My VCR (Panasonic NV-HS860B) seems to have developed a fault overnight. When playing recorded tapes I now see a blank (pale grey) screen on my TV, but I can still hear the recorded sound. When I hit the pause button, however, the picture appears perfectly (paused, as expected). (So all connexions are OK).
Thanks, I went out and bought a head cleaner and it's done the trick.
Funny, though, because I would have thought that there would have been signs of a gradual deterioration in the displayed picture. Oh well, you learn something everyday.