DISPATCHES
January 2017
WELCOME to the very FIRST “DISPATCHES” of
2017 and ... a belated Happy New Year to each and every K&C
collector and dealer wherever they are around the world.
As most of us are just getting over the “Festive Holidays” some of us are
already preparing for “CHINESE NEW YEAR” the number of releases
is relatively small compared to most normal months.
So, without further ado let’s get into them ....
1.
BEING
RELEASED IN JANUARY 2017
a)
“Rommel in Afrika Korps”
(Part Two)
Regular readers of K&C’s “COLLECTOR”
magazine will already have seen these new AK releases in the Yuletide
issue however for those collectors who have not, here are the January additions ...
AK111 “Soldier Lifting Jerricans”
An
AK soldier together with a pair of fresh water jerricans.
AK112 “Wounded German Soldiers”
Two
lightly-wounded AK soldiers awaiting transport.
AK113 “Panzer II Ausf.B”
One of the
mainstays of Rommel’s armoured force the Panzer
II could be seen all over the North African battlefields. Lightly armed
(as well as armoured) the little Panzer
II still had a vital role to play especially in reconnaissance and for
outflanking enemy positions.
Our new K&C version
(we produced another one many years ago) is in the markings of the 21st
Panzer Division and comes with the vehicle commander.
AK114
“Afrika Korps
Motorcycle”
This single seat BMW motorcycle comes
complete with the AK Dispatch Rider.
AVAILABLE
: Early January
b)
“Heilan’ Laddie”
As K&C collectors well know I am
exceedingly proud of my Scottish heritage and enjoy designing and producing Highland
Bagpipers whenever possible. Here’s the latest
...
BBB009 “The Piper”
To accompany our recently released British /
Scots “winter” infantry we decided to add on a kilted bagpiper of the
Royal Scots Fusiliers as he would have appeared in late 1944
/ early 1945. Although chilled to the bone by the terrible winter weather
this ‘hardy soul’ is still brave enough (and sturdy enough too)
to wear his regimental kilt!
c)
“KUNG HEI FAT CHOY!”
“Happy Chinese New Year!”
In this the ‘Year of the Rooster’ we’re presenting new colourful versions of some old favorites.
HK250(G&M) “The
Tangerine Buyer”
Most traditional Chinese homes and houses are decorated for the coming new year with all kinds of floral displays. Among the
most popular are the miniature orange trees and bushes which attract good
fortune and prospects for the coming Lunar New Year.
This house servant carries one of the special “Orange
Trees” while another sits at his feet.
HK254(G&M) “Celebrating The New Year”
For Chinese families the New Year is a time to come together and meet up
and enjoy good food and celebrations.
It’s also a time to return to the family
home and be with parents and bring them special gifts
as well as receiving other gifts in return from the family elders themselves.
This beautiful 5-figure set (Mother,
Father, Son and Grandparents) comes together with the small table and the
beautifully decorated blue and white vase.
AVAILABLE : Mid January
d)
“APACHE
WARRIORS”
When we released our first batch of Apaches
in 2016 we had many requests from collectors to provide alternative versions of
certain useful figures to add extra numbers to their action diorama scenes.
TRW103 “He’s Dead!”
Two figure set
TRW104 “Taking Aim”
TRW105 “Kneeling Firing”
AVAILABLE : Mid January
e)
“DEUTSCHLAND
1933”
In the years
before the Nazis came to power there were occasions when they were actually
banned from wearing their uniforms in public.
Of course there
were ways and means they could circumvent these bans and here are just 2 small examples ...
LAH208 “Adolf In Lederhosen”
As most of us know the Fuhrer was fond of
the great outdoors and, from time to time would take himself away up to the
mountains and enjoy the wonders of nature ... Here he is, nattily
attired, in traditional Bavarian “Lederhosen” for a little jaunt in the
woods.
LAH209 “Lederhosen Heini”
Next to the Fuhrer the most likely candidate
to accompany Adolf into the woods was his trusted Reichsfuhrer
SS, Heinrich Himmler.
Of all the leading
Nazis, Herr Himmler was the one who most enjoyed the long mountain walks in the
fresh Alpine air listening to the future plans of the future Fuhrer.
AVAILABLE : Mid January
f)
“THE GREAT ESCAPE”
During the 1950’s
and 1960’s rarely did a year go by without a “Prisoner of War”
movie being released by major British and American film companies.
“Stalag 17” ...
“The Colditz Story” ... “The Wooden Horse” ... “ Von
Ryan’s Express” ... and,
of course, “The Great Escape”.
All of these great movies told daring tales
of plucky and persistent Allied POW’s who, despite all kinds of privations and
problems, used their combined wits, talents and cunning to foil their German captors best efforts to keep them all locked-up and safely
contained within the multiple barbwire fences of their prison camps.
This is King &
Country’s tribute in miniature to the real men behind the wire and the many
fine movies (and some TV series) that told their stories
...
TGE001 “The Great Escapers”
Squadron Leader
Roger Bushell, immortalized as “Big X” in “The Great Escape” movie
... Next to him stands a US Army Air Force officer famed for his
insubordinate nature and a persistent escaper ... The third member of the trio
is also an American, an original member of one of the Royal Air Force’s “Eagle”
squadrons, made up of American volunteers who chose to fly for the RAF before
America entered the war.
Like many other
POW’s these men decided not to just sit-out the war behind the
barbed wire ... They were going to do their best (and their worst) to
escape and give the Germans a real ‘run for their money!’
AVAILABLE : Mid January
g)
“Talking
of Movies... “
Another favorite
movie of mine is (was) “SAHARA”, the wartime 1943 film
starring Humphrey Bogart and a large General Lee tank called “Lulubelle”. In the dim and
distant past K&C produced a Lee tank together with a standing figure of “Lulubelle’s” commander.
One of the great
joys of this hobby is being able to revisit past projects from time to time and
‘redo’ them with, hopefully, more skill and knowledge than we may originally
have had years before.
DD300 “Master Sergeant Joe Gunn”
An M3 Lee tank, attached to the British Army
in North Africa, has become separated from its unit ... Now, its commander, Master
Sergeant Joe Gunn has become separated from his tank !!!
A nice single
reminder of one of K&C’s oldest tank sets.
AVAILABLE : Mid January
h)
“From
the sands of North Africa to the streets of Olde
London” ...
A
very familiar sight on certain streets of London even today are the
mounted soldiers of the Household Cavalry. These men and horses belong to
the two most senior cavalry regiments in the British Army, the “Blues and
Royals” and the “Life Guards”. While on ceremonial
duties in London they are garrisoned at Hyde Park Barracks in
Knightsbridge in the heart of the capital.
Here, for the first
time, K&C are producing 3 individual mounted figures of the “Life
Guards”, resplendent in their red tunics and gleaming silver breastplates
surmounted by magnificent gold and silver helmets with white plumes.
All men of the “Life
Guards”, with the exception of their trumpeters, are mounted on jet
black steeds. Trumpeters ride a white horse.
Their ceremonial
uniforms today have not changed since the last quarter of the 19th
Century so Sherlock Holmes himself would not have been surprised to see them
ride down Baker Street in all their military splendor ... either yesterday or today !
WoD052 “Life Guards Officer”
WoD053 “Life Guards Non Commissioned Officer”
The backbone of any great military unit, and the “Life Guards” is
no exception, are the Non Commissioned Officers. Cavalry regiments have
some unique ranks for NCO’s such as ... “Squadron Corporal Major”
(Warrant Officer Class 2) and “Corporal of Horse” (Sergeant).
These date back to the earliest days of the British Cavalry during the English
Civil War.
WoD054 “Life Guards Trooper”
“Trooper” in the cavalry is the equivalent of a “Private”
in the infantry and the lowest entry rank to the regiment.
All mounted troopers have already completed 14 weeks of basic
training before moving onto a further 12 weeks of specific military
skill training.
For those joining the ceremonial squadrons (cavalry
regiments have squadrons, the infantry equivalent is the rifle company) a
12 week “Khaki Ride” which includes stable management,
horsemanship and basic riding skills will be taught at Windsor, near
London. Then the graduate moves to Hyde Park Barracks in the
capital where they will learn to ride wearing the colourful
ceremonial uniforms that generations of Household Cavalrymen have worn.
Fully trained troopers can expect to spend 18-24
months taking part in traditional daily duties on Horse Guards Parade
and Whitehall as well as numerous State Ceremonial occasions throughout
the year.
AVAILABLE : Mid-Late January
i)
“From
Pomp & Circumstance to Mud, Blood and Winter Snow ... “
The colour and
spectacle of London’s streets are a far cry from the daunting prospect of
fighting a brutal war in the depths of winter on both the Eastern and Western
Fronts in 1944 and 1945 ...
BBG110 “SS-Obersturmbannfuhrer
Otto Skorzeny”
One of Hitler’s favourite soldiers... This Waffen
SS officer made his reputation rescuing deposed Italian dictator Benito
Mussolini from his hidden mountain imprisonment on Gran Sasso. Since then Skorzeny
was promoted and given a number of undercover missions to perform before being
put in charge of a small unit of English-speaking German soldiers who, dressed
in US Army uniforms, and using captured U.S. Vehicles were to infiltrate Allied
lines and create panic and confusion in advance of the German attack during the
Battle of the Bulge.
Skorzeny
himself never donned US Army uniform but was a well known
and easily recognized figure in the Third Reich thanks to Propaganda Chief Goebbel’s publicity machine and won the Oak Leaves
to his Knight’s Cross for his efforts, late in the war, trying to
defend Frankfurt.
After the war he
still led a colourful and exciting life ... escaping
Allied internment ... advising foreign governments ... and even working with MOSSAD,
the Israeli intelligence service !!!
He died in Spain in
1975 aged 67.
Our latest Skorzeny figure portrays him during the “Battle of the
Bulge” wearing the reversible SS Winter / Autumn
camouflage smock / jacket and grey trousers complete with SS “Feldschmutze” (field cap).
BBG111 “SKODA Radschlepper
Ost”
On the Eastern Front one of the most urgent German
necessities was for a heavy, multi-purpose tractor that could haul supplies and
artillery over the very rough Russian road network.
In late 1941, famed
German designer, Ferdinand Porsche proposed a large, four-wheeled
drive tractor mounted on huge metal wheels that he believed could fill the
requirement.
He proposed that
his design could be built at the Skoda Automobile Plant in German
controlled Bohemia and Moravia utilizing its Czech workforce. Work
began immediately and by mid 1942 the first samples
of Porsche’s design were ready to be tested.
The results were at
best ... mixed. However an order was placed for 200 of the
now-called “Radschlepper Ost”.
Although originally
meant for service on the Eastern Front, only a handful ever went in that
direction. The vast majority served in the West particularly Normandy,
the Netherlands and even some during the Ardennes campaign.
K&C has chosen
the snow-camouflaged “winter” version of the vehicle as its first
release. Each piece includes a driver, moving wheels and a detachable
rear canvas covering.
BBG112 “KLAUS”
Rifle over one shoulder, this soldier wears
the Army pattern – “Splinter Camouflage” hooded smock and carries a
valuable jerrican of rare gasoline.
BBG113 “ERICH”
A Waffen SS “Chained
Dog” (military policeman) indicates the way to some of his
advancing comrades. Like Skorzeny, he wears the
reversible SS Autumn / Winter Camo Jacket and carries the StG44,
the revolutionary German Sturmgewehr 44 assault
rifle.
BBG114 “WILLI”
By this late stage in the war the sheer
variety of uniforms worn by Germany’s soldiers was simply staggering ... A few
however were still more traditionally dressed and this
front-line soldier still wears the long army greatcoat. However he is carrying
the “Gewehr 43” the semi automatic rifle developed during the war following
riflemen’s actual combat experiences on the battlefield with the existing
bolt-action K98.
Utilizing a 10
round box magazine the rifle, strangely enough, did not have a bayonet mount!
BBG115 “Hauptmann Stossel”
This Wehrmacht captain is wearing a non regulation fur cap together with his “Splinter Camo”
jacket ... his steel helmet by his side.
BBG116 “FRIEDRICH”
Our last infantryman of this release has
found himself a white “Snow Smock” and carries his K98 with
bayonet fixed! He’s also obtained a nice pair of captured binoculars!
AVAILABLE : Mid-Late January
2.
And
finally, a few retirements ...
AF023 Capt.
Lee ‘Buddy’ Archer
BBG050 Winter
Traffic
DD105
Churchill with his Tommy Gun
DD182
Shouting SGT.
FoB068 Old Man
& Wheel Barrow
FW103 Oswald
Boelcke
As usual I hope there’s something special
for you... If not, fear not ... there is always next month!
Best
wishes to one and all and ... happy collecting,
Andy C. Neilson
Co-founder & Creative Director
King & Country Hong Kong