Saturday 16 January 2010

What you should have got for Christmas?

photo by David
Cannalpoly by Fergus
The board game for boaters  

I might have mentioned in the past that my brother David is a bit of a Monopoly fiend (as in the board game).

Here he is, keeping a close eye on anyone landing on his properties. With hotels on every site between The Angel, Islington and Vine Street it didn't take long for him to clean up.


Pall Mall with a hotel? That'll be £750 please.


Several years ago he created a version based on the streets around where we used to live in Essex, and called it Shenopoly. Then the big boys got in on the act and produced all sorts of "opolies".


David's son Fergus is a keen steerer of Shadow, and enjoys a good Monopoly session (especially if it means not having to go to bed until it's finished). Last month he came up with what must surely be a winner: Cannalpoly (sic).

The photo at the top of this post repays close inspection. Properties (with interesting spellings) are:

Pudding Green Junction
Gas Street Basin
Lee Navigation
Limehouse Canal
Regents Canal
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Macclesfield Canal
Peak Forest Canal
Caldon Canal
Coventry Canal
BCN
Basingstoke Canal
Somerset Coal Canal
Kennet and Avon Canal
Leeds and Liverpool Canal
Trent and Mersey Canal
Manchester Ship Canal
Shropshire Union Canal
Montgomery Canal
Llangollen Canal
River Severn
River Thames


Stations are replaced by tunnels: Harecastle, Blisworth, Froghall and Standedge.

Utilities are Anderton Boat Lift and Foxton Inclined Plane.

Taxes are Fuel Bill £200 and Pump Out Bill £100.

Chance and Community Chest are replaced by Locks and Bridges.

Instead of going to jail you Get Grounded; and Just Visiting is On the Towpath.

Free Parking is, of course, Free Mooring.

I think it's excellent.

8 comments:

Auntie Janet said...

I hope you're reading this Fergus. It looks like you put a lot of work into this game! I'm looking forward to playing it next time we're all on Shadow. Have you managed to beat your dad yet? I think you should go into production and market it. I hope nobody steals your idea!

Halfie said...

It's OK - he's copyrighted it.

Vallypee said...

Brilliant!! When he goes into production I want to buy one. What a clever nephew and what a great idea!

Neil Corbett said...

I want one. Great idea and beautifully done. It makes me think what other games could be adapted.

Andy Tidy said...

I love it!
Capt A

Del and Al said...

Fantastic!

Simon said...

ha - I laughed out loud when I saw this - my fevered flu-ridden brain came up with something almost identical last weekend, and only didn't blogged it when I saw that Denny bloke had proposed it a while ago (but hadn't gone further than that). On mine each square was a mooring (mostly pubs, strangely), each colour a canal...

Halfie said...

Simon, I hadn't spotted Andrew's version - I'll have to look it up. I hope you get better soon.