James May's Toy Stories

James May's Toy Stories is much more than just a TV tie-in. Inspired by James's exploits, the book covers both the stories behind a number of classic toys and the adventures in summer 2009 as James and his helpers, children and adults of all ages, build and recreate a range of toys in a series of Top Gear style escapades. In six ambitious projects, he enlists the help of volunteers and schoolchildren to help him build a 1/1 scale model kit of a Supermarine Spitfire Mk I; creates the world s longest Scalextric track at the historic Brooklands motor-racing circuit in Surrey; builds a full-size Lego house; enters a garden made entirely from Plasticine in the RHS Chelsea Flower Show; attempts to run a Hornby train set along a 10-mile stretch of track from Barnstaple to Bideford and uses a giant Meccano bridge to span the 40ft Pier Head canal in Liverpool. Each chapter includes details of how the projects were constructed, with diagrams, illustrations and informal photography taken during the filming. The book also features a history of the toys themselves, from their early British roots to their international appeal today. James May explains why each of these toys gave him so much pleasure as a child and how, through the adventures he devised, they can still provide days of endless fun. About the Author James May is a well-known writer, broadcaster and co-presenter of BBC TV's 'Top Gear'. He also writes a weekly motoring column for The Daily Telegraph. James enjoys cars, motorcycles, light aircraft and a drink, always in that order. He lives in Hammersmith with Fusker, the world's most unpleasant cat.