To wonder why toys from some current kids shows are just impossible to find?

[TammySwansonTwo]

My boys are massively obsessed with Hey Duggee, and a couple of the characters in particular. Guess what? The toys of those characters were made in limited numbers, the whole lot have been discontinued and despite trawling eBay and gumtree etc I’ve been unable to complete the set. I even contacted the manufacturers and they told me they’re not making any more.

I don’t get it - it’s massively popular right? People were madly buying them up before Christmas, why aren’t they making them? And there’s a similar issue with other kids shows (like Sarah and Duck which they still show, and yet I’ve seen one Duck toy on eBay ever and it sold for over £50), whereas I could buy 8 million bloody Iggle Piggles and there’s still be a surplus.

Then there’s the touts - someone messaged me offering the two I’m missing for hundreds of pounds. Are they kidding? They’re kids toys FFS.

Oh well, if you have talking Happy and Norrie toys, stick them on eBay - you might be rich

Tu at Sainsburys have some cute Hey Duggee wellingtons and hats at the mo. Not helpful on the toy front I'm afraid...

YANBU - I have two autistic boys who manage to have obsessions for either the world's most rare toys, although it is usually because the shows are really old - Sesame Street, for example, and the youngest one has just rediscovered Zingzillas, Big Cook Little Cook, that kind of thing. Impossible to find anything that doesn't cost the same as a small car!

They're too busy moving on to the next cash cow...

I reckon charity shops and car boots are your best bet but no guarantees obviously. It wouldn't occur to me to put dd's toys on eBay to be honest, by the time I'm clearing out I just want rid.

YANBU - go jetters toys have had their day too... just a few bits left on Argos/Amazon

I get it with old shows but with stuff that’s currently on I find it so strange - they’re missing out on a lot of business!

If you have toys for older / less popular shows you should definitely stick them on eBay - just make sure you list them separately rather than as a lot so people can find them!

Whats extra annoying is when you look up completed sales on eBay from the previous few weeks and realise you’ve missed some at bargain prices, while the lot you’re watching sells for over £100. I love them, but not that much.

Does my head in. DS1 was obsessed with Sheriff Callie. Kept asking for the toys, and I searched everywhere, even asked at the Disney store and emailed. Response was that they were planning to have them in store in about a years time! By then he’d outgrown Sheriff Callie

Then they go and do the opposite by bringing out toys for the latest Star Wars film before it’s even released...

They don't do any Digby dragon or wallykazam toys either.

Not my listing...

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rosie-Jim-Canal-Boat-Barge-Narrowboat-And-Figures-Bath-Toy-Complete-Rare/263548049254?hash=item3d5cb01766:g:niAAAOSwLe5aqCZ-

I have a set of this minus Rosie... wondering now wether to pop it on...

I've just thrown out a load of Everything's Rosie toys, DD loved it.
Doc McStuffins was a firm favourite too, and Jake and the Neverland Pirates - someone on eBay saw me coming....

Honestly, if you have old stuff, list it! Not just for the money, but because you could make someone like me and my little ones super happy!

It's because it takes a while to sort the motors out for new toys and then the license agreements to make them- in not so distant last that was fine because development of program was same, now the whole series lands at one time we exoect everything straight away- it's a delay thing!

I don’t think it’s just that though - I know HD is one of the most highly rated shows on CBeebies right now, but the company who has the license to make the toys here has stopped producing them, despite its popularity. I don’t know whether someone else is taking over the licence or whether that’s it now. They could sell another production run easily!

Card Factory had some cute Hey Duggee craft stuff in today if that's any good to you?

Meg and Mog - can’t buy a blooming mog anywhere. But you can knit one

DD (4) was obsessed with toddler Anna and Elsa (Frozen). 6 inch dolls. Scoured the earth and despite US Toys R Us shops stocking them at bugger all $ they wouldn't ship to the UK. Scoured Ebay day and night but all extortionate. Ended up spending £119 at Disney Store for a set of Disney toddler toys She did LOVE those dolls. (bloody well better still love them at that price).
My theory on Hey Duggee is that parents seem to love it too (unless i just associate with odd bods). so they buy all the stuff shite for 'the kids' and end up holding on to it.
I do have to have the occasional word with myself over the fact DD does NOT need merch from every programme which is flavour of the month.

We are a duggee house too but ds2 is only 1 so not fussed about toys he's got some books and a rucksack but yes there's a definite lack of merchandise around

Thanks for the tip offs for other merchandise, I’ll have a look!

I’m actually halfway through crocheting a Duggee - all of the patterns I could find looked totally wrong so I’m designing it myself (read: idiot) so it’s taking forever. Don’t much fancy trying to get Happy right though!

Can't say too much but it's to do with the licenses being granted, so the concept owner/producer/licensor/studio etc duggee has also been a surprise hit in studio terms but a lot of extra content is digital rather than toy led- quick and cheap to produce

We got hey duggee stuff from Australia. I think it was the ABC website. Even with the shipping they didn't work out too expensive. They seem to have a much better range there!

It's strange - I was looking for some ITNG bits for DD for Christmas - pyjamas or similar - and there were none. They had been produced in the past, as I could find them sold out on supermarket websites, but you'd think something like that would remain popular? Surely they're missing out on serious revenue?

That surprises me Celtic as I seem to see Night Garden Toys everywhere I go despite how old it is!

I guess maybe the company bought a licence to produce a certain run and thats it? Seems a shame.

I did have a look at the Australian sites - they don’t have the toys I need to make the set sadly :( They have other cool stuff though!

If anyone sees a duck from Sarah and Duck I’d pay through the nose for it.

glueandstick I crocheted Duck from Sarah and Duck for a little friend, was very well received. If you can crochet or know someone who can it was a free pattern on Pinterest I think.