01/09/2026
WELL… WE’VE DONE A YEAR!
Today marks exactly ONE YEAR since me and the wife Emma took over Southsea Model Village.
And what a bloody year it’s been. 😂
When we took the keys a year ago, we knew we were taking on a massive job. What I’m not entirely sure we appreciated was quite how much of our lives this little place would consume.
And somehow, amongst all of it, I still work a full-time job as well.
So a lot of what you see happening at the village is squeezed into evenings, days off, weekends and whatever spare hours I can find.
There have definitely been moments where I’ve wondered what the hell we’ve got ourselves into.
But looking back over the last 12 months, I’m bloody proud of what we’ve achieved.
We’ve repaired, restored, painted, planted, rebuilt and added loads to the village.
We’ve created completely new scenes, brought tired areas back to life, added thousands upon thousands of plants and flowers, introduced new events and given people more reasons to come back and see what’s changed.
We’ve had dinosaurs, giant bubbles, birds of prey, reptiles, unicorns, ponies, K-Pop, foam and Halloween coming soon.
And then there’s the slightly less normal side of running a model village
Thomas got kidnapped.
Mick disappeared to the World Cup.
Foxes formed an organised crime syndicate.
Squirrels escaped from police custody.
Agent Nutbuster turned up.
And Dinny Darren has somehow gone from being a random little figure in the village to having a more complicated backstory than most Netflix characters. 😂
It’s certainly never bloody boring.
But we’re nowhere near finished.
This winter is going to be a BIG one.
Once the gates close and we can properly get stuck in, there are loads of new scenes planned, existing areas getting completely revamped and plenty of new stupid ideas currently rattling around in my head that probably shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near a model village.
We want you to come back next year and find loads of things that simply weren’t here before.
But we also know the next chapter is going to be a tough one.
From February, the major seafront defence works reach our section of Southsea. The seafront immediately outside the village will be closed for around 16 months, meaning access from the seafront will be cut off and parking nearby is going to become much more difficult.
WE WILL STILL BE OPEN AND YOU WILL STILL BE ABLE TO GET TO US.
But realistically, we know it’s going to hurt us.
For a small independent attraction like ours, 16 months is a bloody long time.
So over those 16 months we’re going to need your support more than we ever have before.
Come and visit us. Bring the kids. Bring the grandparents. Tell your mates. Share our posts. Come back and see what’s new. Support the events. Grab a drink. Buy a season pass. Even just recommending us to somebody who’s visiting Portsmouth genuinely helps.
Our plan is pretty simple:
Keep investing.
Keep improving.
Keep building.
Keep making people laugh.
And make this little village better every single year.
Most importantly, though, thank you.
Thank you to everyone who’s visited us over the last year, shared our posts, recommended us, attended an event, left us a review, helped us, supplied us, volunteered, worked here or simply followed along with the absolute nonsense online.
You’ve helped keep this little place alive.
A year ago we took over Southsea Model Village.
Today it feels like our village.
And we’re only just getting started.
Here’s to Year Two. ❤️
Although judging by Year One, God knows what state the place will be in by this time next year. 😂
Also we couldn’t have don’t it without our amazing volunteers and parents.
A small world with a big heart.
