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I thought I should do a quick write up on the old toys that sit alongside my computer; treasured and to be never thrown away. After writing this I shall be climbing in to my loft and digging out even more to relive a little more of my childhood before the drudgery of work recommences!
PS – if you want to buy some cool toys (retro and modern), head over to Sidequest TGC now!
Playmobil Robot
This little fella has been in my care since my eight birthday and the fond memories of how he came about still make me smile. As Dad was busy running the family business, Mum always took control of entertaining us boys when we were home from school or on holiday. This included Birthday parties and all the little activities that we all undertook. On my eighth Birthday I had a small party with only Michael and Martin being invited over (best friends of that era!) for a day of fun and cake.
It was early afternoon and we’d have my party lunch, sat in the living room with a video playing in the background, Mum presented us each with a sandwich bag of assorted lego parts. Over the next hour we had 20 minutes at a time to create something specific with the pieces. My older brothers would then judge who’s creation was the best and a prize was awarded to them. Surprisingly (or at least to me), I didn’t win the first two competitions and a pair of packaged mini-boglins went off to Martin and a small lego box to Michael. Being 8 meant I hadn’t yet worked out that as an adult you have to ensure all the children get something and it had so happened that I would be the last to win.
That now brings me to our pal above, I remember unwrapping my prize with glee to find him sat in the box waiting for me to play. I fell in love with him immediately and still keep him close to this day.
Pet Rock
I couldn’t tell you where this fine specimen of a gentlemen came from but he has been in my life for a long time. He arrived in a plastic mesh net with a small note stating he was a ‘pet rock’ and needed a new home. His face has always reminded me of the Tolkien stories such as the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. I can’t quite place a reason as to why I love him to bits but I do, maybe he’s just grown on me!
I’ve not known anyone else with a pet rock but if you think of a name that would suit him let me know! Also, this is not the same as the American Pet Rocks as far as I can tell.
Gizmo
I am rather protective of this little man, he’s survived through a lot of years and being a tie with one of my favourite films I always felt that I should keep him as well as I could. He did have to be rescued from my nephew when I realised he was being used in the bath and everywhere else other than the dry!
I’d love to know where he came from whether he was bought specifically after I first saw the film or whether I found him in a charity shop. It’s amazing to think that some things you can instantly identify when you got them whilst others you just know it’s been a long time.
Playmobil Diver
I have a very large collection of Playmobil in the loft ready to hand down to my children. Inside that collection is hidden a little Playmobil diver in yellow diving bell. I will be rescuing him tomorrow after realising that I must still have him and only really remembering him after starting this post.
I can’t remember what excited me more about this man; he was one of the first bits of Playmobil I remember getting and was carried around with me everywhere in a pocket. In the picture above you can see a plastic tube escaping upwards out of frame, as far as I was concerned this was for the person playing with him to blow down and make bubbles come out of the helmet. If this wasn’t the correct thing to do please do tell me what it was for!
Looking at him now and remembering what he had, I can’t imagine Playmobil make toys like him anymore. In his yellow diving boots he had metal weights to make him sink in the bath or sink. He also carried a diving knife for murder of other playmobil toys exploring the depths of the water.
If I manage to rescue him from the toy box of old then I’ll pop a proper picture of him up on here and Instagram.
Toys I remember but you probably can’t buy anymore..
Ecto-plazm
With the film Ghostbusters came a whole range of toys. With the TV show ‘The Real Ghostbusters’ came even more toys of which I was a proud owner of a tub Ecto-plazm. I can’t explain why Mum and Dad decided to let me buy this considering it was Silly Putter on laxatives but they did and they fun of making it fart, burp and ooze everywhere lasted for hours.
This was the only part of the range I did own whilst certain other children in my class (Martin Rix!) had a lot more such as the proton pack, trap and even the Ghostbuster building if I remember rightly
So there you go, another trip down retro lane with me. I hope you enjoyed it and I shall make another post soon! If you enjoyed reading about my Nostalgic memories, try looking at the ‘Nostalgia‘ category now.
