Thomas and friends thrill young and old

To go into Masterton Town Hall on Saturday was to be a giant, even for the children.
Crowds of young families and dedicated railway buffs flocked to see the Model Train Show, hosted by the Wairarapa Railway Modellers.
In the foyer, sales tables were packed with tiny people, cars, trees, and especially trains.
In the hall itself, those elements and plenty of tracks and carpentry were arranged in intricate detail - and then set in motion with battery power.
"Look For Trains" a sign alerted, comically redundant in light of both the non-threatening size and the sheer abundance of track-borne vehicles on display.
Spectators marvelled at the attention to detail, as layouts ranged from a strict scale of 1:76 to the larger and less stringent G - for garden.
Intricate figurines of businessmen, mothers and children could be seen packaged for sale in the foyer or waiting at the stations of the displays inside.
Real-life tiny twigs became great logs freighted from a yard.
Wood, cardboard and foil became steel, corrugated iron or timber, settings for the vast variety of locomotives and their carriages.
In the centre of the hall the very youngest train fans were well catered for, as Thomas the Tank Engine and all his many friends whizzed around a railway spaghetti junction that took up three tables and three storeys.
Architect Paul Reid built up the collection with wife Diana Watkins for their son Jacob, now 6.
"It grew like topsy," Mr
Reid said.
Young fan Charlie Preston, 3, excitedly identified for this reporter Toby and Percy, among the many faces of the Thomas the Tank Engine characters.
Exhibitor Rob Wilson, of the Christchurch Garden Railway Society, explained the popularity of the garden scale models compared with their smaller relatives.
"I started out small, like everyone does," he said. "And as your eyesight goes, you get bigger."
Mr Wilson said he started collecting model trains with his brother at primary school.
"It's a 50-year obsession, or some call it a hobby.
"Above all else it's fun: light, colour, movement, sound."
Mr Wilson brought the layouts up from Christchurch in a specially-built trailer.
"The trailer actually dictates the size of the layouts," he said.
"It took 12 hours to drive it up, from 3am to 3pm, and then we had to set it up."
Mr Wilson's trip to Masterton was funded by the organisers of the show, sponsored by the Wairarapa Building Society.
He was also in town as a talent scout, seeking Wairarapa exhibitors to invite to a larger show that is held in Christchurch - and he liked what he saw.
"We will be speaking to (some) people to bring them down."