Thanks Tim. The battery earth looks fine which is why I'm surprised I'm seeing no life at the dashboard etc.
That is strange - although I had a problem with the Renault 4CV (SpannerJuggler might remember) where I had a starting problem, and discounted the earth strap because it looked fine and the connections were clean and tight. I replaced it anyway on Colin's advice, and lo and behold, problem solved. The issue AIUI with braided earth straps is that over the years grease and oil gets in amongst the braids, raising the resistance of the strap.
