1016. Off to the Coast

A picture of the village of Corfe in Dorset showing the ruined castle and two of the major inns.
The puzzle has been laser-cut from 3-ply wood and has several whimsies on a motoring and transportation theme, also with a lighthouse in one corner.

The coach is a 1951 Bristol LL6B made by Duple and was used by the "Royal Blue" coach service which operated throughout South West England. Final destination was the seaside resort of Swanage.
The vehicle illustrated, reg number LTA 893 is understood to have been rescued and restored.

There are no Malcolm Root images in the earliest catalogues we have (1994 & 1997-8). The Wentworth Whimsy Club launched in May 1998, and the first ones we know of appeared in Whimsy no2 in Sept 1998, and no5 in 1999 (when the artist was described as 'always popular'). A cream loose-leaf catalogue with four titles 'Transport Collection' is marked as 1999 with codes 219-223. The spring 2000 loose leaf album has three pages of Malcolm's work, with 16 titles. The last photo shows a pack including an Whimsy Club insert and the Bunny Money promotion, first noted in the Whimsy no9 in Spring 2000.

Artist: Root, Malcolm
Brand: Wentworth Wooden Jigsaw Company
Material: Plywood
Nationality: British-England
Number: 1016
Pieces: 250
Size: 14" x 10"
Theme: Transport
Title: Off to the Coast