Hi All
Many thanks for your comments, and diagrams from curtis265.
To inform you better, the owner's manual calls the offending bit the beverage holder, which is directly in front of and below, the console compartment; which has the centre armrest on it.

The beverage holder has a slatted cover, which slides to the rear, in its own guide, obviously around the corner at the rear of the slide and down the back somewhere.

I recall placing my gps mount in the beverage holder and I believe it has caught on one of the slats, jamming the slide shut. I had hoped that removing the console compartment would allow access to the slide-guide, but it won't, so the centre console will have to come off. Or, as it seems the beverage compartment is for holding drinks, and the odd tissue, I could ignore the problem, but a bigger problem is that I like everything in my car to work.

Strangely dealers I've spoken to have never experienced this problem (or would the cynics amongst us say, Yeah, right!)

BTW The car is auto.

AGAIN, TA for your interest and help
NOEL