Dan Sankey of the Four Corners Modelling Club discusses the process of modelling and painting his World War One ‘Pigeon Break’ diorama, using a Meng 1/35 scale Whippet tank
LEFT: Dan Sankey’s World War One ‘Pigeon Break’ diorama depicts a daring escape by a group of messenger pigeons, right under the noses of a Whippet tank crew!
At the beginning of this build, I saw a colourised photo on social media that inspired me to build a Whippet. I hadn’t seen one at any shows with ‘all its clothes on’, so I was keen to include one as part of my build. The story evolved when I started assembling the figures. Knowing that pigeons were used for communication in World War One, it felt right to have them in the process of escaping the tank while the crew were at rest.
Once I had the main build ready and the story mapped out, the diorama invited itself to be displayed on a round base. While the main story is shown from the rear of the tank, the viewer is able to see the main elements of the diorama from all sides, as the escaping pigeons are always visible from the roof hatch.
I enjoyed the ease of this build, but I recognise that I have limited skills in sculpting figures, so made a few mistakes with them. Even now, they could be
