Haul from a trip to England

I recently visited England to see my dying mother. It was a difficult time and not one for much model car hunting, but I did have time on my hands at the airports I passed through and in York, my destination there are a couple of shops I did pop in briefly to see what they had.

Most expensive for me was the Matchbox Dodge Cattle Truck for £9, with box but without its bulls, a model I remember from my childhood. By York City Walls, I found a dolls’ shop with some cars for £4 each, I bought the Corgi Ford Escort “Royal Mail” Van and the Matchbox Yesteryear 1928 Mercedes SS.

Usually in York I would visit the Wigginton Boot Sale on a Sunday morning, but not this time. I did go in Poundland and found the Matchbox ’69 Cadllac Sedan Deville with a striking two tone paint scheme (metallic green/black).

Cabinet at the Antiques Centre, York

My flight was via Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen airport and four hours waiting for my onward flight gives me plenty of time to examine in detail the full stock of Hot Wheels in the Setur Duty Free Shop. On the way out I was delighted to find the BMW 3.0CSL Race Car (second on my current HW Wants’ list after the Ford Escort), on the return journey with a similar 4 hourr stopover, I chose the crazy looking Olds 442 W30 with its giant wheels. Also at Stansted Airport there were a few diecast models and I found the yellow Lotus Esprit in their Hamley’s Store.

I found the Cattle Truck in the Antiques Centre, York (41 Stonegate), outside the cabinets they had a box of cheaper models where I picked up the white Corgi Juniors Porsche Carrera for £4.

I think some of the cars and especially the Dodge Cattle Truck maybe some kind of psychological security blanket, connecting me to a time when I felt safe and had two parents, who would on occasion buy me Matchbox cars. Now at 51, I find myself an orphan. I have mused on the psychology of collecting in an earlier post: Reflections on why I collect Diecast cars.