Model Rail Scotland

The annual Scottish model railway exhibition was held between 25 and 27 February in the Scottish Exhibition Centre in Glasgow. I have never possessed a model railway, I regret, but I find such miniature worlds absolutely engrossing. They are beautiful and often surreal in equal measure. Those who model them take their tasks very seriously though - as one can tell from the intense looks of concentration on their faces.

 

Two charming early industrial settings with a carefully positioned partition wall to keep them separated.

 

Autumn in New England.

 

An industrial setting.

 

An American express train passes a junk yard piled high with crushed automobiles.

The best railway in show was 'Spijkspoor' and this had come all the way from near to Rotterdam in the Netherlands. It depicted a series of Dutch urban, rural and coastal scenes in the 1950s.

 

 

 

 

Fifers deep in concentration.

 

 

Connoisseurs of fine art examine a gallery full of masterful depictions of railway scenes. Clement Greenberg would not have approved.

Well, he can boast.

 

 

The hypnotic qualities of a Fife cement depot.

 

 

The Railway Inn receives a renovation.

 

Part of the scenic West Highland Line. Note the tourists taking a breather on the terrace of their hotel.

Lord of all he surveys.

 

A commuter train rumbles through a very green and verdant landscape.

 

Another favourite of mine - Donegal in Ireland, charmingly rendered in cardboard.

 

 

Relaxation in the Bavarian Alps.

 

Prize-winning garden with orchard adjacent.

 

      Naughty engine being disciplined.

 

 

Fat Tony's Used Auto shack.

 

Reading the newspaper on a bench at a wayside halt.

 

 

Deforestation in progress.

The hunt drop in for a few pints.

 

A diversity of gentlemen and their models.

 



My award for the most surreal railway - and also the most charming. If Teletubbies went by train...

Scenic accessories.

 

 

 

Fairground attractions - love the rococo organ.

 

 

A scene from the North-East of England coalflield.

 



The flat panorama one sees in Morpeth and a slightly decrepit freight yard.

 

An old restaurant car reaches the scrapyard.

 

Just Like The Real Thing.

 

Ten Commandments StoneCast Model Accessories.

 



An LMS Pacific lovingly rendered in Meccano.