Thanks mem. I'd love it if you could test PWM with a 0.1uf capacitor on the contrast.
I'd do it but I dont seem to have any transistors around. I could scrounge one....
No code yet. I'll whip it up once I get the PCBs. 
Just test with AnalogWrite for now.
I've created a Sourceforge project for this to keep everything nice and tidy.
I'll be setting it up today.