Artistic licence!!!

 ‘Artistic licence’!!

One of my difficulties whilst building the BLL has been the lack of success in tracking down (excuse the pun!) some suitable scale figures to ‘staff’ the Sheepham Fire Station and the Brigade Incident Response Train (known locally as ‘BIRT”!). 

Now ‘BIRT’ seems to be increasing in vehicles currently having a Water Carrier, Small Gear truck, Canteen Van and the recently added Incident Command Vehicle - but not one Firefighter to be seen!

So where needs must we have to improvise and this is where my Technical Director comes into her own and is able to turn her hands to most things in miniature!!!!!

So the first thing was to track down a figure which we could ‘convert’ into something more akin to what we needed and in doing that I have to apologise to Rob Bennet and his ‘Busy Bodies’ range of figures - from whence we obtained ‘Harold Steptoe’!

So we took, well actually paid for, ‘Harold - seen here ….

and turned him from scrap steel into …… ‘man of steel’ with Sheepham Fire Brigade!!

As you can see it was not too painful but we did have to remove the top of his head so a fire helmet (circa; 1970’s) could be fitted which she painstakingly constructed out of modelling clay. The helmet includes the leather chin strap and even the badge of the West Midlands Fire Service, in which I served for 12 years. 

Some touching up of the paint work and two coats of clear matt varnish to protect ‘Fire Officer Harold’ from the elements outside the Sheepham Fire Station, which incidentally has the Cornwall Fire Brigade (in which I served for 21 years!) badge displayed over the appliance room doors!

Seen in the next picture is Harold alongside a fellow Fire Officer who was somewhat easier to convert from ‘Colonel Pritchard’ (also ‘Busy Bodies’) into a Senior Fire Officer. The tailoring of the uniforms are very similar.

No similarities to persons past or present etc etc!!!

So we have made a start with our fire crew - I wonder what or who  will appear next? 

In the meantime - ‘Stay Safe - Obey the Rules - Wash Your Hands - Keep Your Distance - Wear A Mask - and most of all don't get Covid Complacent’!!!