Mudlen End continued to grow and in 1977 was registered as a limited company and a larger workshop was built on the  site of the old showmans wagon. It was also a time when there was a lot of interest in large orders for the American market. Mudlen End cottages had steadily ‘infiltrated’ into the United States, mainly because they were bought in large numbers by service men and women stationed at the many U.S. airbases in and around Suffolk. They were bought as mementos of their posting or sent back home as gifts.

1977 saw the Queen`s silver jubilee and some models were adapted to have bunting hanging on the fronts, this was revisited once again in 1981 for the Royal wedding of Charles and Diana.

Production was increasing to a degree where it was decided to produce the raw cottages (greenware) in a larger industrial pottery, with the remainder of the processes being done at the Mudlen End studio.

The decoration of the cottages was done by a team of decorators who worked from their own homes. Each decorator etched her own  initial(s)  onto the base of each cottage along with the cottage number. Sometimes cottages are found to have the incorrect number,  or sometimes no number at all, this is more than likely to be caused by the decorator being distracted, maybe by a screaming child or perhaps the kettle boiling !!

One  event of the late 70’s was the relationship between Mudlen End and ‘Around The Corner’, an American company dealing in craft items. Initially they bought cottages as any other buyer. They then formed an agreement with Mudlen End to be sole importers for their region. Mudlen End  produced the cottages and stamped them “made for Around The Corner”, as well as “mudlen End”. Then, for reasons better know only to themselves, they underhandedly took the Mudlen End cottages to another pottery and asked if they could copy them and produce them. This pottery (shame on them) simply copied each model, presumably by making a mould straight from them, this is why they are smaller than their original Mudlen End counterparts. They even had the cheek to number them the same, and it appears that they registered or copyrighted the term “Suffolk Cottages” also. Of course there is an ethical question regarding this as it is a low thing to rip off someone else’s work. They could have engaged an artist and made their own unique models. Some models were adapted slightly but generally they looked the same, although the colours could never be replicated, they are fairly easy to pick out as copies. I was never really clear why my father did not pursue the matter through the courts, perhaps he was too nice of a man, as when all is said and done for every “Around The Corner” rip off model sold it was one less Mudlen End sold. It can only be speculated upon the financial loss incurred by Mudlen End Studios. Whatever the stamp may say all the models made by Around The Corner themselves have indented bases and this is a sure fire way of identifying them if in any doubt. Only one Mudlen End series model has this style of base, #43, the Corn hall.

I have had the displeasure of getting one model amongst a set of Mudlen End cottages and found great delight in crushing it to unrecognizable pieces, as I hold the people involved in this saga in great contempt.

This photo of a page from a trade journal has notes around the border made by Mr. Hart .