Shropshire Star

Video and pictures: Meccano models pull in Shropshire crowds

Model fans from across the country flocked to Shropshire to see some of the most impressive Meccano creations around.

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Scores of people attended The Telford and Ironbridge Meccano Society's winter show at Enginuity in Ironbridge over the weekend.

They were treated to models of trains, trucks and even the Red Arrows.

Among the exhibitors was Matt Goodman, from London, who showed off this Showman's Steam Engine to the delight of collectors.

The retiring chairman of the society, Chris Shute, said Meccano had captured the imagination of people young and old for more than 100 years.

"You only have to look around you to see how much affection there is," he said.

"The popularity of it is that people can make something quite complex out of a limited selection of parts. It develops skills in people that stay with them for the rest of their lives."

From trucks, trailers and trains to showman's wagons, carousels and space rockets, visitors were able to marvel at the painstaking work and inventiveness of those who had made the magnificent machines.

From its humble green and red beginnings to up-to-date robots which dance on command the world of Meccano has kept up with modern technology.

Mr Shute said the enduring success of Meccano, which was the brainchild of Frank Hornby in 1901, was down to its versatility and capacity to capture the imagination.

He said: "Meccano has been going for over 100 years and is still going strong.

"You only have to look around you to see how much affection there is. We have exhibitors from all over the country, from as far away as Lancashire and Suffolk.

"The popularity of it is that people can make something quite complex out of a limited selection of parts. It develops skills in people that stay with them for the rest of their lives.

"The first Meccano sets were red and green and then the next move on was to release yellow and blue sets.

"The latest thing has been the robots which have proved to be very popular. They are controlled by a tablet and respond to voice commands with a vocabulary of about 1,000 words.

"These robots show that Meccano is moving with the times. The traditional Meccano is still very popular and there is a thriving second hand market."

Retired web designer Alan Lovett, from Shrewsbury, was showcasing his LandRover Mark I which he had brought along to the show.

The 66-year-old said: "It took me about two to three months to make. I started working with Meccano when I was about four.

"It gets you into engineering and really makes you think about how things work. Over the years I have made about 50 to 60 models. It is very rewarding at the end when they work."

Chris Instone, 41, from Stourbridge, was showing how his robot Frankie worked.

"It is really very simple. It took me about 12 hours to put together. I work as a signal man so fitted it in around my job," he said.

"Some people say it isn't Meccano but it is, just taken it to another level. I was into Meccano when I was a kid and then started up with it again about three to four years ago."

Acting chairman Dave Bradley, 50, from Sandwell, has been collecting since he was a child and now has more than 350kg of it stored in his bedroom at home.

"It has been a hobby of mine since I was nine. I generally make vehicles and the largest I made was a 15ft long Australian road train.

"I tend to make something, keep it for a couple of years and then take it apart to make something else. I guess that is the appeal of Meccano."

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