Voting for this years British Model Railways Awards promoted on RMweb and British Railways Modelling Magazine is now live and open for voting until 9th February, with the winners being announced in the Spring edition of British Railways Modelling Magazine and on RMweb.

As well as giving you the chance to vote for your favourite models and manufacturers of the year, the categories also celebrate excellence and innovation in the wider British model railway scene such as websites and exhibitions (see below).

There have of course been a number of Southern / Southern Region related models released during 2016  so I urge you to support the production of these models by choosing your best in the relevant category and voting accordingly. These Southern models are as follows:

N Gauge:

• Dapol – SR Schools Class V 4-4-0

00 Gauge

• Bachmann / Model Rail Magazine USA 0-6-0 tank
• Hornby 0415 Class Adams Radial 4-4-2t 
• Hornby Class 71 Electro Diesel
• Hornby ex LSWR Muansell 58ft non corridor stock
• Hornby Cattle trucks to Diagram 1529 and 1530
• Although not SR related the Hornby W4 Peckett 0-4-0t is also an excellent little model

Following a few difficult years Hornby certainly appear to have turned a corner, and with the Cattle trucks to Diagram 1529 and 1530 and the ex LSWR Muansell 58ft non corridor stock alone have provided us Southern modellers with some excellent models (and more are to come in 2017 I assure you) so must be in with a good chance in the 00 manufacturer of the year category this year…

I am also very humbled to see that this little corner of the blogosphere of mine has once again been nominated (it was voted 4th in last years awards) within the website of the year category, so and this is a bit of a, well a big, shameless plug, please feel free to vote for it, if you have enjoyed my ramblings over the last twelve months.

Regular readers will also know that I am member of the High Wycombe and District Model Railway Society and our annual Wycrail exhibition is once again of those that has been nominated in the Exhibition of the year category, so again if you attended it, enjoyed it and think it deserves your vote…

Also if like me you have received excellent service from a particular retailer such as Kernow Model Rail Centre please also vote accordingly.

Please make sure you vote counts to support the Southern / Southern Region models that have been produced in 2016 by voting here before the 9th February.

Here endeth the shameless plug(s)….