Hollar

On the other hand, it's nice to know that not every Irish character in the programme will be a thick, drunken paddy who likes a good fight. I daresay this applies also to the more obviously migrants and gay people. And also, the media sometimes regards us as sopmething other than inadequate ninnies who never grew out of the train set phase. Tony

Something very odd about the numbering. Definitely should have gone down the pub instead of squeezing in the last little job;

I saw Davy Graham as a teenager, and for me this is a Mozart and Shakespeare discussion - who's the second best. Tony

I've just bought a very nice-looking WD on eBay, powered by a Portescap and described as a runner. It arrived very well packed and in really good visual condition. However, on the test track it refused to move and gave off an unpleasant screaming sound. With a lot of prodding it moved, was controllable and smooth, but still very screamy. When I tried to switch direction it stopped dead and only moved when given a smart tap in the right direction. It doesn't move at all on my rolling road, just sits there complaining, so I can't try to run it in. Does anyone have any suggestion that doesn't involve sending it back and getting a refund? It looks great but I'm not looking for an ornament. Tony

Coming in rather late, since I have been busy elsewhere. Both Retford and Carlisle are vast, prototype-based layouts in EM, representing steam days. Where are the P4 equivalents of these? At the serious end of the hobby I can't see much of a visual difference between EM and P4, any difference owes more to philosophy and self-image. (And this is an observation, and emphatically not a criticism.) I would add John Brighton's Millhouses to the list of spectacular EM mainline layouts. What it and Retford have in common (and by reputation Carlisle, but I've not seen it) is that stock falls off the rails about as often as it does on the real thing. As a country memberof the team, building wagons for Millhouses, I can testify to the unforgiving standards and rigorous running standards are required. (John's kindness and advice has radically improved my modelling building skills, from a low base') His EM work is in no way different to that of the P4 Somersham layout when it was run by the CLAG team. After all, there's nothing more unprototypical than stuff falling off the rails all the time and locos needing digital assistance to get moving. In my experience seen this is at least as likely to be seen on OO exhibition layouts as in the finer scales. Go to Scaleforum and Railex and see what high-class engineering skills can achieve. If I were a Preser seated figure in a hurry, I'd probably want to go finescale. Tony

And your point is? It's art and entertainment. If you want history, Penn's The Winter King is as good as you'll find; and if you're looking for tissue-thin entertainment I would much rather watch Ian McKellen's Richard III than some straight-to-cable Ricardian rubbish. For one thing, you get Stacey Kent's brilliant singing of a Walter Raleigh song rather than that strange woman and Robert I'll Do It Rinder. Not that I'm an opinionated Bardophile, or anything. Tony

My one brush with r/c aircraft was when I was umpiring a Middlesex trial colts cricket game on Hackney Marshes. I had to suspend play because some idiot was buzzing the pitch with a very large plane. Tw*t stopped play, you might say. A possee of very angry dads was very quickly organised and they stalked off to remonstrate with the flier. At least a couple of the dads were keen to show him what a cricket bat looks like. Perhaps fortunately for everyone, they didn't find him. We continued the match confident that there wouldn't be a repeat. Tony

I am very clumsy and would fear for the layout. Tony

Does anyone know where to buy a single large sheet of extruded polystyrene, for a 6x2 foot ultraportable layout? I spent a lot of time this morning searching the web, and the smallest quantity I could find was a pack of 18 sheets, which would be enough to build somewhere to house it. I'm able to collect it anywhere around Greater London. Tony

Nigel Gresley looks rather live Ian McKellan in his film of Richard III. Maybe this is why Thompson was so anxious to plough his own furrow Tony

Silly question time. If the Kylchap was better, why didn't they just get a variation on the licence? Tony

A sudden stop and yellow-trousers will be mourning Obamacare Tony

I stuck tiny lengths of styrene rod into the door groove. The "hinges" look fine when the coach has been painted, and don't seem to fall off. Tony

This may be a silly question, but with all those saw cuts do you end up with a slightly shorter vehicle? One or two cut-and-shiuts I csn inderstand, but seven might have an impact. Tony

Like a bottle of fine brandy or a First Folio, you'd be frightened to even file the tabs off for fear of ruining your investment. Tony

I also had a long conversation at Scaleforum with one of the St Merrin team and understood that it was beyond saving. Apparently the building were stamped on. In the circumstances. all credit to them for deciding to go again. Tony

There was a solid forensic analysis in the last London Review of Books about Harmsworth "journalism" which was stacked with primary evidence. Made Maxwell and Murdoch look mainstream. It reminded me of the mission statement of Derek Jameson, founding editor of the Daily Star It's not so much a newspaper but asa way to get sixpence out out the punter's pocket and into the newsagent's till. Tony

I trust this apocryphal sales person told the MD where he could stick his job, took his commission and went somewhere with a rational appreciation of fixed asset maximisation and a competent procurement manager. When younger I once spectaularly over-fulfilled my sales targets. Don't remember too many glum faces among senior management. Tony

Many years ago I intermittently commited from Waterloo to Southampton. The whole run was pretty jolting, but you could spot the other regulars because at a certain spot we would all put our coffee cups on the floor, wedged between our feet. My highlight of those trains was one morning listening to a couple of neds talking about the previous night's television; one of the pat our I hate that Edna Everage, stupid Australian cow, A moment to avoid eye contact with fellow-passengers. Tony

I've just read this on Scaleforum: It might be old news but I've just come across the fact that the RCTS have made available the whole set of the "Locomotives of the LNER" green books available as a digital version that you can view for free online (after registering). Also, you can purchase searchable pdf copies for a few quid if you want them to keep. I have a full set of hard copies but one or two of mine are a bit ropey being second hand purchases. https://archive.rcts.org.uk/locomotives-of-the-lner/ The registration process isn't the easiest but once registered it is a terrific resource. Tony

I use a blend of six or seven colours mixed on the brush from a porcelain pallette - if it's good enough for Martyn Welch . . . Tony

John Brighton's DCC Millhouses layout runs flawlessly, to timetable and governed by the block instruments and signals. Convincingly railwaylike. He has a clear and comprehensive view of the Concept of what he wants the layout the layout tobe, in the nicest possible way. I think this is an essential component for a big layout, and has tightened up the mechanical aspects of my wagon-building. Little Bytham has its Concept, different but also coherent and convincing in its own terms. Tony

I didn't find the instructions to be any use at all. In the end during a quiet moment at an Expo, Danny generously took his demonstration model out of its display case and let me take half a million digital photos, which more or less did the trick. Getting the wheels to spin was a bit of a trial, too, but there's nothing new about that, sadly. Tony

I've just read on Scaleforum that biurglars have stolen almost all the locos on Liverpool Lime Street. It looks like a targetted theft. There was none of the wanton damage of the St Merrion theft - they carefully removed the roof, and packed their loot in their travel boxes. It's hard to know where they will be able to sell a large cache of late-era EM locos, and we can all keep our eyes out. Tony

Precisely - all those years sruggling along with the temperamental, steam-shy gimmick-ridden J15s.