1990s Toys/games

After several months away, I’m returning to the 1990s to finish off the last few categories.

Thunderbirds Tracy Island (1992)
In 1992, this was the must-have Christmas toy – the secret headquarters of the Tracy family, known as the International Rescue’s “base.” But demand outstripped supply, leading to a shortage. Blue Peter came to the rescue, showing viewers how to build a home-made version out of household waste. The BBC was then, in turn, overwhelmed by requests for copies of the instruction sheet for making the model. Eventually the broadcaster stopped sending out the sheets and released a recording of presenter Anthea Turner’s demonstration, Blue Peter Makes a Thunderbirds Tracy Island, on VHS.

Sony PlayStation (1994)
On December 3, 1994, Sony released the first PlayStation in Japan. The Playstation, which sold for 37,000 yen (about $387), skyrocketed in popularity and was considered Sony’s most important product since the Walkman. It was released in the US in September 1995 and was an instant hit.

Tickle Me Elmo (1996)
After coming up with the idea of creating a stuffed animal that would laugh when someone tickled it, inventor Ron Dubren teamed up with engineer Greg Hyman to create a stuffed animal with laughing technology. Although that toy was never successful, Dubren’s idea lived on. In 1996, the Tyco toy company asked to use Dubren’s technology to create a doll with the character of Elmo from Sesame Street . Tickle Me Elmo (or Elmo Cosquillas as it was known in Spanish), became one of the most popular children’s toys and was named the most desired toy of the 1996 Christmas shopping season. It now lives on the list of “100 Greatest Toys of All Time” from TIME magazine.

Toy Story Buzz Lightyear Action Figure (1996)
This saw a re-run of the Tracy Island shortage. Due to the enormous success of Toy Story upon its release, Thinkway Toys was unable to meet the demand for Buzz Lightyear figures in the holiday season of 1996. With the assumption that Woody would be the most popular character, only 50,000 Buzz Lightyear toys were manufactured compared to 200,000 Woody toys. The supply deficit resulted in hundreds of shoppers queuing in the hope of purchasing a Buzz Lightyear toy and required the delivery of emergency supplies, with the BBC describing Buzz as “the year’s most sought-after Christmas present.”

Nintendo 64 (1996)
On June 23, 1996, the Nintendo 64 was released in Japan, becoming the first home console to feature an analogue stick as the primary controller. In September of that year, the N64 made its way to the US The console was a breakthrough in the gaming industry, allowing users to aim with precision and control like never before.

Tamagotchi (1996)
The Tamagotchi, the original virtual pet , is a childhood staple of the 1990s. Released in 1996 by Bandai, more than 40 million units were sold worldwide. In a way, the portable handheld device taught children to be responsible, from playing with the pet to picking up their virtual waste.

Gaming

• Home consoles become powerful and affordable enough to begin replacing trips to the arcade. Gaming, along with animation in general becomes more appealing to adults.

• CD-ROMs, which were first introduced as a software storage media with the 1988 launch of the PC Engine CD-ROM² System in Japan, gradually replaced ROM cartridges and floppy disks as the primary storage media for video games, starting with the release of platforms such as the Turbo Duo and Sega CD, later on with the PlayStation and the Sega Saturn, while CD-ROM drives for PCs became standardized. The sole exception was Nintendo, who chose to employ cartridges for their subsequent home console, the Nintendo 64.

• Online multiplayer environments are popular over the internet during the later half of the 1990s. The first console with built-in Internet connectivity was the Dreamcast in 1999, which failed due to the low download speeds common at the time but eventually led to an online-centric gaming industry by the late 2000s.

• First-person shooter games become popular with the release of Doom (1993). 3D graphics overtake the traditional 2D graphics in the mid-nineties with the release of Quake and Super Mario 64 in 1996.


Heaven must be missing an Angel

It’s not often you get a bona fide Angel come into your life, and to be perfectly honest, most of us are so busy on our own particular treadmills we wouldn’t even notice her.
But I have met enough truly beautiful souls to recognise one when she flutters into my life on gossamer wings.

Mandy Kendrick and her husband, Gabriel, are living the dream right now, having given up life in the fast lane for a simpler existence, living in harmony with nature, their three kids and some livestock. But this wasn’t enough for them, they’re on a mission to make a difference in this world by sharing their hints, tips and planet-friendly recipes.

On the way, they hope to inspire people who are wavering about taking the plunge into a self-sufficient lifestyle.

And an extra bonus – they are passionate about reading and spend hours helping authors to spread the word about their books, be they escapist fiction or inspirational self-help books.

They also post reviews on their favourite tools, gear, and books which make life on the homestead more efficient, enjoyable, and productive.

You can find out more by clicking on the pictures or the following links:

https://www.instagram.com/livinon1100th
https://www.tiktok.com/@livin.on.1100th
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61567559150099

The Traitors

Hands up, I’m an addict. At least, I have an addictive personality. Hence my ability – nay, compulsion – to binge watch.
Goodness knows how I ever managed before netflix/prime (other streaming services are available) came along. Oh, I remember – it was wall-to-wall videos.

Anyway, the first thing I did after my marathon of researching/ writing/publishing/promoting the Time Doctors series {which lasted 25 month), was catch up on one of the series I’d been missing out on: The Traitors.
The huge pull for me had to be Claudia Winkleman – she can do no wrong in my book.

I started watching S3 Ep3, and was instantly hooked, binging all the way through to Ep9 in a couple of days. Because I had to wait several days for Ep10, I loaded up on the entire series 1 and 2 in between times. Normally I can’t stand reality shows (unless it’s Strictly, which doesn’t count because, well, it’s Strictly), but this one had me well and truly hooked. Not just because of Claude’s scary-faced delivery and stern voice, but the whole set-up of people trying to outsmart their fellow inmates. Genius.

And what a setting – although they’re not fooling anyone about the contestants’ accommodations being off site – why bother with the footage of the landrovers? Not cool guys. But I guess they’ve been getting away with the Strictly Sunday results show subterfuge since forever …
I just found out there’ll be a celeb one – could be fun – depends on how seriously they take it and whether they can put their egos aside. And how fun that Molly, who should, by rights have won series 2, is now a contestant in Dancing on Ice?

Jacky Gray on Insta?

Writing stories is my jam, much more fun than posting on Instagram.
The idea of spending so much time creating content and schmoozing people for likes and shares doesn’t sit well with me. Hence putting it off all the time I was writing the Time Doctors series. But now it’s done, I’m finally taking the plunge and going for it.

Here are some of the reels I’ve posted so far.

Sneak preview – Lost in Time – Part 5

“You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear that sound from you.” Something feral glittered in his eyes as his tongue darted out to moisten his lips, the message obvious. “Oh yes. Not just thinking about you, but imagining all manner of scenarios where you would have no choice but to succumb to my … shall we say … desires.”
So the veneer of gracious civility was simply a pretence, designed to disarm her. Or something. It had certainly put her right back on her guard, tensing for his next move. “Excellent. You have no idea how much of an aphrodisiac your fear is. I’m going to enjoy bending you to my will – you will definitely be my biggest challenge so far.”
The not-even-thinly veiled threat in his tone sobered her completely, although the tiny sip meant she wasn’t even approaching squiffy. Or at least she shouldn’t be. Had he drugged it? She tried to think back to whether the bottle had already been open, but he’d definitely poured both glasses together. Unless he’d added something to her drink.
“Are you all right? You seem a little peaky.”

That did it. “You put something in my wine.”
“I did?” He laughed out loud. “I suspect you’ve been watching too many James Bond films.” He picked up her glass and gulped back a large swig. “I assure you I’ve never had to drug a woman in my life.”
“Not when you can intimidate, terrify or threaten her.”
“What’s the difference?”
She glared. Now he wanted to talk semantics? He was obviously just toying with her, bully that he was. She should take his toys away. Subtly. Any overt demonstration of his lack of power over her would inevitably lead to a puffing up of feathers and a desperate desire to dominate. A cool glance. “I’m sure you’re smart enough to figure it out.”
Raising her glass in a toast, he emptied, swilled and dried it before pouring more wine and offering it.

Despite his attempts to disconcert, she was starting to get the measure of what he really wanted. The trick would be in making him think she was being duped into satisfying his weird “desires.” She accepted the glass and took another small sip, then gestured at the room. “As for James Bond – this whole set-up is straight from a Bond-villain scene. Right down to the dastardly laugh.”
He obliged with a suitably demented cackle, tapping his steepled fingers in the classic bad-guy gesture. Then his whole demeanour changed as he sat forward. “Diverting though this is, we should get down to business.”
Putting the glass on the desk-cum-table, she resisted the compelling impulse to fold her arms against his onslaught. “What happens if I refuse?”
“Did I not make myself clear? Refusal is not an option.” He paused. “On either count.” “You can’t make me do anything which would hurt Eric.”
Another belly laugh. “Whatever gave you that idea? Hurting him is the very last thing I want. He’s of no use to me unless his brain is in full working order, and that won’t happen if he’s missing a finger.” Another pause. “Or a leg.”
Ignoring the graphic images his words conjured up, she glared. “And you think his brain will be in full working order when he finds out what you’ve done to me?”
“Exactly what have I done apart from treat you to a very fine Syrah?”
She clamped her lips together to stop herself from falling into his trap.
“How hurt do you think he’ll be when he finds out you’d rather meet me than celebrate your twentieth anniversary in the romantic Scottish location where you were wed?”
She managed to quell a second gasp, but only just.
“Eric’s a passionate man and you’re a very attractive woman – or at least you would be if he didn’t make you dress like a frump.” His sidelong glance said he was baiting, and she refused to rise to it.
“But how much does he trust you? Do you honestly think he’ll believe you could spend a couple of hours alone in a hotel room with a man of my reputation and not have sex?” “You flatter yourself.”
“Every day. It has far more sincerity than compliments from toadying sycophants who would curry my favour in the hope of getting something from me.” A wink. “But I’m under no illusions about my attractiveness to women. Although I’m not a complete ogre, I realise it’s my wealth that makes them call me handsome.”
His glare demanded some reaction, but he surely couldn’t expect her to protest. The vast majority of women – and probably most men – would call him handsome, with or without the money. But Naomi never paid any attention to physical appearance, being far more attracted to courage, integrity and kindness. So she didn’t react.
Her cool indifference should have rankled, but instead of annoyance, humour sparkled his eyes and twitched his lip. “I sensed a worthy adversary, but you exceed all expectations. You’re not like most women, are you?”
“I couldn’t possibly comment, only knowing a small fraction of the available population. As, I suspect, do you. Moving in the circles you do, I imagine you come into contact with many women who have little in common with me.”
He barked a laugh. “Why couldn’t I have landed a gem with your courage and wit instead of …” A head shake. “Never mind. What’s done is done.” A speculative glance. “What if I told you there’s a way you can secure Eric’s immunity from my unsavoury attentions?”
Her lips had no more chance of not twitching at the deliberate irony than Eric did of swimming on the moon – his favourite expression for impossible situations. This pleased Devlin greatly if the glitter in his eyes was anything to go by. Down to the nitty-gritty. “I’m listening.”
Her eyes widened as he outlined the deal. She had no choice but to comply – the alternative didn’t bear thinking about.

Sneak preview – Lost in Time – Part 4

Hugging her raincoat tight against the wind, Naomi pictured Eric in the garden at Gretna, wishing she could have told him the real reason why she couldn’t go with him to celebrate their twentieth wedding anniversary. The picture dissolved into the hurt on his face when she’d told him, tinged with that frisson of fear that she’d finally met someone truly worthy of her love.
It was the one thing he kept harking back to on the rare occasions they exchanged cross words. Or rather she voiced her concerns about how hard he drove himself – working all day and then spending hours in the attic doing Lord knew what.
Like a broken record, stuck in the same groove, he would apologise for neglecting her and promise to try harder. She couldn’t remember quite when he’d gone from being confident of her love, to questioning his worthiness. But she’d never done anything to give him reason to suspect her fidelity. Until today.

The question wasn’t whether she would go through with it, rather what would happen if she didn’t. It was doubly evil that the monster had picked her wedding anniversary for this secret liaison, and she couldn’t imagine it was anything but deliberate – making the stakes that much higher
Meeting him in a Travelodge was deliberately designed to make her feel grubby, but until she had secured certain assurances, she had no choice but to play along with his sleazy fantasy. As she knocked on the door, the wind tore at her headscarf, whipping it away.
Drat! It was her favourite, the very first Christmas present from Eric, and she’d worn it to feel his presence nearby.

“You’re late.” No niceties, but nothing about this man could be called nice.
She declined to make excuses. He should be grateful she turned up at all instead of doing what a smart person would have done and gone to the police. It had better be worth it.
“You’re here now, so let’s get started. Take off the coat.”
As she’d imagined, he thought he could bully her into submitting to his intimidation tactics. He’d learn. “No.”

A frown. “Sorry. I should re-phrase. You’ll want to take off your coat because it’s ridiculously warm and it’ll dry better. If I’d known you were going to walk, I’d have sent a car.”
What the heck? Not what she expected at all. And it was stifling. As he walked over to the desk, she took advantage of his turned back to remove her coat, hanging it on a hook.
“Red or white? I wasn’t sure so I have both.” He pulled a bottle of wine from an ice bucket and spun around, a polite smile hiding his reaction to her get up.
She’d gone for a long-sleeved, buttoned-up flannelette shirtwaister – what her mum called a proper passion killer.

“If you don’t want wine, I have water, juice or a nice cup of tea.”
If he wanted to surprise her, he was doing fine. 
When she tried to reply, her voice cracked. “Red, please.”
“And perhaps a glass of water to clear your throat.”
Revising her opinion about the niceties, she accepted the water and sat in the chair he gestured, realising he’d paid for one of the executive rooms with more than just a bed.
The drinks sorted, he sat in the other chair, sipping his wine, his gaze appraising. “I suspect you have quite a different idea of how this meeting will run, however I wanted somewhere discreet in neutral territory.”
She sipped the wine, pleasantly surprised at the full-bodied, spicy tang.
His scrutiny suggested a need for her approval of his choice, and she nodded, setting the glass down and clasping her hands in her lap to stop them from fidgeting.

“I’ve been thinking about you a lot since that first meeting two decades ago. Despite my sister’s histrionics, I’m well aware that you and Eric did a far better job of bringing Lily up than she could ever hope to, and for that I thank you.”
‘You’re welcome’ didn’t seem appropriate, so she said nothing, wondering exactly what he wanted.
“I’m going to come to the point. I’m aware of Eric’s talent as an inventor, and I want him to work for me. You must persuade him it would be in his best interests.”
Or what? Naomi knew she’d been right about the not-so-veiled threat in his invitation to meet. More fool her for thinking it was her body he wanted.
“Make no mistake, I will get what I want one way or another. Your instincts were spot on. It does include you.”
The strong wine made its presence felt, and she couldn’t prevent the small gasp from escaping.

To be continued …

2024 has not been without its trials, and I can’t say I won’t be sorry to see the back of it.
But it ended on a high – I finally managed to complete the final Time Doctors book. And then it got better as, thanks to my fabulous launch team, it’s in the top 10 in at least three bestsellers charts.

I’m defo gonna have a wee rest while I catch up with all the housekeeping stuff I’ve been putting off in the race to the finish line – little things like the last three in paperback and all the publicity bells and whistles.
Then there’s a final book in the previous series to finish, and by the time I’ve done that, I’m hoping for some inspiration on how to stay with the Time Doctors gang for a while longer.

Release of Lost in Time

I can’t remember when writing the last book in a series didn’t take way more time than all the others – usually because they end up being much longer (blame all the loose end-tying). In this case, 25% more than the next longest. But mostly because I can’t bear to part with my beloved characters and will do anything to spend more time with them. *Sighs*
I’m already figuring how I can do that very thing – watch this space. In the meantime, here it is – probably the most technically demanding book I’ve ever written – hope there’s not too much blinding with maths, science and esoteric stuff, but it is where I live.

What do you do when mobsters are out for your blood? Invent a time machine, of course.
Decades spent ducking and diving between past and present have taken their toll on Eric.
His beloved wife is dead. The bad guys are closing in on his family. And now he’s stranded in limbo.
Only his grandchildren can free him.
Two minor problems: they must first solve the puzzles he’s used to protect himself – and they don’t yet know the terrible truth about what he’s done.

Sixth in the Time Doctors series, this fun-filled romp kind of expects readers to have followed the other five. At a push, it could be read as a stand-alone, but readers will have massive spoilers in going back to read the previous stories. What can I say? Pretty inevitable in a serialised story.
Big Bang Theory meets Escape Room with a fun helping of time travel.


Anyway, you can pick up your copy of Lost in Time by clicking the link – a steal at £2.99/$3.49 or read for free on Kindle Unlimited. This installment brings the fun adventures of a bunch of 30-something geeks exploring their familys’ pasts to a close as they pull out all the stops to unravel Eric’s convoluted clues so they can rescue him from limbo.

Winter Solstice

In decades past, I’d have been down at Avebury, ringing in the Solstice with a bunch of other like-minded folks, but nowadays, I have other priorities.
It would have to be the shortest day today, because time is running out.
With only a week to go, my to-do list looked like this:

Finish decorating tree/rooms, put up outside lights
Marks & Sparks shop, wrap pressies, write/deliver cards,
Buy fresh vegetables, make 2 stuffings and bread sauce.
Make/decorate 4 Christmas cakes, bake another 2 dozen mince pies (x2)

And also:
Lost in Time (Time Doctors ‘6): Proof last 3 chapters, final beta edits, publicity stuff.
I’ve only managed to complete 3 of these, so yet another week with no blog.
Ho Hum!

My 90s top 13

1. The Mavericks – Dance The Night Away 5-1998
2. Lou Bega – Mambo No 5 (A Little Bit Of…) 8-1999
3. The Waterboys – The Whole Of The Moon – 04-1991
4. Richard Marx – Hazard – 05-1992
5. Heart – All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You – 04-1990
6. Manic Street Preachers – Motorcycle Emptiness – 06-1992
7. The Foo Fighters – Everlong 8-1997
8. Alannah Myles – Black Velvet – 04-1990
9. Bryan Adams – (Everything I Do) I Do It For You – 06-1991
10. Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes – (I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life – 01-1991
11. Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart & Sting – All For Love 01-1994
12. Aerosmith – I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing 9-1998
13. Seal – Kiss From A Rose 08-1994

And the nearly made its:
Berlin – Take My Breath Away – 10-1990
Jimmy Nail – Ain’t No Doubt – 07-1992
R.E.M. – Everybody Hurts 04-1993
Aerosmith – Cryin’ 11-1993
Bon Jovi – Always 09-1994
Paul Weller – You Do Something To Me 07-1995
The Rembrandts – I’ll Be There For You 08-1995
The Manic Street Preachers – A Design For Life 04-1996
Lighthouse Family – Ocean Drive 05-1996
No Doubt – Don’t Speak 2-1997
Shania Twain – That Don’t Impress Me Much 5-1999