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I.P.M.S. UK - Telford |
Nov 11, 2002 |
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This year's annual I.P.M.S. (UK) Model Show & Championships were held within
two cavernous halls at the Telford International Centre in Shropshire. As one
of the premier hi-lights of the modelling calendar, the show was attended by a
a great number of different companies. The usual suspects, including Accurate
Armour, Milicast
Models, Great
North Roads and MMS
Models were all present and appeared to be doing a brisk trade. Others such
as Tamiya, Forge World and Airfix were also represented.
It was especially pleasing to see that a number of companies had made the trip
from overseas. Foresight Inc., for example, who were displaying a small
selection of 1/700th scale ships and 1/35th scale figures, had journeyed all the
way from Japan.
 The
public were certainly out in force. I visited the show on Sunday and was immediately
swept along by the lively hustle and bustle which moved at a steady pace in and
around the various aisles and tables. Indeed, the inattentive ran the risk
of being kneecapped by a passing carrier bag, bulging with boxes of models, or chinned by a swinging camera. In some of the narrower passages it was like trying to run the gauntlet through a crowd of rice flails. What's more, I am reliably
informed that Saturday was even busier!
One of the things that caught my eye - apart from a rather hefty 35mm SLR - was
the excellent showing by so many regional chapters of the I.P.M.S. They, along
with a number of other special interest groups, had come, quite literally, from
the four corners of the land. Many of them had travelled great distances in order
to attend. Their tables were adorned with some terrific examples of their work
- which was of the highest standard - and attracted considerable interest.
 As
one might expect at such a large gathering, the main focus of attention was on
the competition tables. These were not especially hard to miss - draped as they
were in the most vivid sort of "biohazard" pink material I have ever seen! Once
I'd adjusted my eyes to the light, however, I couldn't help but marvel at the
quality of work on display. Subject matter as diverse as the Lord of the Rings
to Wallace & Gromit could be seen sprinkled between examples of the ever
popular military, automotive and aviation genres. The standard of modelling was
extremely high. More than that, what impressed me, was the sheer depth of creativity
which had spawned such an array of imaginative vignettes and dioramas.
I spent many a long hour at the show. Much of that time was spent chatting to
various traders and members public. At other times I simply absorbed the atmosphere
and tried hard to imagine how best to convey such an event through a web page.
In many respects, shows like the one at Telford are like vast display cabinets
- where people gather to view the very best models available in the community.
I was extremely pleased to hear, therefore, that so many fans of the Total Model
web site believe it too has a similar - albeit virtual - role to play in the community.
I'm most grateful for their comments, support and suggestions and will continue
to work towards that end.
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