - which seems to be something of a Holy Grail quest among modellers - DO NOT use Dettol on plastic models, even though it's often recommended on other modelling forums when doing a Google search. Although it's not mentioned on the ingredients list, the fragrance contains limonene, which has an interesting effect on plastic...

My immediate thoughts were Renault Espace 1, Toyota Previa and the ultimate "designed by several different committees" MPV, the Fiat Multipla.

Starting my second high school early into the first year, I joined the rugby group for Games, as my previous school had been rugby-only until the third year and I'd quite enjoyed my first few months of the sport. The school was very much a footballing school and rugby definitely the poor relation, despite the Headmaster being a keen Union man. Only a handful of us played rugby. Entry into the school team was easy. If you played and were available, you got a game which we usually lost. The third year saw the arrival of a new head of year, who took us for rugby. He'd apparently had a trial for England and we were all quite excited at the possibility of some quality teaching. We were disappointed. He was a forward, quite tall and spent most of his time holding the ball above the rest of us so we couldn't reach it. One day he was off and was covered by a young new History teacher. Normally, cover teachers for Games would stand on the sidelines and let us get on with it. This guy was different. He was a small, quick Welshman and arrived suitably attired for the occasion. Watching him play was glorious. He was a back with proper technique and quickly realised we knew very little. He set about teaching us what he could in that hour and a half. We were so delighted we pleaded with the powers that be for him to be our permanent rugby teacher. Our request fell on deaf ears. A few years later the school produced an Everton footballer and in spite of the teaching, an England rugby player, both contemporaries of my younger brother. The rugby player though, was a footballer at the school.

Apparently according to this Flickr caption, it's the SHADO Jeep. Built in 1968 using a Mini Moke chassis, it was rescued from scrap in the Canary Islands and restored. It's very forward thinking in its prediction of the future. It definitely has a 1990's/2000's people carrier look to it.

A parcel which I despatched using Evri on 20th December and which arrived at the delivery depot just 24 hours later, was finally delivered to the buyer today. It's only taken a month and I was on the verge of making a refund. The buyer has confirmed it's safely in their hands and it seems none the worse for being MIA. A good outcome as the buyer told me it was something they'd been particularly searching for.

Indeed. Even the mighty Lamborghini Murcielago shares its indicators with something much more ordinary. It doesn't however, share the price tag, as Mat Armstrong discovered.

DCC Ready 4-4-0 County chassis awaiting replacement motor pending sale. HTH.

Judging by the seller, it's obviously the extremely RARE (L@@K) off road version. I wonder if it has those special knobbly traction tyres too?.