Theatre was the main form of popular entertainment in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. There were large numbers of theatres, with hundreds in London alone. At the time, theatre productions were the equivalent of our soap operas today. Everybody knew the stories to the plays and had their favourite actors.
Toy theatres became a popular form of family entertainment during the 19th century. It is generally believed that they were invented in 1811 by a man called William West, who had a stationery business in London, when he started to produce printed sheets of characters from various plays.
Toy theatres were usually constructed out of card and fitted onto a table top to be played with. The characters were printed on paper and card, attached to wooden sticks, and appeared on the stage by sliding in and out of slots on the stage floor. Different scenes and facades could be added to the basic set. Wealthy families often had a toy theatre custom-made.
While shops which sold toy theatre material began to surface everywhere, William West's shop continued to be one of the most innovative. He started to produce special books of shortened plays for use with toy theatres, called 'West's Original Juvenile Drama'. The sheets, which were produced with characters and scenery, came in different versions: cheaper ones in black and white which children could colour in themselves, or more expensive full-colour versions.
During the 1830s, German manufacturers such as Trantsensky led the market for toy theatres and related materials. The enthusiasm for toy theatres began to decline towards the end of the 19th century. The quality of material published had started to decline and became undesirable. Many of the plays produced for these miniature theatres had not kept up with the times, which was partly due to the nature of the plays - early juvenile dramas had been based on romantic stories or tragedies and the new theatre of Oscar Wilde and Bernard Shaw did not translate well into theatre for children. However, it is also thought that Victorian morality also played a significant part in their demise, as families felt that plays originally written for adults weren't necessarily suitable for children.
Toy Manufacturers in the UK
Abbatt Toys
Paul and Marjorie Abbatt were pioneers of innovative educational toys in the 1930s. They set up in business in 1932 selling toys to friends and by mail order from their flat in Tavistock Square. Demand was such that in 1936 they opened a child friendly shop at 94 Wimpole Street, designed by their friend the architect Erno Goldfinger. The Abbatts were his main clients at the time and he designed toys and nursery equipment for them. They were concerned with the play needs of children in general, introducing a range of toys for children with physical disabilities devised by Milan Morgenstern. In 1951 they were instrumental in setting up the Children's Play Activities Trust Ltd. to promote excellence in toy design and manufacture. After Paul Abbatt died in 1971 the business was bought by the Educational Supply Association.
Britains
Britains Ltd. was founded by William Britain in London, England in 1840. At first Britains made tin and clockwork toys and from the 1890s they made model soldiers. It also opened an office in Paris, France in 1905. The company made munitions for both world wars. In 1954 Herald miniatures, makers of unbreakable plastic toys, became a subsidiary of Britains. In 1966 Britains ceased to manufacture its metal soldiers. It was purchased by Ertl Co. in 1997.
The Chad Valley Company
The Chad Valley trademark was first registered in 1897 when the original company of Johnson Brothers added games to its stationery range. Various toys were gradually added to its repertoire including the introduction of teddy bears and soft toys in 1915-16. In 1920 the Wrekin Toy Works was opened in Wellington, Shropshire and the company renamed The Chad Valley Co.Ltd. The company was awarded a Royal Warrant in 1938. It expanded considerably, acquiring other companies such as H G Stone, maker of Chiltern toys, before being taken over itself by Palitoy in 1978. In 1988 the Chad Valley trademark was bought by the Woolworths.
Dean’s Rag Book Company
Dean's Rag Book Co. Ltd. was founded in 1903 in London. The company initially made cut-out doll sheets, kites, blow-up toys and rag dolls as well as rag books. During the First World War it started to make teddy bears. Deans has undergone various name changes and factory locations as well changes of ownership. In 1980 the company moved all its production to Ponytpool in Wales from where it continues to operate under the name The Dean's Company (1903).
Hornby
Hornby was founded in Liverpool, England, in 1901 by Frank Hornby, initially making Meccano sets. In 1907 he established Meccano Ltd. Hornby Dublo trains were introduced in 1938, but production was halted for the Second World War (1939-1945). Tri-ang Railways, owned by Lines Brothers, and Hornby Dublo merged to become Tri-ang Hornby in 1965. Part of Hornby Dublo was purchased by G. & R. Wrenn Ltd. a division of Lines Bros. in 1967. Tri-ang Wrenn was launched following the merge. Tri-ang was sold in 1971 and in 1972 Tri-ang Hornby was renamed Hornby Railways. Hornby Railways became an independent company named Hornby Hobbies Ltd. in 1980. In 1995, all Hornby manufacturing was moved to China.
John Waddington
The company was founded in Brtitain during the nineteenth century by John Waddington and Wilson Barrett. It started life as a small printing firm producing posters and programmes for theatre productions as well as other things. It later began printing playing cards and board games for which it became renowned. Some of its most notable games include Sorry, Subbuteo, Monopoly and Cludeo. The company is now owned by Hasbro.
J. W. Spears & Sons
Spears was founded by Jacob Wolf Spears in 1878, trading in both Britain and Germany. The family emigrated to England and set up an import company that dealt in fancy goods and toys, whilst retaining the original factory in Germany. Later, Jacob's sons joined the family business and it became J.W.Spears & Sons. During the 1930s Richard Spears built up the British side of the business as it had became too expensive to import goods from Germany. Spears is responsible for many famous board games such as Scrabble and ran a famous campaign 'Our games don't need plugs'. The company was sold to Mattel in the early 1990s.
To read more about J. W. Spear & Sons, click here .
Kiddicraft
Founded by Hilary Page in 1932 at Purley, Surrey. He initially produced toys from wood, but experimented with plastics. He introduced a range of 'Sensible' toys for babies using plastic in 1939, initially under the name Bri-Plax and later as Kiddicraft. Hestair acquired Kiddicraft in 1977 which resulted in a total restructure of the company. In 1980 John and Elizabeth Newson, leading experts in child psychology, acted as professional advisors to Kiddicraft. The company moved to larger premises in Bristol in 1984. Fisher-Price took over Kiddicraft in 1989, merging with Mattel in 1993.
Lines Bros. (Tri-ang Toys)
In 1919, William, Arthur, and Walter Lines, three of four sons of Joseph Lines, established Lines Bros. Ltd. as a separate business from G.&J. Lines. In 1924, Tri-ang Toys was registered. In 1931 they took over the famous store Hamleys. Lines made Pedigree dolls and soft toys in 1948. In 1964, Lines Bros. bought Meccano Ltd. In 1965, Tri-ang and Hornby Dublo were consolidated to form Tri-ang-Hornby Railways. In 1971 the company ceased business. Canterbury Bears took over the teddy bear range. A new company, Mulholland & Bailie, took over Pedigree production. Hasbro bought the rights to Sindy from Pedigree in 1985.
To read more about Lines Bros. and Tri-ang Toys, click here .
Meccano
Meccano was founded by Frank Hornby and David Elliot in Liverpool, England, as 'Mechanics Made Easy' to make tinplate construction sets. In 1908, Hornby bought out Mr. Elliot and changed the name of the company and sets to 'Meccano Ltd.' The company went into receivership in 1979. In 1990, Meccano France purchased the rights to 'Erector' and started selling 'Erector Meccano' in the US.
Merrythought
Merrythought Ltd. began as a spinning mill established near Yorkshire, England, by W.G. Holmes and G.H. Laxton in 1919. Holmes and Laxton bought Dyson Hall & Co. Ltd., a mohair-plush weaving factory, in the 1920s. In 1930, Merrythought Ltd. was founded and registered as a trademark. Between 1940 and 1943 the company began making textile items for the armed forces and hospitals, but reinstated toy production in 1946. They joined Tide-Rider Inc. in 1982 to export goods to the US.
Palitoy
The company was founded in 1919 as the Cascelloid Company by Alfred Pallet near Leicester, England to produce celluloid and fancy goods. Their first toy was a windmill in 1920 that was sold at Woolworths. The first doll followed five years later. They introduced Plastex, a non-breakable bouncy form of plastic in the early 1930s. Cascelloid was bought in 1931 by British Xylonite. The word 'Palitoy' was trademarked in 1935 for the toy division of British Xylonite. Toy production slowed due to the outbreak of war in 1939. In 1941, injection moulding was developed by British Xylonite and was used for Palitoy toys. In the late 1940s, toy production recovered. Palitoy was sold to General Mills in 1968. It became the Palitoy Company in 1980 when Palitoy, Denys Fisher, and Chad Valley broke away from General Mills. Alfred Pallett died in 1982 and in 1986, the company ceased trading. Factory, toy moulds and copyrights were all bought by Hasbro.
Wendy Boston Playsafe Toys
Wendy Boston Playsafe Toys Ltd. was founded in 1941 in Crickhowell, Wales. They made soft toys from unrationed bits of material. In 1945, business started under the name of Wendy Boston (Crickhowell) Ltd. but the name changed in 1960 to Wendy Boston Playsafe Toys Ltd. In 1968, Denys Fisher Toys bought the firm and production stopped in 1976.
