Toys and Games

Anything goes! Use this forum to get to know each other.
User avatar
Anita Bensoussane
Forum Administrator
Posts: 26768
Joined: 30 Jan 2005, 23:25
Favourite book/series: Adventure series, Six Cousins books, Six Bad Boys
Favourite character: Jack Trent, Fatty and Elizabeth Allen
Location: UK

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

I had this Sindy doll in the 1970s, called Lovely Lively Sindy:

Image

My sister had one too, but hers was blonde. The dolls' arms and legs had wires running through them and could bend. We used to play all sorts of games with them, including "jungle Sindys" out in the garden where they'd climb trees and make food from leaves and mud.
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

"There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books."
- E. Nesbit, The Wonderful Garden.


Society Member
User avatar
Rob Houghton
Posts: 16029
Joined: 26 Feb 2005, 22:38
Favourite book/series: Rubadub Mystery, Famous Five and The Find-Outers
Favourite character: Snubby, Uncle Robert, George, Fatty
Location: Kings Norton, Birmingham

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Rob Houghton »

Great stuff, Pete! I had the Action Man helicopter/plane convertible, which could be converted from a helicopter to a plane with weals or floats. :-)

Image
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



Society Member
User avatar
pete9012S
Posts: 17570
Joined: 24 Jan 2010, 15:32
Favourite book/series: Five On A Treasure Island
Favourite character: Frederick Algernon Trotteville
Location: UK

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by pete9012S »

Thanks for the pics Anita and Rob.Glad to see the ladies were catered for too!

And finally,two of my all time favorite 1970's toys which I still have...they don't make 'em like this anymore!


Image

Image
" A kind heart always brings its own reward," said Mrs. Lee.
- The Christmas Tree Aeroplane -

Society Member
User avatar
Rob Houghton
Posts: 16029
Joined: 26 Feb 2005, 22:38
Favourite book/series: Rubadub Mystery, Famous Five and The Find-Outers
Favourite character: Snubby, Uncle Robert, George, Fatty
Location: Kings Norton, Birmingham

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Rob Houghton »

My friend nextdoor (Dawn) had Sindy Dolls, and also Pippa - which was a very trendy doll to have in the 1970's.

Image


I must admit I preferred Pippa dolls to Sindy, and found it fascinating how many clothes and shoes etc were available for them. They were also very cheap, and Dawn had a new doll fairly regularly, plus her nan and grandad would bring new outfits for it every weekend!

The only time I really played with my friend's Pippa dolls was on a couple of occasions when we made cardboard-box houses for them to live in and lit them with birthday cake candles! :-D We also chopped all the hair off one Pippa doll to give her what we thought was a trendy bob! :lol:

In our games, Sindy was usually married to Action Man and they set up home together - or Sindy went on adventures with Action Man, climbing up ropes to the garage roof, or camping out in the wilds of our rockery. I think they used to go to bed together too!!! :shock: :oops:
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



Society Member
User avatar
Anita Bensoussane
Forum Administrator
Posts: 26768
Joined: 30 Jan 2005, 23:25
Favourite book/series: Adventure series, Six Cousins books, Six Bad Boys
Favourite character: Jack Trent, Fatty and Elizabeth Allen
Location: UK

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

One of my friends had a Pippa doll but I never liked Pippa as much as Sindy. I thought Sindy had a more beautiful face.

Instead of buying the proper Sindy clothes, my sister and I used to buy clothes made by Faerie Glen which were cheaper but better made. We also used to knit scarves for Sindy using French knitting.

One Christmas we were given a cardboard Sindy house and gradually got several pieces of furniture. Our grandad made us some wooden beds and we had rocking-chairs made from clothes-pegs. I made a Sindy bath from a tissue box and a silver foil pie container (as demonstrated on Blue Peter!) and we cut out the tiny pictures of chocolates from the leaflets inside tins of Roses and Quality Street so our Sindys could have chocolates.

We had a couple of cheap fashion dolls which were meant to be girls but we cut their hair, drew moustaches and beards on them with felt tip pen, dressed them in trousers and pretended they were husbands or boyfriends for our Sindys. Sometimes we'd pretend the four dolls were ABBA!
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

"There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books."
- E. Nesbit, The Wonderful Garden.


Society Member
User avatar
IceMaiden
Posts: 2290
Joined: 07 Jan 2016, 18:49
Favourite book/series: Too many to mention! All of them!
Favourite character: George
Location: North Wales

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by IceMaiden »

I loved Fuzzy Felt, this was the set I had:

Image

I remember asking for a space-hopper and being told no I'd be too dangerous on it, I could have a pogo stick instead. Someone borrowed one for me to try and after nearly breaking my neck with it, my parents hurriedly relented on the space-hopper :lol: .

I had a lovely little red doll's pram which I would wheel our rabbit around the neighbourhood in and a doll's house but no dolls to actually fit it so I used to put our hamster in it to run around! That poor hamster got pushed through every room, up the stairs, the loft space, into the bath and through all the doors and windows on a regular basis :oops: .

The one toy that was my real favourite though wasn't a toy at all, it was my mum's hand cranked potato peeler, of which I have never seen another to this day. As a potato peeler it was hard work but as a toy I thought it was marvellous. I'd spend hours sat on the kitchen floor with this device, happily turning the handle and listening to the rather nice churning sound it made. I'd even put small teddies in it and because it had a rotating bit in the middle, whatever you put on that part would go round and round as you cranked the handle. It made a terrific noise if you put marbles in it and spun them round fast! :mrgreen:
Society Member

I'm just an old fashioned girl with an old fashioned mind
Not sophisticated, I'm the sweet and simple kind
I want an old fashioned house, with an old fashioned fence
And A̶n̶ ̶o̶l̶d̶ ̶f̶a̶s̶h̶i̶o̶n̶e̶d̶ ̶m̶i̶l̶l̶i̶o̶n̶a̶i̶r̶e̶
Image
User avatar
Courtenay
Posts: 19274
Joined: 07 Feb 2014, 01:22
Favourite book/series: The Adventure Series, Galliano's Circus
Favourite character: Lotta
Location: Both Aussie and British; living in Cheshire

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Courtenay »

IceMaiden wrote: I remember asking for a space-hopper and being told no I'd be too dangerous on it, I could have a pogo stick instead. Someone borrowed one for me to try and after nearly breaking my neck with it, my parents hurriedly relented on the space-hopper :lol: .
Ooer, I would have thought a space-hopper would be downright tame compared with a pogo stick!! :shock: :lol:

Bunny's Party looks lovely — I would have enjoyed that one when I was little, as well as the Monsters one Rob mentioned earlier. We had several Fuzzy-Felt sets (and still do); the three we started out with were Farm, Hospital and Ballet, and then we later bought Pictures, Play School (alphabet and numbers — no relation to the TV show!) and my favourite, Winnie-the-Pooh. :D

Now I've just found a site with pictures of all the classic Fuzzy-Felt sets from over the decades, which is making me waste time getting all nostalgic and almost groaning with envy at all the ones I wish I could have had and never did, so I'd better drag myself away from it... Some highlights: animals,
people and story-themed Fuzzy Felt (including Noddy!). Gosh, it's not that often I wish I could be 5 years old again, but... :mrgreen: :wink:
Society Member

It was a nuisance. An adventure was one thing - but an adventure without anything to eat was quite another thing. That wouldn't do at all. (The Valley of Adventure)
User avatar
IceMaiden
Posts: 2290
Joined: 07 Jan 2016, 18:49
Favourite book/series: Too many to mention! All of them!
Favourite character: George
Location: North Wales

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by IceMaiden »

Courtenay wrote: Ooer, I would have thought a space-hopper would be downright tame compared with a pogo stick!! :shock: :lol:
I did too, but my parents must have thought a pogo stick you can only jump up and down on would be safer than something you could move around the place on. I can't say I blame them, I took it in my head to ride my first tricycle down the stairs (even taking a run up from the bathroom to go faster :shock: ) so they were probably afraid of what I might try and do on a space-hopper!!
Society Member

I'm just an old fashioned girl with an old fashioned mind
Not sophisticated, I'm the sweet and simple kind
I want an old fashioned house, with an old fashioned fence
And A̶n̶ ̶o̶l̶d̶ ̶f̶a̶s̶h̶i̶o̶n̶e̶d̶ ̶m̶i̶l̶l̶i̶o̶n̶a̶i̶r̶e̶
Image
User avatar
Rob Houghton
Posts: 16029
Joined: 26 Feb 2005, 22:38
Favourite book/series: Rubadub Mystery, Famous Five and The Find-Outers
Favourite character: Snubby, Uncle Robert, George, Fatty
Location: Kings Norton, Birmingham

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Rob Houghton »

:lol: :shock: Yeah - I can see why your parents weren't sure about a space hopper, given that story! :-D

On the other hand I agree with Courtenay (and you) that a Space Hopper would have been a lot safer than a pogo-stick. I had a try of my sister's friend's pogo-stick once when I was about 7. I jumped on, banged my chin on the handlebars and promptly fell off! I was quite happy to stick to my space-hopper after that!
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



Society Member
User avatar
Courtenay
Posts: 19274
Joined: 07 Feb 2014, 01:22
Favourite book/series: The Adventure Series, Galliano's Circus
Favourite character: Lotta
Location: Both Aussie and British; living in Cheshire

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Courtenay »

:lol: As I think I mentioned, I can just dimly recall my cousins having a space hopper when I was really little. I think the reason I never successfully used it (though I wanted to try) was that at two or three years old, my legs were too short for me to sit on the thing properly and I quickly lost interest — and by the time I was big enough to be able to fit on one, they'd gone out of fashion!! :P
Society Member

It was a nuisance. An adventure was one thing - but an adventure without anything to eat was quite another thing. That wouldn't do at all. (The Valley of Adventure)
User avatar
Stephen
Posts: 2105
Joined: 05 Feb 2006, 09:38
Location: Maidenhead
Contact:

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Stephen »

A couple of my friends had space hoppers, but I never found the appeal. Maybe something to sit on in the garden, but you had to use your legs to keep you upright, so it sort of defeated the object!
User avatar
Daisy
Posts: 16632
Joined: 28 Oct 2006, 22:49
Favourite book/series: Find-Outers, Adventure series.
Location: Stoke-On-Trent, England

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Daisy »

I remember when space-hoppers were all the rage a space-hopper race was included in a Brownies sports event. The children were very good at moving it along quite quickly!
'Tis loving and giving that makes life worth living.

Society Member
User avatar
Rob Houghton
Posts: 16029
Joined: 26 Feb 2005, 22:38
Favourite book/series: Rubadub Mystery, Famous Five and The Find-Outers
Favourite character: Snubby, Uncle Robert, George, Fatty
Location: Kings Norton, Birmingham

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Rob Houghton »

Stephen wrote:A couple of my friends had space hoppers, but I never found the appeal. Maybe something to sit on in the garden, but you had to use your legs to keep you upright, so it sort of defeated the object!
:lol:

We used to have races, have competitions to see who could balance on theirs the longest without falling off, roll across them, see who could bounce the highest - we were always playing on our space hoppers, as there were quite a few things you could do with them, and our imagination played a large part too, when they were horses, or we were kangaroos, or space creatures etc.
Daisy wrote:I remember when space-hoppers were all the rage a space-hopper race was included in a Brownies sports event. The children were very good at moving it along quite quickly!
So were we! They were great fun. In those days of course they were made of rubber, and so much more robust than the modern-day plastic ones - and more bouncy too, I think! We had 'sports Days' in our garden, where a space hopper race was always included! 8)
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



Society Member
User avatar
Anita Bensoussane
Forum Administrator
Posts: 26768
Joined: 30 Jan 2005, 23:25
Favourite book/series: Adventure series, Six Cousins books, Six Bad Boys
Favourite character: Jack Trent, Fatty and Elizabeth Allen
Location: UK

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

My sister and I loved our Space Hoppers. Like Rob, we'd have races and balancing competitions on them and would sometimes raid the garage for things garden canes, brooms, buckets, flowerpots and boxes so we could set up a row of jumps or an obstacle course to be completed wholly or partially on Space Hoppers.

We also used them as horses in many of our games, including Famous Five and circus games or games based on Black Beauty or Champion the Wonder Horse.
Courtenay wrote:Bunny's Party looks lovely — I would have enjoyed that one when I was little...
I like the look of that too - and the chunky plastic Meccano and the Action Man training tower.
Courtenay wrote:Now I've just found a site with pictures of all the classic Fuzzy-Felt sets from over the decades, which is making me waste time getting all nostalgic and almost groaning with envy at all the ones I wish I could have had and never did, so I'd better drag myself away from it...
A lovely website. My sister and I had a couple of fuzzy-felt sets but our favourite was 'Fantasy' (shown in this link if you scroll down):

http://www.ghostofthedoll.co.uk/fuzzyfelt-shapes.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

By the way, we've got a Fuzzy-Felt thread here if anyone is interested:

http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/foru ... =14&t=6568" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
"Heyho for a starry night and a heathery bed!" - Jack, The Secret Island.

"There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books."
- E. Nesbit, The Wonderful Garden.


Society Member
User avatar
Rob Houghton
Posts: 16029
Joined: 26 Feb 2005, 22:38
Favourite book/series: Rubadub Mystery, Famous Five and The Find-Outers
Favourite character: Snubby, Uncle Robert, George, Fatty
Location: Kings Norton, Birmingham

Re: UK Toys Celebrated on Royal Mail Stamps

Post by Rob Houghton »

Anita Bensoussane wrote:My sister and I loved our Space Hoppers. Like Rob, we'd have races and balancing competitions on them and would sometimes raid the garage for things garden canes, brooms, buckets, flowerpots and boxes so we could set up a row of jumps or an obstacle course to be completed wholly or partially on Space Hoppers.

We also used them as horses in many of our games, including Famous Five and circus games or games based on Black Beauty or Champion the Wonder Horse.
:D Yes - same here - complete with the obligatory 'singing' of the theme tune, quite often, as we galloped along! :lol:

I'd forgotten that we too also used to make jumps and hurdles for our space hoppers to bounce over, and also things to bounce around, such as flower pots etc. I think the one thing that stands out regards our childhoods, Anita, is that we both used our imaginations a LOT. Do children even have imaginations like that these days? :?
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



Society Member
Post Reply