Me and Ben Macintyre have a long and colourful past. I started working at Games Workshop in Woking during the Eye of Terror summer campaign (2001?) and Ben was a regular there. He looked a lot older than he was and we’d been out several times drinking and partying before I actually found out that he was 15 and what I thought was his work uniform was actually his school uniform…. Ben would stick around the store and would help out with painting models for the store armies and when he got old enough he ended up working there! Having two such titanic personalities thrown together was a winning combination and the shop entered something of a golden age. Hobby champions both, bristling with charm, charisma and enthusiasm! Even the big boss said we were one of the best full timer teams he’d ever seen and he was right! No one, and I mean NO ONE can clean up a post-party mess and get away with it like we can! Between Games workshop and viking re-enactment we left a trail of sparkle dust and devastation across the country. If anyone has ever seen the classic British comedy Bottom starring Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmonson, you wouldn’t be far off the mark…..
There was the chocolate booby cake concussion night. The angry feet hilarity. There was the Sake frenzy night.The Dropkick’s incident. The blood print bottom nastiness. The plum cake cross-burning. The cheese bowling embarrassment. The Morris dancer thong awkwardness. I could explain most of these in great detail but you’d never respect us in the morning. But time goes on and we grew up. At the tender age of 40 I even have a dog now. How grown up is that?!?!? Ben grew up a bit faster, but mainly because his wife thought it was a good idea. So he now lives somewhere in South Wales (don’t ask me where because I can’t pronounce it) with a pet tortoise and is a full time professional model painter. And here’s the exciting bit…. He paints models for Mantic! In fact a lot of the models we see in photos etc were done by him! Snazzy eh?
Personally I think that if you have a great mate who loves Mantic Games and you paint the models for them and get to see them before anyone else, that you would let him see them early too. Apparently that’s not the case. Despite being great mates, he also finds it hilarious to see me suffer. Bastard. (Evidence ref; the chocolate booby cake concussion night, the blood print bottom nastiness and The Dropkicks incident).
Anyway, due to the distance we don’t get to see each other much these days as we’re doing responsible adult things and I don’t live in his Mums spare room anymore so we rarely cross paths. We’re clearly linked by fate somehow as we’re both now Mantic celebrities, so I thought I’d interview him so you could all get past that crusty exterior and see the gooey interior of Ben Macintyre…..
So Ben, tell the lovely people a little about your background. How did you get into toy soldiers?
Hello lovely people! Im a 33 year old, lifelong toy soldier addict, and I regret nothing! Well, there was that night with the Sake but lets not get into that! I got my first toy soldiers when I was about 4 years old. Two small buckets of various 54mm plastic toy soldiers from my Grandpa (the legend that he is!) and it snowballed from there.
Toy soldiers were always in my life, a family hobby really, I did try painting a few with Humbrol enamel paints when I was about 8, but it was such a ballache I gave up quickly.
My toy soldier collecting took a bit of a swerve (an expensive and highly addictive swerve) when a school friend introduced me to Games Workshop when I was about 13. He dragged me into the local GW Woking (best store ever) and that was me.
I just couldn’t believe that there were these whole universes that existed without my knowledge! All these characters and armies, the settings and the background literature. It was a bit like unlocking a new part of my brain. Once opened never again to be closed.
I didn’t have much money as a kid so I was a slow starter, I used to save up pocket money and buy smaller boxes of single part plastics and the occasional blister pack. Very early on I got my hands on a catalogue and spent hours pouring over it. I was immediately drawn to the Bretonnians. I have always been a huge fan of the medieval period and Knights, Damsels and dragons was a must have. To discover the £5, two Bretonnian knights of the realm or eight archer packs was absolutely amazing and I pretty much bought nothing else for quite a while. Wish id kept those!
Making use of the stores learn to paint and play initiatives I got really into Warhammer Fantasy, (40k came later on) and that was it really. From then onwards I was a permanent fixture in the store, so much so that they eventually gave me a job!
I loved my time at GW working in both the Woking and later the Guildford stores. I met some lifelong friends (yourself included) and often miss it to this day. We had something really special at that time in Games Workshop’s history. The atmosphere in the stores and the amazing community was a joy to be a part of. We also got our community motto during those times “they may beat us at the gaming table, but we’ll win the fight in the car park afterwards” which should say it all.
And how did you get into being a professional painter?
Originally it started when I was as a teenage “regular” in the GW Woking store. I was asked if I would paint something for a fellow gamer (a 54mm Inquisitor Artemis in Grey Knight colours) and I said “yeah go on then, it’ll be £40 (DEFINITELY chancing it with that quote!) they said yes and it went from there. A few more bits and pieces like that on and off, till I left for Somerset about 10 years ago.
After a year doing a few random retails jobs to pay the mortgage, I stumbled into a job as the in-house painter at the Shepton Mallet based Spartan Games (now sadly defunct). That was a busy two years and my job quickly expanded to also cover managing the freelancers and certain parts of the design process, getting products from “oooo lets make…..” to a physical item ready for casting and mass production. I learnt a LOT there in a short a mount of time, made a lot of friends and contacts in the wargames industry and sort of set myself up for what was to come.
I decided after a couple of years that it was time to move on, and after a 3 week holiday to Australia, I came back and set up as a freelance painter. Spartan Games paid me to continue my work on their various ranges for a while, as well as an ever increasing group of both commercial and private clients. Leading up to today where I have a wide range of commercial clients and many private clients all over the world. As well as regularly writing articles for a variety of Wargames magazines.
For some us it sounds like a dream job. Is it as exciting as it sounds or do you get annoyed having to paint for other people all the time?
I have done worse jobs for sure! It really depends on what it is that’s on the desk at the time. If its box art for a commercial client then the pressure is on. Both in terms of maintaining quality and product deadlines. If it’s a private client the quality issues are still there of course, but usually there’s a bit more time to get it just right.
There is an unfortunate side effect that it doesn’t often leave me very keen to paint my own toys in my free time. After 12+ hours a day painting (yes I do work long days) it’s not often I’m really keen to sit down and paint again in the evening. I do still paint my own toys but far less frequently thank I would like.
Even though it’s an undeniably fun activity, it is still my job. It takes up a large part of my time, and its ultimately there to pay the bills. I just get to do that immersed in a world of paints and toy soldiers.
Do you have much time to paint your own stuff?
Not as much as I would like! If I’m sat at my desk with a brush in my hand, I might as well get paid for it right? The task is identical, just one of them is for free!
I have been trying to spend just half an hour a day on my own stuff (at the beginning of the day) so I can keep making slow and steady progress on conquering “lead mountain”. I would like to finish all the models I own but I’ve heard that if that happens you fade to black, Soprano’s style, so I’m not sure its worth the risk!
What of your own stuff are you gaming/painting at the moment?
Contrary to my previous statement, I’ve just started a new Space Wolves army! I don’t usually get to paint space marines to my best ability, so I wanted to try that out. That and my hobby nostalgia is strong at the moment and I have been looking at the old 2nd edition Codex. Got me all fired up to re-create one of my first ever armies.
Other than that I am looking to “level up” my skills a bit, so I’m looking at completing some larger 75mm scale pieces purely for display. First up will be the excellent Cult of Paint Deogard elven Kickstarter models.
Whats the worst painting commission you’ve ever had?
I’ve had a few dire ones in truth! Some odd colour schemes that, whilst I can advise it might not look how the client wants, ultimately its not my choice. “Ours is not to reason why, ours is just to paint and cry”
The most torturous job was a very large Slaaneshi demon force for Age of Sigmar. 90 demonettes and 30 mounted demonettes all done to a very high standard, with each one wet blended in very pale colours. It took an AGE to complete and there were more than a few ground-hog day moments. About 35 days painting the same model over and over again. Makes me shudder just thinking about it!
Whats the best?
I love the individual characters! They are always at a higher quality of paintwork, usually a better standard of sculpt and I can really get my teeth into them. Its also great to spend some time doing some reading on that character (historical, fantasy or sci fi) for some inspiration.
Do you have a particular brand of paint you like to stick with?
I have paint from a wide variety of manufacturers. Each company has some colours they do really well and some they don’t. For example, GW make great reds, but their blues aren’t that good, however P3 blues (especially the Cygnar ones) are lush. Its really about finding what works best for you and sticking with it. Don’t listen to the people who say you must use “brand x” or you are terrible, it just doesn’t work that way.
And what is your main go to with brush brands and airbrush?
Hairy sticks I’m a Winsor and Newton Series7 man. Ive tried them all over the years and for longevity and quality they win. They certainly cost a bit more but in my experience, you get what you pay for.
My brushes are used for roughly 50 hours a week and id expect a Series7 to last me 2 months before being retired to the “basing brushes box”.
As for airbrushes Im a huge fan of Harder and Steenbeck. Ive used other brands but these are the best by far. Easy to use, maintain and clean, easy to get replacement parts and the quality is top.
I currently have a Cult of Paint signature Infinity, and a slightly cheaper Evolution CR plus (for varnishing and undercoating) both are connected to my absolute workhorse Sparmax compressor.
Have you won any awards for painting? Not to brag but I have two Gold army on Parade awards and I don’t go around calling myself a professional painter, can you beat that?
None so lofty as that! I have won a Golden Demon though. I got Bronze for my duel at the Age of Sigmar Golden Demon a few years ago. I haven’t entered again as I didn’t especially enjoy the process. GW are looking for quite specific things in a winner and that’s a bit more restrictive than I found enjoyable.
I am going to be entering other competitions such as Scale Model Challenge, the Monte San Savino show and Euro Militaire when they finally allowed to be hosted again (thanks 2020) if you’ve never been or seen the types of piece there I REALLY recommend it. Incredibly eye opening and inspirational.
Obviously the main reason you’re getting interviewed is because you do a lot of painting for Mantic. I’ve even seen your name in the rulebook credits! Fame at last!
What stuff have you painted for Mantic? I know you did the Northern Alliance and the fancy-pants new Armada stuff but what else?
Infamous! I’ve had to go back and look at what I’ve painted to answer this question, as its quite a bit, and id forgotten some of it.
I’ve done some pieces for Deadzone (Asterian) Warpath (Forge Fathers, GCPs, Plague and Veer-Myn) Terrain crate (all of it) Armada (all of it) and of course Kings of War (Abyssal Dwarves, Goblins, Night stalkers, Northern Alliance, Ogres, Orcs and Ratkin.
Most recently it was the Armada fleets (amazing models!) and I currently have some Kings of war bits on my desk that I can’t tell you about but they are DEFINITELY going to be well received!
Whats been your favourite Mantic model that you’ve painted and why
The Northern Alliance models were amazing, So much detail and character to them, and an original aesthetic. The sculpts absolutely evoke the feeling of these weather-beaten and battle-hardened warriors. When a sculpt is so “complete” like that it makes it a lot more engaging to work on.
Do you play any Mantic Games?
I sadly do not! Apart from Kings of War with yourself I haven’t had the opportunity. It would 100% be Kings if I were to get the time however. Picking an army might be tough though. Probably Northern Alliance or Nightstalkers for me….. or maybe Goblins. Although I do love the Abyssal Dwarves…. SEE! Maybe I need to start with Vanguard?
And finally what are your top 5 favourite models of all time?!??!
That is a tough one! Don’t make me choose!
You have to choose. Choose or I tell them about your cheese bowling shame.
But I have written multiple lists for this and I can’t finalise it, or even get it below 12 sculpts.
The standout model in every list though was the old Archaon on Horse metal model.
It is SO evocative, so characterful and the perfect representation of the character. In terms of detail and pose it was way ahead of the curve and there wasn’t a single part of it that is not enjoyable to paint. For a 16 year old model it wouldn’t look out of place leading an army today, and there’s not many sculpts that would be true of
In fact I like it so much so that I’m going to go and buy one now!
Well boys and girls, I hope you all enjoyed that! Thought it would be nice for you to read someone else talking bollocks for a while instead of me!
So thank you for Ben for sharing! ESPECIALLY that juicy inside exclusive for my blog! Yes kids, you heard it right-Ben is working on brand new models for Kings of War right now and we’re going to love them! But obviously he won’t tell me what they are because he likes seeing me suffer. Bastard.
I’m aiming to get him to some Mantic events at some point, I mean, who could resist being my partner in a doubles tournament? Or perhaps a Mantic open day so he can stand beside the cabinets of the models he’s painted and tell everyone how great I am? Sounds like a great day out to me.
Anyway, Ben is on Facebook as Brush Demon so you can go and see what he’s been up to. He’s probably on instagram too but I’ve only just got that and haven’t had a look yet, but I bet it’s exciting when I do!
Adios Amigos!
Get older. Don't grow up. 