Sunny Stevenage for Sunday and a feast of quality layouts to enjoy. There were too many to list but a couple really stuck in my mind.
Above you see the Orange River and Portland railway in Fn3 (Finescale G gauge). It's a massive layout hat really makes use of the larger scale to provide some amazing scenic detail. The team behind the model (the Hallellujah Players) have basically done everything you would in a small scale, but big. Everything is weathered, buildings and much of the rolling stock is scratchbuilt.
The other model that really stood out is Nonsuch. Regular readers will know I like the unusual and in a world where steampunk is now considered run-of-the-mill, it's time to push the boundaries a bit further with a layout populated by mice.
On the face of it, this sounds like a terrible idea, but in Derek Reevse's hands, the quality of the modelling makes it all work. I've seen this sort of thing where the builder has come up with an interesting idea and then executed it badly. Not here. All the modelling is top-notch and there are well-designed animations. It's a crowd-pleaser all right, but most of those who will pooh-pooh it wouldn't be able to put buildings together as well as this.
Trade was good with anything I couldn't find probably not available. The second-hand stall relieved me of a few quid too.
Cakes were excellent although you needed to get in quick for chocolate orange flapjack at the centre's cafe as there were only a couple of slices left after I bagged mine before entry.
Inside the hall, the tea bar was well stocked with very appealing doughnuts but I skipped those as one cake is plenty, or at least that's what I tell myself!
Anyway, the photo collection is one of the largest for a long while thanks to the quality of displays. You can see it on Flickr.