2003 Archive 
Previously, I discussed the appearance of Matchbox toys throughout the Thunderbirds television and theater productions. This examination is now broadened to include some of the Corgi and Dinky vehicle toys which appeared in Thunderbirds and in a few other Gerry Anderson productions.
One of the earliest examples is the scene of Thunderbird 1 under police guard at London International Airport in 'Trapped in the Sky'. In this scene are two 'Buick Rivieras' and an 'Oldsmobile Super 88', all in the classic white and black color scheme with 'POLICE' emblazoned across the front doors and with rooftop light beacons. The car to the left and in the background appears to be the Dinky #001 'Buick Riviera'. Corgi also produced this car, their #245, which was available in several different colors. To the right of this is a repainted Corgi #235 or #237 'Oldsmobile Super 88'. This vehicle was also released by Corgi as the Man from UNCLE 'Thrush Buster' (#479). Almost lost among the background Matchbox vehicles in this scene is the Corgi #1120 'Midland Red Motorway Express Coach'.
The 'Buick Riviera' and 'Oldsmobile Super 88' police cruisers turn up in many episodes of Thunderbirds at roadblocks, chasing and pulling over speeding motorists, idling on the apron of the runway at Glenn Field, etc. However, they are not the most common choice of automobile by the mid 21st Century police forces or motorists in general.
The most frequently seen die cast metal car in Thunderbirds is undoubtedly Corgi's '1959 Ford Thunderbird', either #214 (hardtop) or #215 (convertible). In 'City of Fire', for example, the Carter family is driving a white hardtop while the couple which crashes in the underground parking garage is driving in a red convertible. Both cars appear to have been used straight out of the box. Examples of the Corgi '1959 Ford Thunderbird' in various color schemes may be observed throughout the Thunderbirds series. Dinky's #005 '1965 Ford Thunderbird' turns up in a number of places as well. One prominent example is creamed by the Zero-X spacecraft as it smashes into Craigsville in 'Thunderbirds Are Go!' while another may be spotted at the construction site for Expo 2068 in the Captain Scarlet episode by the same name. At the same Captain Scarlet location may be clearly seen the Corgi #245 'Buick Riviera', Corgi #438 'Land Rover', and Corgi #1142 'Holmes Wrecker'.
The pair of 'Buick Riviera' police cruisers at Glenn Field in 'Thunderbirds Are Go!' are posed near an interesting selection of other die cast models. There is a Corgi #218 'Austin Martin DB4' next to another example of the 'Buick Riviera' police car. Beside it is a Dinky #264 'Ford Fairlane R.C.M.P. Patrol Car'. There are a couple of Corgi #263 'Rambler Marlin Sports Fastbacks', a Corgi #241 'Ghia L6.4' as well as others that I have yet to identify.
After the Zero X spacecraft has completely trashed Craigsville and the fires have subsided, we may see among the debris further die cast models. There is a Corgi #229 'Chevrolet Corvair', a Corgi #437 'Superior Ambulance', and a Dinky #281 'Pathe News Camera Car'. The Corgi 'Superior Ambulance' turns up once again in the photo of Thunderbird 1 above a prison on the cover of TV Century 21 #115. In the same scene appears the Dinky model #259 'Fire Engine'.
This vehicle shows up in photos of the workshop of the Century 21 film studio and prominently among the background vehicles on a well known Captain Scarlet setup photo featuring the SPV, Angel Interceptor, and RTL-2 aircraft. In the same scene appears a couple of Matchbox M-1 'B.P. Autotankers' repainted into fire tender colors, as well as an assortment of automobiles including a Corgi #480 '1959 Chevrolet Impala Yellow Cab'.
The Corgi '1959 Chevrolet Impala' is known to have been released in at least nine different editions; a couple of police cruisers, a couple of taxi cabs, a couple of fire chief cars, and at least three different unmarked sedans. Even Matchbox produced one, #57, a blue and white model which may be seen at the Marineville complex in Stingray. One of the unmarked Corgi '1959 Chevrolet Impala' sedans can be seen at the dock in the Joe 90 episode 'Trial at Sea'. At this same location may also be seen the Corgi #245 'Buick Riviera', #437 'Superior Ambulance', #438 'Land Rover', and the #1131 'Carrimore Machinery Carrier'.
By now it should be amply clear that the makers of Gerry Anderson's Supermarionation productions relied heavily on the commercially available die cast vehicle toys of the day to detail miniature sets which depicted life 100 years in the future.