Re-discovered yesterday ......Phoenix Model Developments

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fogie

fogie

A Fixture
Joined
Sep 9, 2015
Messages
1,682
Location
St. Ives, Cormwall
My combined workbench and display cabinet is an old solid oak roll top desk. It has a multitude
of pigeon holes within, a number of deep drawers below, and a cavernous multi shelved and glass
doored cabinet above. I believe it came originally from a doctor's surgery. On a precarious and all too rare dusting operation yesterday, high in the corner of the topmost shelf - some nine feet above sea level so to speak - I found this forgotten rarity. It must have been up there for more than 30 years.

From memory, it was produced by Phoenix Model Developments probably sometime in the 80's,
and shows one of Norman Thelwell's greatest creations - that delightful equestrienne Penelope. I vaguely recall hearing all sorts of things about copyright issues when this appeared back then - but after all this time can't be certain. It was cast in three solid pieces likely to be pewter - it's certainly rather weighty. Anyone out there seen it's like before, or able to shed any further light ?

Mike
thelwell.jpg
 
Thanks for sharing this! It's an interesting piece; really a caricature, rather than a depiction. I didn't know Phoenix ever produced a piece like this.

Prost!
Brad
 
Hi Brad

Don't know if Norman Thelwell's popularity was the same in your part of the world, but here he
was a celebrated cartoonist/ illustrator whose humour centred around an affectionate send up of
that traditional British institution ' The Pony Club '. Here's a typical example which will give a
handle on the 'figure'.........



91EmNDb7GYL.jpg
 
Blind Pew said:
.... I'll have to get you to dust off my place mate, if you've got a minute.
Click to expand...

Not something I do often. The desk is a massive Edwardian thing we 'inherited' when we bought the house forty years ago - it
was left behind by the previous owner as being to heavy to move I suppose. Dusting it involves going out into the garage for a
tall step ladder and goodness knows what. My wife recently got one of those hand held GTech vacuum things and was anxious
to try it out - so the desk received the treatment. Best I can do is ask her if you can borrow it.

Mike
 
Absolutely, Alan, I've no intention of getting rid of it ( The idea of getting rid of any figure is enough to turn the blood cold ).
Got some enquiries running with PMD and a couple of other contacts just in case there's someone old enough still around
who remembers anything about it - If I get answers I'll post them here.....

Mike
 
Thanks ... at first glance it seems the same. certainly an identical pose. But a closer look reveals that the eBay figure
has a different base featuring a 'Thelwell' distinctive logo. I believe it's a bisque porcelain figure - the kind of thing that
Beswick produced. Nice of course, but not, alas, the same.

Mike
 
Oh, it's a neat figure, I just don't recall seeing anything like it in any of the Phoenix catalogs I have. Doesn't mean Phoenix didn't produce it, of course. Though, is it marked in any way? I would expect some identifying mark, if Phoenix produced it. Was there a series of these?

Prost!
Brad
 
theBaron said:
...is it marked in any way? I would expect some identifying mark, if Phoenix produced it. Was there a series of these?
Click to expand...

Not much doubt as you can see, but It certainly didn't feature in any of their catalogues. In those days I would have bought it directly from PMD
and indeed I remember the usual plastic bag and card header packaging. As I mentioned earlier I also recall some sort of copyright issues at the
time. The Thelwell executors are extremely vigilant about unlicensed stuff so perhaps the figure was pulled.

MIke




Dsc_0532.jpg Dsc_0532.jpg Dsc_0531.jpg
 
An extra thought, Brad ....I don't know what you think, but to me it looks like the Phoenix logo is bordered by
the name 'Phoenix - Chiltern' ( which I guess refers to Chiltern Miniatures - a company who it seems were also
associated with the production of Thelwell merchandise), and the words 'fine English Pewter'.

Mike
 
Hello guys...a bit late to this thread ( over a year !!). I was researching some Phoenix Chiltern RAF Battle of Britain figures that I’d found and stumbled across this forum and thread. So I’d thought I’d add my bit. So in no order of importance...to the best of my knowledge Phoenix-Chiltern has no connection to Chiltern Miniatures, but was a brand name given to various commissions given to PMD by a guy named Fred Moore who was an entrepreneur in the gift market. The Thelwell ponies were one of Fred’s commissions and in his typical ‘gung ho’ style had a limited number produced that he would show at gift fairs to gauge interest. As You rightly say, The Thelwell brand was fiercely protected and following a slap in the wrist Fred withdrew the range. ( Not the only occasion this happened.) There were quite a few items that PMD produced that did not appear in their catalogues not just the Chiltern range. By the way, I’m son of Brian Marlow MD of Phoenix Model Developements..that’s how I know.
 
During the 1970s we had a club visit to Pheonix and I remember seeing a similar figure. Brian Marlow tod us it was a range of Private commissions he had done. There were a number of figures there including some Hinton Hunt 30yrs. war figs, and a range of Swedish Kings and Queens, all Private Commissions. Hope that answers your questions. Ray
 
Son of PMD said:
A pic of the Phoenix-Chiltern Battle of Britain set ( 1980 )...
Click to expand...


As you said it's been a while since I first posted this thread but good of you to come back
to it. I like the Battle of Britain figures a lot..they're a joy to see. I was a big fan of PMD's
stuff back in the day, particularly Tim Richards's pre 'Atlantis' work. I rather lost interest
when he started to specialise in boobs and bums, but. his Georgian, Regency, and Victorian
figures were miniature works of art both beautifully sculpted and cast. PMD are woven into
the very fabric of this hobby, so it would be interesting to hear and see more from you about
them. All the best

Mike
 

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