1999 :: Bluebird Chips Episode 1 Cards

In 1999, Bluebird chips released 2 sets of collectible cards: a gold-bordered series with glow-in-the-dark images on the back of each card, and a red-bordered series with chrome-bordered variations. The red-bordered cards are interesting in that, depending on how you want to categorise them, they could be considered as one, two, or four "sets". There are 36 red-bordered cards, but in two sizes (the first 18 are 48 x 66mm, the second 18 are a mere 30 x 40mm) with continuous numbering. And then, there are a further 36, again in two sizes, identical to the red-bordered cards save for their chrome/silver borders: these latter variation cards are considerably harder to come by. And if you manage to get the full 72 card set, you could always go crazy and try and complete two of each: one loose, and one still wrapped in the cellophane envelope that protected the card from the salt and oil of the chips it came with.

I personally like the basic design of these cards a lot. All the cards are of a landscape orientation, and with their bold, basic red frames, they display well as a set. The smaller 16 cards are surely unique for their size: they are also interesting that, whilst the larger cards have standard squared-off corners, the mini-cards have rounded vertices. The silver-bordered cards actually have a foil finish, which, although it means the contrast of the photographic image is less than their red-bordered equivalents (and they are hard to scan), makes them similarly impressive as a collection, albeit due to a different effect.

These cards came one-at-a-time with quite a wide variety of product, meaning that the bags are also deemed collectible by some. Click on the thumbnails below to view images of packaging from potato chips, "Kettle Chips", "Biguns", "Twisties", "Cheezels" and "Rashuns".

The backs of the cards fit together to make up a total of four posters of 9 cards each: two movie advertisement posters from the first 18 cards, and a pair of complementary good-guy, bad-guy posters from the smaller, second 18 cards. Click on the thumbnails below to view each of the posters.

Related article: Bluebird Multipack Episode 1 Cards.

Matt G