Snapper

Sorry Joris, because of my own and my wife's work commitments, I can't leave for Bolero untl Friday morrning. Mark

Another view of Omaha Beach at Laurent-sur-Mer. The weather was terrible.

I've only been to Bayeux cemetery once - back in 2003. The weather was terrible. first pic: The shared grave of five aircrew from a Lancaster bomber of 49 Squadron RAF, killed together on 10th June 1944; who are buried at the Commonwealth War Cemetery in Bayeux, Normandy. They are Flying Officer pilot Bryan Esmond Bell, aged 24, from Harrow; Flying Officer air gunner Hilary Daniel Clark, aged 28, from Burnopfield Co Durham; Sergeant wireless operator/air gunner John Holden, aged 21, from Accrington; Sergeant air gunner Joseph John Reed, aged 23, from Dagenham and Flying Officer Duncan MacFadyen, aged 28 (of the Royal Australian Air Force), from Radcliffe, Queensland. and: The shared grave of three aircrew from a Bristol Blenheim bomber of 139 Squadron RAF, who were killed on 3rd August 1940 and buried at The Commonwealth War Cemetery at Bayeux in Normandy. They are Sergeant wireless operator/air gunner Owen Prys Evans RAFVR, aged 20, from Llandudno; Sergeant observer Douglas Frederick Spencer, aged 21, from Bournemouth and Flying Officer pilot Arthur Richard Brian Tedder who all served with 139 Squadron. and: some general views

The next pic was taken at La Deliverande cemetery Some men of the 7th Battalion Parachute Regiment who were killed on D Day 6th June 1944 and are buried at La Deliverande war cemetery, Douvres, Normandy. They include Private Cyril Cooper Stubbins, aged 19; Private Frederick Garnett, aged 21; Private John Walker of Meltham in Yorkshire, aged 21 and Corporal Henry Denham, aged 29. All these headstones mark the approximate site of their actual graves. I love this picture for the simple reason that the light is so accurate and is really moody. The sky, the trees and the shadows are so atmospheric. I converted from film to digital (with a Nikon Coolpix 5400 camera - always worth finding a used one if you can) in October 2003 and the quality of the light is saved because there is no chemical process involved. With digital the light is what you see.

Back again with some more pics from Banneville-la-Campagne cemetery. The shared graves of five soldiers from 10th Battalion Hampshire Regiment part of 147th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps who were all killed in action on 17th and 18th July 1944 in Normandy. They were Trooper Charles George Brant, aged 34, of Loudwater Buckinghamshire; Trooper Frederick Percival Henning, aged 32, of Southampton; Corporal Harold Edward Carr, aged 31, of Alton Hampshire; Lieutenant Basil John Drinkwater,aged 24, of Stokenchurch Buckinghamshire and Trooper Frederick Murray, aged 31, of Kingswood, Gloucestershire. AND The nearest headstone is that of George Arthur Larkins of the 4th Battalion Dorsetshire Regiment, aged 28, from Portadown, Northern Ireland who was killed on 15.08.1944. AND A general view

I'm not sure how many of you will have made it to Rouen on your way to Normandy - but if you're going try and visit St Sever Extension war cemetery. It is huge by dint of the city having the major hospital for the British Army in WW1, though there are also some WW2 graves of POWs who died in captivity. My wife's great uncle David Millar is buried there - he died of wounds in October 1918. One of the most famous grave is that of the amazing Reverend Theodore Bailey Hardy VC, DSO, MC - Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class who died, aged 54, on 18.10.1918. He won his VC for three separate acts of bravery in 1918 and was appointed Chaplain to King George V but never lived to take up the post. He came from Westmoreland

and

I'll top these up in the upcoming few days.... starting with Arromanches

Greetings, I'm not on the night shift this week and don't have much time to play - but here are a few more snaps...over this week I'll try and post some more. I should have more time later in the week than early on. But someone may have other plans. The joke goes: How do you make God laugh? Tell him your plans. A) who says he's a man, anyway B) would you talk to him/her if you had the chance C) You might not have any plans...and as Stryker says - it ain't a funny joke. I'm a bit lost, too... Here's a snap SWMBO took of her sister driving an Land Rover at a charity event at Crystal Palace some years ago. They also got to drive a digger, a bus, a fire engine and a lorry of some sort. Apparently the fire engine was good fun. Next up a view of the old Superhangar at Duxford circa 1988; then two more pix of the 2S1 and the MTLB with Big Fred on top (not the lad in the commander's hatch).

Cheers Lloyd. Miraculously - not to be underestimated - I actually knew it was an IHC M5 thanks to recognition feature in MMI years ago. Thanks for the info on it's new guise. I will look out some snaps to see if I have later stuff of it. I like being able to trace pix of vehicles through the ages. All this info helps me look clever. Glad to see you back on the forum. Hopefully see you on the circuit this year - will you be at the Hop Farm or Bolero? cheers, MB

Ta - i'm nights today as well - but the wokload has been positively unpleasant....more snaps anon. MB

joined up writing? Jack - sorry mate - but I can't do the event the weekend after the Hop Farm. Shame. If the wife runs off with George Clooney in the interrim, I may be able to rejig my calendar. mb

Good answer. It's a hotel just off the roundabout in La Defence.... Either that or an over-indulged twig or some sort of gilded pondlife. You choose...but don't think too hard. I've actually got to thinking whether she would ever have ended up as nose-art on a WW2 plane of some sort and presume the only suitable type is one of those oddities built by Blohm Und Voss.

I'd like to see your Fort in action one of these days.......

I hadn't realised the Soviets never used the T72 - but what about the ERA models. I think maybe they did. I remember it is the case that the versions built in WarPac countries were exported to pro Soviet states like Iraq because they were of a much better quality than anything built in the USSR. Is this where things get blurred. I've got a decent book on them somewhere. I think I am correct in suggesting that most T72s seen on the UK MV scene are ex-GDR. The auto-loader, made in USSR or not, is a lethal device and comments about amputee gunners is entirely correct. Nice concept, crap kit. I suppose the fact that it looks sexy (for a tank) is only a superficial thing. Working in it looks like a rubbish job. I'm sure I'm right in thinking all the crews had to be of Ronnie Corbett dimensions, presumably with arm(s) like Big Daddy. Finding a decent shirt at Primarkski must be a nightmare...

Good stuff. Will check ITV news - but you may find Paris Hilton is far more important......

I would love to be there and wouldn't miss it if it didn't clash with stuff booked in the Barnes domestic calendar. Hope it goes really well. I'll get there some day.

Andrew - it is a good snap. One is red, the other sort of buff or cream-ish - both 6X6 on civil plates. No blues and twos.

Two further views of the DX T62 running with the snorkel fixed. What a gem. I am a massive fan of WarPac kit. The exposures are crap - scanned from transparencies. But they work. Next up is a BDRM 2 armoured car from DX. If I can I'll dig out some more views of this motor from home. And that's the lot for tonight....Sorry Jack I owe you some GMCs - not sure what I have here at work. Any other requests? (excluding 'sod off')

Some jeeps from my first Beltring in 1998 - still fondly remembered. US photographer display from Beltring - same year. Still one of the most original displays I've seen. Not seen since - where are you chaps????? SBG on parade. Some familiar faces here - this is 1998. A view of the American Air Museum at Duxford. If you haven't seen it, then you must...

A view of the little GTMU apc. It has microwave aerials and loads of kit inside. Talk about claustrophobic! No prizes for identifying the next pic... This is 1998 Beltring - or maybe 99. I think these are Rolling Thunder blokes with their M38s - please correct me. Yet another ZSU 23-4. This one is from the Army Air Corps museum at Middle Wallop in May 1992 - my wife enjoyed a last holiday sans sprogs. James was born the following August. My mrs stayed outside in the shade of a DHC Beaver while I looked round....typical.

Next up is a line of WarPac stuff from DX. Alien FTM may have some interesting comments to add if he is looking in....Then we have another view of the ZSU23-4 - this is a serious bit of kit. The chassis is basically the same as the 2S1 and the MTLB and on top you have a radar guided quad 23 mm SPAAG. These seem to have been popular bits of GW1 booty - one from elsewhere to follow. The next shot shows the workshop at DX with work on a 432 in the foreground and a T34 and "Tiger" in the background. If I remember correctly this is a Polish built T34 from the late 1940s and was in a rough state. The example at the IWM Lambeth was a good runner, but the London museum got it and welded the tracks up. The "Tiger" is the example seen blown up by Mustangs at the end of Private Ryan and the DX lads did an amazing job fabricating bits to make it look acceptable for display. My first day's "work" there was when the finished tank was moved into the Land Warfare Hall. Maybe not one for the purists, but it fitted in well and I suppose it is good to see a famous film prop saved. I have got snaps of the transfer - but they are not scanned from the negatives. I didn't "go digital" until autumn 03. Fourthly - a look at the breech of the 122mm gun on the 2S1.

An airborne soldier from Beltring - he reminds me of the Airfix 1/32nd scale figures..... The Green Goddess comes from the Brighton Run from 1998 or 1999...

Another view of the Type 69. I like this tank a lot.

Greetings once again from London E1. I've had a fairly casual sort of day. Thanks for the support last night from the Guns N Roses fans - do you feel the same about the Polyphonic Spree? Anyway, one of you dear souls said they were happy for me to be on the night shift. Ta! So here we go with another melange from the Barnes digital filing cabinet. First snap shows a Jetstream at Culdrose. Sorry about the reflection off the tug's windscreen. Next up is Duxford's T55 - this one is in Egyptian colours methinks. The marching Germans come from Beltring in 1999. They were singing...probably better than the flamin' Zimmers! The next pic is a Chinese Type 69 from sunny Duxford circa Feb 2003 - just before the Iraq war. It was captured in Iraq back in GW1 and I think it has since gone to another museum to be restored. Any DX afficianados on the forum??????