Sunday 14 April 2013

Saturday outing: Hamleys Toy Shop London or ‘The Toy Museum’



Regents Street in the morning

I have been working from home for the whole Easter break, tied to a computer with poor Erbie by my side, so the Saturday treat was to go to Hamleys Toy Shop or as we refer to it, ‘The Toy Museum’ (Erbie is only 4 and it seems to work). 

Hamleys is on Regent’s Street in London’s West End, the nearest tube is Oxford Circus, it opens at 9.30am and there are 5 floors of toys galore, from Steiff to Lego and Moshi monsters to Disney.

If you can make it there before 11am you more or less get the store to yourself.

Hoppity Hop!

Hanging around

Hamleys Ground floor - soft toys

We do like a raspberry faced baboon.

Steiff selection
Ppppppick up a penguin

Eats shoots and leaves



Moshi monsters

Hamleys car abacus

Baby toys floor.



Below are : Tolo - First friends, I think they are adorable, I certainly didn’t see any of them around when Erbie was a baby - thankfully. Look you can have Barney Rubble or Eskimos or baby dinosaurs.



Tolo toys - First Friends
Jungle book figures

Balou and Mowgli too
They have a girl-themed floor which is very pink and crafty and a toys for boys floor (not terribly PC) which is cars, planes and automobiles - don’t let the dad’s go on this floor if you want to save money. There are model trains, Scalextric, diecast models of most cars, minature farm vehicles, London taxis and buses, Airfix models, Hotwheels, those annoying remote controlled helicopters - need I go on...

Scalextric SKYFALL

Model railway

A life size Power Ranger made from Power Rangers.


On the birthday list - Star Wars Angry Birds sticker album
There are also the old classics such as Paddington Bear in Wellingtons, jigsaws and a good selection of books from Mr Men and Little Misses to Charlie and Lola or perhaps you would prefer a Dress Up Kate paper doll book?



Mr Men
You can't go wrong with a Dress Up Kate paper doll?
One is not terribly amused
Will anyone give this bear a home?
Playmobil
I couldn’t resist the offer they had on clock-work toys (4 for £10) and ended up with 3, an elephant spinning a ball on his trunk, a bear playing the cymbals and a monkey doing a somersault.
Wind ups
Erbie chose a Super Moshi plane toy with Katsuma and Wurley, more lumps of plastic but I relented as he had been so good over the Easter holidays.

People riding bikes in vintage. Regents Street April 2013





Other nonsense

Quote of the day

‘They tuck you up your mum and dad...’
Anon - after Larkin

“Philately will get you everywhere”
WEM

“It’s not the despair, I can handle the despair. 
It’s the hope I can’t deal with”
Clockwise

“Each new friend represents a world in us, a world not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.”
Anais Nin

‘Come on Dover move your bloomin’ arse’.
Eliza Doolittle