Dick Turpin

I just want to endorse the OP's choice of Flowers for Algernon. I heard it as a dramatisation on Radio 4, and enjoyed it so much I bought the book and read that. It's one of those obliquely phrased commentaries on the human condition that makes you reconsider a lot of what you thought you knew. An amazing work of literature in that respect. I can't think of anything that tops it in terms of a thought provoking concept that just has you weeping by the end. A thumbs up from me Ray Von!

Really agreeing here. That does look amazing, but with quality and prices both rising steeply, you have really got to want one to commit yourself: I think the days of the casual impulse purchase may well be over. However, when something as good as this does hit the spot for you, I'm sure you'd afford it without many regrets.

Waiting for Bacho - by Samuel Beckett

There is some information about Ken here: https://comiccreatorsuk.wordpress.com/2017/11/16/spotlight-on-the-great-ken-reid-1919-1987/ I must admit that reliving this particular part of my childhood and reading these comic strips feels quite therapeutic in that it is helping keep me away from the internet (a bit).

I guess the golden age of British comics has to be the 1960s to 1970s, though my own childhood memories of such only stretch back as far as the early '70s, though earlier material was often reprinted, and a weekly comic, plus all those passed on from friends and relatives, became for many, an integral part of the childhood experience as much as cherished TV programs, the sweet shop, the local pop van and train spotting. From all the comics I remember reading, it was the ones drawn by cartoonist Ken Reid that I remember best, particularly Faceache, the boy with 100 faces, from the Buster comic, who could 'scrunge' his molecules to form hideous and monstrous creations that made both my brother and I laugh out loud in a way that tamer strips from the more mainstream comics could never do. Obviously I was never aware of which cartoonist drew which strips back then, but I have since been looking back at those times, and quickly discovered that most of my favourites were all creations of the great Ken Reid, who also penned 'Jasper the Grasper' and 'Frankie Stein', and it's amazing how once those memories begin to connect, how things soon stack up, and I was soon searching for anything published out there and discovered that quite bit has been quite recently, and which I have obtained and been avidly reading, discovering a world of comic genius from the 1960s I had previously been unaware of, such as 'Queen of the Seas', The Nervs' and 'Dare a day Davy', which were from the comics, Smash', 'Pow' and 'Wham'. So, here we are. Do you remember these cartoon strips, the comics mentioned, or others that etched their way into your memory? Was it really a golden age, or just another part of nostalgia? Why were those comic strips actually funny (to me at least), when modern offerings (what few that are left) simply aren't. Finally, is the decline and fall of the comic due to steadily falling sales volumes, with titles merging with one another, and finally most going out of print, merely due of progress and changing times: just another piece of the past we have to leave behind as we embrace progress?

Well said Mick, if you discount all of those types only really suited to the post grouping era, Railroad tat, and don't model the former Great Eastern territories, you aren't left with much,

I noticed the 2019 Hornby calalogue on sale in a local Tesco this afternoon. That's somewhere I really didn't expect to see one, but pleasing nonetheless.

Who announces and releases what can be a bit like Russian roulette, can't it, but with the live chamber being a release chosen by Oxford. Sorry Oxford, I didn't mean that at all. I WILL buy an N7 (or two) promise.

A J69 is almost certainly in the pipeline somewhere, it's such a no brainer. It's just when you stand back and look at Hornby's rolling program of releases over the last few years, it appears obvious, to me at least, that the LNER (or parts of it) are sure to be in for some attention in the near future. I be you wouldn't grumble at the thought of a rake of Gresley 51' Great Eastern section coaches.

FWIW I think Hornby will revisit the LNER next year.

They tend to develop two similar designs together lately, hence the H1 was sprung on us soon after the announcement that the H2 was almost ready to hit the shops. Which might give us a clue as to something extremely similar to something else we know is already in development, or maybe of two closely related prototypes which might be developed side by side.

A good point. Mine was that the dearth of recent RTR announcements for the LNER means that I would be prepared to pay more than I might have for something really bang on target as far as my interests are concerned. Back to your point - I trust in Bachmann to get their sums right on this, so it's fingers crossed!

A A top quality high specification model of a V2 can come in at any price it needs to for me!

Indeed. They were never going to announce anything Scottish straight after the J36, And - now with well satiated southern customers, where do you think they will be looking to next? As Regularity points out above, we've plenty to be going on with in the meantime one way or another.

Not now it isn't! Happy New Year.

What I was most grateful for in the wake of this malicious attack, was the quality and speed of feedback. A little info doesn't half go a long way at times like these, so thanks again from me. A positive here is that a lot of us have woken up to our own computer security, and taken a fresh look for the better. Also, can I naively ask whether having moved over to https protocol might have helped in this instance?

I got a phishing pop up that wouldn't let me close it, with a red screen claiming to be a Microsoft critical alert, and asking me to call a phone number. I did think I'd got a virus for a moment, but Googling it quickly revealed what it was, and the fact that it only popped up if I clicked on RMWeb confirmed what was most likely wrong before the site went down. I did run Malwarebytes as a precaution, which found nothing and uninstalled a few programs I didn't recognise (checking what they were with Google first of course) and fingers crossed all is OK. Tempted to get rid of all the other bloatware, which as far as I'm aware does nothing but slow the PC down.

Indeed. At 35 generations, everyone is related! According to my quick Google search, at 35 generations everyone in the population will have exactly the same set of common ancestors (although they will be related, of course, through different routes in all the different family trees). Makes you think though.

It has been a lovely afternoon, what with the mild temperatures, sunshine and clear blue sky, that I found myself gazing out at the buildings and landscape from our window, and found that my thoughts drifted round to Christmases past, from childhood to times more recent, particularly regarding family, but also of times more recent involving friends and memories I now cherish. I remember many happy times of Christmases past involving my father and mother, both of whom have been gone now for 30 years, (how time passes), and also times with friends and relatives also sadly no longer with us. It is at this time of year, especially, that we remember those people that made an impression on us, and make us glad of the memories we have, and possibly times that have helped make us who we are. So raise a glass or just recall and be joyful and remember those we have been fortunate enough to have known, in the knowledge that we are better people for their influence on our lives and experience. Merry Christmas. Please feel free to post memories of and celebrations of anyone who is in your heart at the moment. I am particularly thinking of Allan Downes and his amazing achievements in architectural modelling - such a big part pf my childhood!

......'in for some real surprises come January 7th'....... 'the team have been working very, very hard on some rather special items over the last year'....... ???? Maybe, who knows, there's enough froth being blown about on the wind at the moment. I do apologise for misquoting people here though, but hammering this particular square peg into this particular round hole does feel kind of right, even if it turns out otherwise.

Nothing to do with Christmas, but listening to anyway:

When you do, can you post your findings here for the sake of interest. Thanks.

I can certainly picture a Reid Atlantic in full North British Railway bronze green livery splendour! bring it on I say.

Returning to the twin subjects of the North Eastern Railway, and RTR, what with a G5 and now Petrol Electric Railcar on the way, what is sorely needed, as frequently hinted at above, is some North Eastern coaches. Obviously RTR would be fantastic, but failing that, we only have a precarious, hit and miss, supply of D&S or, if you are lucky, John Fozzard ones via Ebay - at a price. If anyone knows of other options I would be gladly informed. So the question is: what are we all going to do about coaches for our G5 to pull, or for a single one to hang behind our Petrol Railcar?

The Rhythm of the Heat - Peter Gabriel Looking out the window I see the red dust clear High up on the red rock Stands the shadow with the spear…