🎉 Happy New Year, Benchmates! 🎉 Welcome to Season 2 of Beyond The Box Art® — and we're kicking off 2026 exactly how we mean to go on… loudly, enthusiastically, and surrounded by brilliant people.

After surviving the festive fallout of leftover turkey, mince pies, and suspiciously stalled bench progress, we're back with a proper New Year special stacked with guests, news, and a few surprises along the way.

🔹 Joining us first is modelling extraordinaire Jon Tabinor, magazine editor at our newest sponsors Guideline Publications. Jon steps in as guest host for the episode and gives us an exclusive rundown of what's coming across the full Guideline titles in the February issues — plus the thinking behind them.

🔹 We're also joined by the one and only Pod-father himself — Dave Goldfinch from On The Bench, the original scale modelling podcast. Dave dives into the realities of starting and running a show, the state of the hobby, and his uncanny ability to predict kit announcements… sometimes before the manufacturers even realise they've announced them.

🔹 And because it's New Year… we've saved something special. We're joined by the Managing Director of Kōtare - Mark Robson, giving us an update on their latest developments — only that's not actually why they were invited on. All is revealed when they're announced as the winner of the Beyond The Box Art® Benchmates Kit of the Year 2025 🏆

So… clear a space on your bench, put your feet up, grab a brew — 🚀 BTBA 2026 starts NOW.

Happy New Year, everyone.

— Brownie & the Beyond The Box Art® team

📧 Email: [email protected] 🔗 Website: www.beyondtheboxart.com

Show sponsors:AMMO by Mig Jimenez: www.ammo.es Fischkopp Model Company: https://www.fischkoppcompany.de/ Guideline Publications: https://www.guidelinepublications.co.uk/ Phase Hangar Resin Accessories: https://phasehangarresin.com/ Matters of Scale: https://mattersofscale.com/ The Scale Modellers Supply: https://www.scalemodeller.com.au/

Useful Links:

• IPMS UK: www.ipmsuk.org
• Scale ModelWorld 2026: https://ipmsuk.org/ipms-scale-modelworld/
• Mach Models YouTube: YouTube@machmodels
• Scale Modelling Now: http://www.scalemodellingnow.com
• Inside The Armour: https://www.insidethearmour.com/
• Bolton Show: https://boltonmodelclub.co.uk/show/
• Kōtare Models: https://www.kotare-models.com/