Having grown up on active RAF camps it was inevitable that building model aircraft kits as a child would follow. And this all came flooding back after a recent visit to the Imperial War Museum Duxford.

What I wasn’t prepared for was just how graphic everything was. I don’t think it had ever occurred to me just how much aircraft symbols had influenced me as a child and yet it was always the graphics that stood out.  Duxford is a visual feast, a confusion of bold strong shapes, typography and symbols.

Another aspect is the phenomenal way in which the planes are displayed convincing you that they are just models hanging from your bedroom ceiling. It is not that they are full size but it feels like you have been reduced to 1/72nd scale.

Duxford is well worth a day out but make sure you give yourself enough time to look round. There are several hangers given over to the story of British and Commonwealth aviation, air and sea, the Battle of Britain, a 1940 operations room, American air museum and land warfare museum. Phew.

Pull up in your car at a country park venue, grab a gourmet burger, fries, drink, popcorn. Pick up some fantastic RAC freebies while someone cleans your car. Then switch off, sit back and watch a movie. Not bad for £15 a car or even £30 if you’re a non-member.

On Wednesday night a gang from Milestone went to see Grease at Alexandra Palace on the RAC Drive-in Movie staff night. And it was great fun. This series of events is a concept we came up with for RAC back in December ‘09. And now it’s happening – delivering the most amazing brand experience for those lucky enough to get a ticket.

It’s a truly integrated marketing campaign featuring events, competitions, radio, PR, social media, web, press and more. If you’ve missed it this year, let’s hope they run it again next summer. It’s worth joining RAC for this alone!

The annual Milestone Beer and Boulles evening was hastily scheduled in this year to take advantage of the rare balmy evenings (one year we played in the rain!) Held at the Royal Oak Pub near Marlow, which has a magnificent flood-lit petanque court. I’m not sure the exact difference between Boulle and Petanque but I believe it’s something to do with the number of balls you’re chucking.

There’s not many sports that everyone can compete at on the same unlevel playing field but this is one of them. Richard Collins was the overall winner with a consistent display of jack-touching accuracy. But we all had good fun. And good food. The only problem – we finished all the Rebellion Beer!

I see quite a lot of scooters on the roads these days. Mostly they’re nasty high pitched things ridden wildly by scrawny youths with one hand full on the throttle, the other texting. But I was a scrawny youth myself once and rode a scooter too. It was a 1966 Lambretta SX 200 and it was just the thing to be seen on during the mod revival of the 80s. I haven’t seen it since 1989 after a nasty altercation with a Volvo.

So, I was very pleasantly surprised to see two classic ‘Lammies’ drop in at Milestone last week. The two vallient scooterists were client, Phil from Denman and his friend Connor. They were travelling back from a European Lambretta rally in Spain to Belfast and decided to pop in, as you do. Quite a feat on these 40 plus yr old machines – although there was a gear cable repair needed, yards from our office. The matching sixties caper movie suits were a nice touch too.

So another bank holiday Monday and what to do. We were recommended Bourton-on-the-Water with a ‘watch out its dead popular’ warning attached. Regularly voted one of the prettiest villages in England, Bourton-on-the-Water has more than its share of Cotswold houses and cottages, many of them three hundred years old, some dating back to Elizabethan times four hundred years ago.

Amongst the may attractions is the Cotswold Motoring Museum and what a treat.

The collection neatly represents a slice of motoring history from the 20th Century. The big showstoppers are, of course, the over 40 cars, the caravans, the motorcycles, the dozens of bicycles, but what will really take your breath away is the huge amount of related material. It is the showcases packed with motoring paraphernalia, the old garage equipment, the walls filled with enamel signs, the petrol pumps and globes, everything connected with motoring from branded hat pins to an AA box. It’s a graphic designers sweet shop.

My personal favourite was the 70’s room including a caravan packed with nostalgia and glass cabinets heaving with classic 70’s graphics.

And just when you think it’s all over situated within the museum is the toy collection, the room is almost full of every dinky model and magazine imaginable. If you’re a fan of model kits, you can see many of the wooden, plastic and metal kits that have been on sale through the last fifty years.

While we didn’t get around all of the other attractions the Dragonfly Maze designed by sculptor and writer Kit Williams was well worth getting lost in.

Elephant Parade at More London

Last week I popped up to town to enjoy wine and nibbles at a Stirling University Alumni gathering. What motivates us to go along to these sorts of things I’m not really sure. After all it’s a bit of a schlep to More London, on the South bank next to Tower Bridge. Invariably they’re full of complete strangers, so it’s not about catching-up with old friends. The opportunity for some informal networking is part of the pull. But I think it’s really about revelling in a bit of University nostagia. Spending four years in a place from the age of 18 you get a certain attachment to it. I think it kind of becomes part of your identity. Therefore meeting up with fellow Stirlingites is perhaps good for the soul. If that’s the case then I can’t help feeling that we could do more to enhance the full Stirling experience on the night. Instead of fine wine and canapes we should have had Thunderbird or Buckfast Wine straight from the bottle. Or deep fried mars bars washed down with pints of Heavy. A big cut-out of the Wallace Monument in the corner would be a nice touch. (Anyone who’s been to Stirling will know this impressive landmark dominates the landscape in that part of central Scotland). Anyway, despite the refined surroundings we all got into the Stirling spirit and I look forward to the next one.

This year we avoided the carnage of Beaconsfield fair and instead paid a visit to Carter’s Steam Fair in West Wycombe. We had been tipped-off by Richard Collins that it was a retro delight. And he wasn’t wrong. There were genuine Victorian steam powered rides through to 50s and 60s classics including the incredible ‘Wall of death’. The sixties sports car merry-go-round caught my eye as well as my two year old’s. He spent ages debating which particular vehicle suited him best and then chickened out altogether. The choices were an E type Jag, Ferrari, Lotus, BRM and a Vespa. I pondered the selection. They must have been the coolest choices of the day. I wondered what the choices would be on today’s version of the same ride. And would any British cars still make the line up?

It was many years ago now that Milestone got involved in the Green Apple Awards. It all started with the conception and production of an interactive CD rom on noise pollution. It was commissioned by South Bucks District Council and intended for under 11 year old’s. SBDC entered it into the Green Apple Awards and it won an award. I was invited along to the awards where I met the organiser Roger Wolans. I was very impressed and felt compelled to offer our help, that was over 10 years ago now.

The Green Apple Awards are part of the Green Organisation an independent, non-political, non-activist, non-profit environment group dedicated to recognising, rewarding and promoting environmental best practice around the world.

Set up 1994 experience has shown that many have followed the examples of environmental best practice demonstrated by the Green Apple Award winners.

The Green Organisation is funded by membership and sponsorship, with valuable support from the Environment Agency, the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management, the Municipal Journal and several other professional bodies.

Since then I have had the privilage of Judging for both the Green Apple Awards and the Built Environment Awards.

This year saw the 16th International Green Apple Awards for Environmental Best Practice. The Awards were presented by star of screen and stage, former Bond-girl and keen environmentalist; Alexandra Bastedo, at an exclusive event at the House of Commons on November 17th, attended by more than 400 guests and VIPs.

Winners included: FIAT GROUP AUTOMOBILES UK LTD, BELFAST CITY COUNCIL, SHENZHEN MISTAR ELECTRONIC CO, CHINA, NGOMONGO VILLAGES / GLOBOVILLE COLLEGE, KENYA, INCHCAPE FLEET SOLUTIONS, NISSAN MOTOR GB LTD,
To name but a few.

Milestone has had a long relationship with the Institute of Ideas who have been  pioneering a fresh and engaging format for debate that is injecting new life into schools debating. Working in collaboration with teachers and schools, the Institute of Ideas and Pfizer Debating Matters Competition challenges and encourages young people to actively engage with contemporary debates, to research issues thoroughly, to learn to communicate effectively and to argue for what they think.

Earlier this  year I was asked to sit on the judging panel for the regional finals at Bristol University. It was an amazing experience and encouraging to see such well argued debates on varying hot topics by the next generation of free thinkers. In November the qualifying rounds began and I was asked to judge at the Berkshire qualifying rounds at The Piggott School in Wargrave. St Bartolomews School, The Piggott School, The Holt School and Windsor Girls School fought it out over three grueling rounds. The topics included ‘Pop artists should be judged on their work, not their life style, Closed circuit TV is a threat to our freedom and It is irresponsible foe women over 5o to have babies’.

The role of the judging panel is to sit and listen to the debates before cross examining the teams. It is important the teams have researched their topics and are able to support their arguments. In the end it was The Piggott School who went through, but it was a close thing.

MEGAS: MediaGuardian Innovation Awards

The MediaGuardian Innovation Awards launched for the first time in 2008 and created an immediate impact. Judged by a high profile panel of movers and shakers the Megas provoked debate, discussion, tantrums and tabloid headlines, and ultimately a fantastic line up of winners. In 2009 the MediaGuardian Innovation Awards were back, and this year, Milestone was shortlisted in the Corporate Communications category. It proved to be a fantastic night, exhibiting some of the best work around.