Monopoly The Waddington's Boardgame

Since I was a young child I have enjoyed playing Waddington's Board Games.  The most famous and best selling of these is Monopoly.  Since the game was invented in 1935 over 15 million sets have been sold in the UK by Waddingtons and their successor Hasbro and over 90 million sets by Parker in the USA.
Since April, 1999 I have been developing a website devoted to Waddington's games and this can be found on
http://www.reynolds-s-a.freeserve.co.uk/WG.HTM#WGAM

There is quite a lot about Monopoly on the site so hopefully you will enjoy reading it.  We get quite a few queries about various games and just today two were answered by a kind contact and will be added to the site it due course.
The queries and replies are as follows

"Similarly Alex Rarity comments “The box is like a pinkish snakeskin pattern and the back of the board is the same. The players pieces are unusual as well they are a globe, a horses head, a typewriter, a basket of flowers with gems encrusted in it, a boot also encrusted with gems and a telephone with gems.” Any idea when this set was produced. This sounds like the 30^th Anniversary Edition with a spangled foil box and jewel encrusted tokens – thanks Fitch"

"Karin Mcguire comments that in the 1960s, her family had a version with conventional London streets and colours but the counters were very different from those used today. The counter were; blue (Mallard) locomotive, red car, yellow tractor, grey motorcycle, bronze sailing ship and green tank all in painted metal.  The hotels and houses were coloured red and green made from wood. Does anyone know anything about this edition or have a copy? These were trademark sets produced between 1950 and 1959 – thanks Fitch"

So perhaps you have some experiences of playing Monopoly are have some queries we could try and answer.

JIGSAW PUZZLE WHY BOTHER?

I get a great deal of pleasure from completing jigsaw puzzles.  I think they are very relaxing and therapeutic.  Once I start doing them all the thoughts and cares of the world just disappear. I enter a completely different world; it's just me and the puzzle.  You may think doing a puzzle is pointless but you would be wrong.  I love the challenge of finding the pieces and the satisfaction of seeing the picture gradually build up from nothing.  Then there is the elation of putting in the last piece and completing it!

If you have never done a jigsaw puzzle before you need not spend a fortune to get started.  Many charity shops stock puzzles and many can be bought cheaply from internet shops or on ebay.  It doesn't matter what size you complete but don't be too ambitious with your first choice.  The choice of the picture is though very important.  Try to pick something that will interest you.  Try to avoid puzzles with large areas of sky or green foliage.  Colourful ones I find are more satisfying. I also think it is better to buy a quality puzzle.  Thin cardboard puzzles, sadly many budget ones are made in China, can be very frustrating to complete.  Wooden puzzles from the like of Wentworth are lovely but expensive.  Of the cardboard puzzles Clementoni, Educa, Falcon, Gibsons and Ravensburger are the best makes.  However, if the puzzle states it is deluxe you can be fairly sure it will be suitably good quality and if it doesn't say deluxe if may well not be and be of thin quality.

So think about buying a jigsaw puzzle for yourself and get puzzling.  Also I am a great believer that people should start doing jigsaw puzzles at an early age as possible.  A very small puzzle is an ideal present for a child and will give them hours of enjoyment.  At any age a puzzle will relax you and add a zest to your life.

COMPLETING AN 18000 PIECE JIGSAW

Have you ever thought about completing a really large jigsaw?  By large I mean really large! In July, 2005 I commenced an 18000 piece jigsaw puzzle. This is the story of my attempt to complete it. Please contact me if you are completing or have completed this puzzle.

When I bought it it was the Largest commercially produced Jigsaw in the World. It contains 18240 pieces and is made by Ravensburger Puzzles a German Company who produce top quality puzzles. It measures when completed approx 9' x 6' or put another way about four average room doors.
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The puzzle I was completing is called Tropical Impressions and consists of South American animals and birds at a waterfall. Ravensburger also produce a companion puzzle - The 'Historical World Maps' puzzle.  There are 4 bags to each puzzle labelled A, B, C & D (the print on these bags is very faint but it is there, you just have to look carefully).  Each bag contains 4560 pieces to make one quarter of these gigantic puzzles.  

I was in two minds whether to even start the project. I saw someone wishing to sell the maps puzzle and described it as follows

“The historical world map on the top left of the picture guide (Bag A) is called 'Novus Totius Terrarum Orbis Geographica' and was probably designed by Nicholas Visscher under another name (Pseudonym).  The map on the top right (Bag B) 'Orbis Terrarum Nova et Accuratissima' is also by Nicholas Visscher.  The map on the lower left (Bag C) is from Johanne A Loon and the map on the lower right (Bag D) is by Ortelius Abraham.   I started this puzzle, but after many months I feel I won't complete it (a photo showed how much he managed to do on just 1 quarter (1 bag) of this puzzle - not a lot).   This is a real challenge for any Jigsaw fanatic or crazy person who is willing to give it a go. I had great fun doing this and I don't like to be beaten, but I must say this has beaten me and I can never see myself finishing it.   So go on, have a go, can you manage to complete this fantastic jigsaw puzzle.”

So  after some considerable I decided to take up the challenge

THE MONA LISA OF ALBIR

I am a jigsaw puzzle addict. The last puzzle I completed was a 1500 Museum Series Educa Puzzle (No. 7.712, 85X60 CM, c1996) of The Mona Lisa or LA GIOCONDA as per the Spanish title.  I had only completed a 3000 antique world map by this Spanish company but it had been a well made puzzle on good quality card.  Educa only use two lug/two hole pieces except for one lug, one wavy edge and two hole pieces.  This feature makes the puzzle easier to complete but the wavy lines do not interlock so my slight preference is for puzzles with one, two and three lug pieces which also ease the completion but always interlock.

I was on holiday in Spain and apart form a 500 piece this was the only other puzzle they had.  Probably not one I would have chosen myself.  Luckily I could leave it out on a glass seating bar table overnight.  None of the puzzle was particularly easy as the colours are not bright even near the window and with a light over a night.  Completed the outside first. 50 pieces up and 30 across  so I knew how many black pieces at the bottom would be vertical or horizontal. The flesh on the face and hands was completed reasonably easily.  The green sky not too much of a problem, but the dark green trees and brown areas much more challenging.  I was then left with about 600 black pieces of hair, background and clothing with virtually no differentiation. After I had selected the 100 or so in bright sunlight that had some differentiation I had completed most of the hair so therefore most of the top half.  As I was due to return home and holiday time come first I realised I had to pull all the stops out.  My pride was at stake and the interest of the other guests was growing so I couldn’t just walk away from it.  

So I put the bottom half over the top.  I then sorted and put together any wavy edged pieces and found their place.  I sorted the remaining pieces into horizontal and vertical.  I then had to complete the puzzle taking one underneath piece and matching it up with the mirror piece in the box.  When I thought I had found it I first checked it fitted into the bottom layer before searching for the next piece. Guests were mystified why I had put the top over the bottom but I wasn't giving my secrets away. “It was just easier to do it like that.”  I thought a retired analytical palaeontologist might cotton on to what I was doing but even he could crack the secret. After quite a few more hours I eventually completed it.  

I was able then to lift the heavy glass table top, slide the puzzle onto the wooded top underneath and put the glass back over it.  How long it will stay there like that I do not know but the barmen seemed quite impressed so hopefully there will be no reason to break it up.  So if you are anywhere near the bar/lounge area of the Hotel Kactus Albir, near Benidorm, Spain you might be lucky enough to still see The Mona Lisa Of Albir.