December Dispatches
Dear Partners,
Welcome to a
relatively modest selection of offerings this yuletide month as we end 2023 and
look forward to 2024, just a few weeks away.
Talking of the coming year there are several major releases
planned, particularly for ‘WW2’ and ‘Vietnam’ and I
will be sharing more details as they get near. In a few days time (as I write this) I am heading to Europe
for the first time in 4 years to visit K&C collectors and dealers in 4
countries.
My Euro Itinerary begins in Italy, Milan to
be exact where I will be meeting up with Stefano of SAIMEX and
quite a few of our Italian collectors at the Christmas Milan Hobby Fair that
will take place on Sunday 26 November.
The following day I will move to Paris to
visit the two ladies Sylvie and Marie-Alix who run the
beautiful little Solda’ Telis,
a gem of a toy soldier shop, just a stone’s throw from the magnificent Arc
de Triomphe in the heart of Paris.
Just days later I also join up with Phylip and
Pierre of ‘Figurines et Collectiones’
who will host a King & Country event in Paris for many K&C
collectors from in and outside of the French capital.
After all of that it’s off again, by Eurostar to
London and the December Toy Soldier Show where
once more I will join with Stefano of Saimex who
takes part in this great annual event. I’ll also be meeting quite a few loyal
K&C enthusiasts who always attend this show.
From London I fly to Stuttgart, Germany, the
home of Porsche and Mercedes Benz. Now, I must stress
here it is not to pick up the latest model but to join up
with one of our great German dealers, Marcus Heiss-Hasala who
has organized yet another ‘Meet ‘n’ Greet’ evening on K&C’s
behalf.
This is only the second time l’ve been
to Germany on K&C business and I’m looking forward to it. Marcus held
another such event several years back which was great fun and very enjoyable.
As are all such ‘get-togethers’… K&C
Collectors always want to know about our future plans and developments
and I want to know what in particular they like… what they want to see… and
also their ideas, suggestions and general comments.
Although it’s not the cheapest way to go about getting this
information it’s simply the best way I know to forge a bond of support and
friendship between collector, supplier and dealer! It’s worth every
Euro, Dollar and Pound spent!
Now, let’s see what Santa has in store…
King & Country and yours
truly have a very long time had a deep interest and fond affection for the Second
World War campaign fought in North Africa.
For many years now K&C has
portrayed in miniature the British and Empire forces who
battled their combined German and Italian enemies under the blistering heat of
the North African sun during the daylight hours and then through the bitterly
cold nights of the Western Desert.
One of our favourite
subjects are the men of the famous AFRIKA KORPS and their equally
famous commander, Erwin Rommel, also known as ‘The
Desert Fox’.
Among the major projects K&C
is currently working on is our next all-metal ‘big cat’ tank … ‘The
Desert Tiger’.
To accompany this great model are
a whole raft of new Afrika Korps figures.
Here is just a small taste…
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AK133 ‘AK Radio Operator
w/Rifle’ |
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AK138 ‘AK MP40 Gunner’ Officers and NCO’s armed with
this weapon usually carried 7 magazines each holding up to 32 9
x 19mm Parabellum rounds. Our Squad Leader also has a
captured set of British Army binoculars! |
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AK139 ‘AK Field
Policeman’’ |
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AK140 ‘AK Field Police
Checking Papers’ |
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AK141 ‘AK Saluting
Rifleman’ |
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AK142 ‘AK Ready For Action’ |
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AK143 ‘AK Rifleman’ |
SPECIAL NOTE:
These are just the first releases
of a large number of all-new Afrika Korps figures
that will be appearing over the next 6 months or so in addition to and
accompanying our upcoming ‘Desert Tiger’.
AVAILABILITY: Early
December
Not so long ago we introduced a
choice selection of figures for our Ceremonial Series’ that
featured the cavalrymen of ‘The Blues and Royals’ who provide
part of the mounted bodyguards of the British monarchy. One particular figure was missing… A mounted Blues and
Royals officer. Well here he is…
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CE096 ‘Mounted Office of
The Blues and Royals’ |
AVAILABILITY: Early December
Special Note: K&C
is also producing another mounted figure of a senior Blues and Royals officer…
Her Royal Highness, Princess Anne, The Princess Royal who
is also ‘Colonel-In-Chief’ of the Regiment and often appears in
her specially-adapted military uniform (see our
sketch). This figure will appear, I hope, in the first quarter of
2024.
Perched high on Castle
Rock stands Scotland’s most famous and historic fortresses, Edinburgh
Castle.
This Royal Castle has stood on
the rock since the reign of King David 1 in the 12th Century
and continued to be a royal residence until 1633. As the castle’s
residential role declined it was then principally used as a military barracks
with a large garrison. That role has remained until today although with a
considerably reduced but still important military presence.
Because of its historical
position as Scotland’s most important stronghold it has been closely involved
with many ancient conflicts from the Wars of Scottish Independence in
the 13rd and 14th Century to the Jacobite
Rebellions of 1715 and 1745.
Research undertaken in the last
decade identified 25 sieges throughout the castle’s long 1100 year history giving it the title of ‘the most
besieged castle in Britain!’
Anyone visiting Edinburgh
Castle today must enter through the Main Gate which is the
inspiration for King & Country’s latest and perhaps
finest 3-dimensional façade backdrop.
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SP125(SE) ‘Edinburgh
Castle Gateway’ Length: 34.5cm
/ 13.6” Height: 25.2cm
/ 9.9” Width: 6cm/
2.36” The structure itself replicates
in miniature many of the original features that visitors can still see today. Flanking the entrance way are
two life-size statues of King Robert the Bruce and Sir
William Wallace, the dual heroes of Scotland’s War of Independence. Also featured above the entrance
is a painted shield bearing the Scottish Coat-of-Arms with
the Lion Rampant. SPECIAL / EDITION Just 300 of
these unique Edinburgh Castle Gateways have been produced and
each comes in its own strong and sturdy, full-colour presentation
box complete with a numbered certificate. |
AVAILABILITY:
Early December (just in time for Christmas!)
Here is the second of our unique display item
offerings for this Festive Season…
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SP132 ‘The Desert Village Manger’ At that time many ‘Life
of Jesus’ collectors utilized that typical Middle Eastern building for ‘Nativity’
scenes depicting the birth of the baby Jesus and brought together
many of the K&C sets that depicted the Christmas story. Move forward a few
years and the original ‘Desert Stables’ has long been sold out and
discontinued. At the same time many new collectors (and some
older ones) have frequently requested a new and upgraded version and now,
here it is. This new ‘Desert
Manager’ incorporated some of the typical design features that can be
found in the original ‘Desert Village’ offerings while adding extra details
all of its own. As you can see this
new building can accommodate many kinds of different scenes, scenarios and
figures to tell all types of stories in a variety of different historical
timelines. |
AVAILABILITY: Mid
December
Actually, nothing I’m
happy to say.
So, that’s the story so far… looking forward to
seeing and meeting some of you guys on my European tour and wishing one and all
are very Merry Christmas and a peaceful, prosperous and
healthy New Year!
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