Hi Tom,
 
Have meant to contact you since my return to England to say what a
pleasure it was to meet you and your wife whilst at Gormanston. I had
such a wonderful time as well, and have a whole store of lovely memories
of the lovely people that I met out there.
 
On the wasp problem. My father is often called out to deal with swarms
and also wasp nests. This year he has dealt with a small number of
'German' wasps. They are much larger than the usual ones. The 'worker'
wasps are the size of the usual queen wasp, possibly even slightly
bigger. They are darker in colour and very vicious. I gather that
although they are called german wasps they are not particularly from
Germany alone, but are a european breed. They are occurring in
increasing numbers where he lives. They certainly fit your description.
 
I am assuming they are not hornets of course. But the hornets I have
seen this year up in Suffolk are not aggressive as such, although I
guess they would be if disturbed around their nest. But it sounds as if
this is an unfamiliar wasp, in which case my money is on the so-called
'German' wasp.
 
Kind regards to you both, Madeleine Pym