A trip down memory lane

Although I have been very busy for the past few days, I have managed to spend some time reading old copies of MINIATURE WARFARE. They were given to me by David Crook, who recently bought them at a boot fair. The magazine's came ready-bound in green binders with the name of the magazine in gold lettering on the spine, and include all the issues in volumes one to three.

The magazine was published and edited by John Tunstill, who lived less than two miles from my present address, and who later owned a toy soldier shop near the a Imperial War Museum. It is interesting to note that in the first editorial he wrote in February 1968 that expected to initially reach a world-wide audience of about five thousand.

The names of the writers of the first articles published also make for interesting reading, as do the subjects they wrote about. They include:

• Ed Smith: Fact or Fiction in Early History
• Malcolm Woolgar: Cavalry Training: Horsed
• John Tunstill: ACW Campaign Part 1
• Anthony Anderson: On Naval Matters
• John Davis: Napoleonic Fighting Formations
• Jack Scruby: Letter from America
• Phil Barker: Modern Rule Proposals
• Bish Iwaszko: Modern Warfare

The advertisers in the first issue included:

• Historex (from Historex Agents of Dover, Kent)
• Hinton Hunt Figures (both direct from the manufacturer in Taplow, Buckinghamshire, and from the Model Soldier Boutique, Camden Passage, London)
• Minitanks (from Model Hobby Products, Halifax, Yorkshire)
• Jack Scruby Miniatures (direct from the manufacturer in Visalia, California)
• Edward Suren/'Willie' Figures (of Ovington Street, London)
• Bellona (based in Bracknell, Berkshire)
• Morgan-Grampion Books (of The Strand, London) advertising CHARGE! OR HOW TO PLAY WARGAMES by Brigadier P Young and Lt Colonel J P Lawford [The book was also reviewed in this issue of the magazine]
• Airfix
• René North Uniform Cards (based in Blackheath, London)
• A A Johnston Military Books (of Langport, Somerset)
• The Garrison (W&P [Militaria] Ltd., based in South Harrow, Middlesex)

The first three issues were printed on ordinary paper, and the quality of production seemed to improve with each issue. By May 1968 the inside pages of the magazine were being printed on glossier paper which allowed for photographs to be used (previously the magazine had only included line drawings), and by July 1968 the thin card plain cover was replaced by one with a coloured title banner at the top and a black and white photograph below.

Amongst the more iconic issues was that of May 1970, which featured a picture of Edward Woodward in the role of CALLAN on the cover.

It also featured two pages of photographs taken during the production of the episode where Callan goes to a Wargame Convention and takes part in a number of tabletop battles with Heathcote Land (played by actor Anthony Nicholls) in a magnificent wargames room. I don't think that I was alone in drooling over the latter ... and hoping that one day I would have somewhere similar in which to fight my wargames. It is now nearly fifty years later, and I do have a toy/wargames room of my own, even if it is not quite as luxurious as that featured in the TV programme!