Thanks for all the memories guys,
I remember being mesmerized by all the wall of dioramas on all the boxes lined up in the toy shops back then, I think the magic was having the figures well placed around the ships / playsets in the photo's, I don't think you get that with the more modern toys, be it Star Wars or any other lines.
There was a magic about the old packaging and I don't think its nostalgia now, as many of us kept our original boxes and card backs for that very reason. I think real thought went into the production of those vintage scenes and advertising that kept us coming back for more when funds allowed, you just don't get that in modern times its all a bit generic now