Mark will be doing his reenactment with 4 D*rex, a bottle of helium, and the River Thames Dartford crossing

Ah yes, the LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin the world's most successful airship. She crossed the Atlantic 143 times and flew over a million miles in her nine year career. 

#2 So you returned suitably refreshed.

 

Would this be the same which so inspired Lenin? And committed Stalin to a program of huge showcase aircraft?

Lenin died four years before the Graf Zeppelin was built. The Soviets never built or flew any rigid airships, but they were inspired by the series of Italian semi-rigids designed by Umberto Nobile in the 1920s, so much so that after Nobile was ostracized in his home country for the loss of the Italia on an expedition to the Arctic in 1928 they invited him over to Russia to build airships for them.  He built nine semi-rigids for the USSR before he returned to Italy in 1936.

Let me post this yet again

 

 

 

Ae these Nobile's efforts.? Or artistic licence?

Artistic license. The two grey airships are representations of the German LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin. The others appear to be semi-rigids, but if they're Nobile's designs they came years after Lenin had died.  

Thanks

Wow... our Mark certainly knows a thing or two about those big ugly balloons, doesn't he?

#9 he's had enough time to study t-dog

Ref # 9. "Big ugly balloons" I could say that a fair description of anyone from north of the Trent, but I won't.  

I've just realized I live north of the Trent, but only by 400 yards. 

Oh dear... shot yourself in the foot there. What a balloon!

Does that include the Ruhr? What's left of it?