Mrs Tubby Bear Vintage Noddy Figurine

[Charliecheswick]

hi everyone,
i wondered if anybody had any information on this lovely old mrs tubby bear figurine i have.

i cant find anything like it online, and would appreciate any info(date/manufacturer)

many thanks

https://www.antiquers.com/attachments/a ... pg.149965/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

https://www.antiquers.com/attachments/a ... pg.149968/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

link to item on an antiques site i started

https://www.antiquers.com/threads/mrs-t ... ost-428451" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Anita Bensoussane]

Welcome to the forums, Charlie. I don't have any figurines but I'm just wondering whether that might have been one of the Sculptorcraft Enid Blyton characters that were available in the 1950s. Children would buy a kit, make the figures using plaster of paris and then paint them. Maybe the moulds were numbered? Anyway, it's only a suggestion and I may well be barking up the wrong tree.

[Courtenay]

Welcome, Charlie — that is a beautiful figurine!

You might be on the right track, Anita — the model looks very, very well painted if it is a plaster one (I remember my sister had a plaster model making set when I was little and we certainly never finished up with anything so professional-looking out of it! ), but at Charlie's third link, the base of it certainly looks like it's made out of plaster rather than ceramic... Charlie, maybe you can let us know if it is?

I've been looking online for pictures of the Noddy Sculptorcraft set, to see if there was a mould for Mrs Tubby Bear and whether it matches Charlie's one — that would answer it for sure — but all I can find is one for sale on eBay, which has only three moulds left, all badly perished, and they look like they must have been Noddy, Big-Ears and Noddy's car. I've had a look for it in the Cave as well, but we only have a picture of the box, not a description of the contents.

Does anyone (Tony, maybe?) have any further information as to what the models were in that set, and then maybe we can confirm if that's where Charlie's figurine comes from?

[Courtenay]

Here's a clue, at least — I just went searching again online for Noddy plaster models and found someone selling this one on eBay.

The style of it and the name on the base look very similar to Charlie's Mrs Tubby Bear — AND, although it's hard to make out much detail on the perished Noddy mould you can see among the photos at the link I posted before, comparing the two, I think they MIGHT match — i.e. this Noddy model could well have been made from the 1954 Sculptorcraft set.

The Noddy model doesn't have a number on its base (reversed or otherwise), unlike the Mrs Tubby model, but otherwise I do think it's looking more likely that you're right, Anita.

[Rob Houghton]

I think its definitely a Sculptorcraft model - there are adverts for them in many of the EB magazines, but I haven't actually seen a Mrs Tubby one.

[Boatbuilder]

Those Sculptorcraft models bring back memories for me also. I had many moulds but can't remember what they were except for one, which was of an owl. I made loads of the owls and painted and varnished them before selling them to neighbours. From memory, I think they looked pretty good.

[Rob Houghton]

As children we had some Beatrix Potter ones - they were my sisters. I had Rupert Bear etc, and also some rabbits, which I still have somewhere.

[Courtenay]

I must say the Noddy model on eBay is really sweet and I would be tempted, except it's a bit more than I can afford right now for something I don't really need. Besides, Anita might want it.

[Charliecheswick]

thanks for the great info guys, what a nice bunch you are !!

i was actually thinking along the same lines, as it is indeed made of plaster.

it just seemed so well and charmingly painted, perhaps a talented hobbyist

i remember my nan had a similar type rabbit one as a doorstop !!

[Courtenay]

You're welcome, Charlie!

[Anita Bensoussane]

Glad to be of help, Charlie.

Thanks for the links, Courtenay. I remember seeing television adverts for Shaker Maker (similar to Sculptorcraft, I think) when I was a child in the 70s.

[Rob Houghton]

I remember seeing television adverts for Shaker Maker (similar to Sculptorcraft, I think) when I was a child in the 70s.

me too! Some of my friends had 'shaker Maker sets in the 1970's. I always felt they were very posh, and much better than plain old 'plaster of Paris' moulding sets! The adverts always made 'Shaker Maker' seem a truckload of fun, and extremely innovative and cool and sophisticated!!