Innehållsförteckning för February 2026 från Collectors Gazette

StarWars memorabilia has a way of turning childhood memories into serious investments. From vintage Kenner figures to limited-edition lightsabers and rare prop replicas, the galaxy far, far away has inspired collectors for nearly 50 years. But what happens when a collection like that becomes part of your estate? Recently, I helped a client whose Star Wars collection was valued at £75,000 for probate purposes, and it’s expected to achieve significantly more at auction. Every inch of his home reflected decades of devotion: pristine boxed figures, rare promotional items, even autographed memorabilia. For him, these weren’t just possessions - they were memories, achievements, and part of his identity. But here’s the catch, even the most carefully curated collection can be mishandled or undervalued. Often, families simply don’t realise what they’re looking…

Automata have fascinated people for centuries, even as far back as Ancient Egypt. Varying in complexity from figures moving by hand-turned levers to intricate tableaux and sculptures powered by clockwork, water, gravity or electricity, automata never fail to entertain and amuse. It is known that the Ancient Greeks partially animated statues for use in ceremonies and theatrical productions, while in China there are records of a flying magpie constructed out of wood and bamboo. During the sixteenth century Leonardo da Vinci devised a lion automaton in honour of Louis XII, which advanced forward before opening its chest and pointing to a design of the fleur-de-lys. It became a craze among wealthy people from the seventeenth century onwards with people intent on collecting ever more complex automata. Jacques de Vaucanson created…

On the 16th of November 2025, I, alongside my boyfriend, attended the J & J Fairs toy fair in Spalding, Lincolnshire. It was both of our first times attending a toy fair, and I’m pleased to say I was genuinely, pleasantly surprised by the whole experience. Before going, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I had imagined something quite niche and quiet, perhaps full of very serious collectors poring over items I knew little about, but instead, I found the atmosphere welcoming, lively, and much more engaging than I had anticipated. The fair officially opened at 10am, but we didn’t arrive until around 1pm. I had been a little worried that arriving later in the day would mean we had missed the peak excitement and that the venue would…

Long before HomeVideo players, DVDs, streaming and Blu-ray, the magic of cinema could fit in the palm of your hand. For a generation of movie lovers, Super 8 reels weren’t just celluloid - they were portals to Hollywood, spinning on projectors in living rooms across the world. I was ten when I first threaded a delicate film reel of a classic B-movie onto my Super 8 projector, and that whirring sound still feels like pure nostalgia to me and to other Super 8 film collectors throughout the world. A CHILDHOOD OBSESSION BEGINS My first glimpse into home cinema came in the early 1970s when my parents bought a silent Super 8 projector from a photographic store. Eventually tired of endless holiday reels and wedding films, we decided to rent a…

I sometimes feel that the world is full of unanswerable questions. Take those giganticT-shaped cranes that dominate serious building sites: just how do they set up the counterbalance and add the jib without the whole thing toppling over? Then again, there’s the snowplough driver: how does he get to work? This issue features two toy companies about whom virtually nothing is known, so the above preface is quite apposite. But first, a word about the underlying strand that joins them both. PLUSES AND MINUSES The humble battery, today the mainstay of so much of our world, has a long history, with the first primitive examples seeing the light of day back in 1800, believe it or not. However, like most technology, it would take time before the concept set off…

Nostalgia is a strange thing, isn’t it? After all, when memories are apparently reconstructed by the brain, they’re often an amalgam of things rather than verbatim recollection. This must be how police investigations come to label some witnesses as unreliable. If you think back to your childhood, you may be able to recollect a particular event such as Christmas when you received a particular toy or the times you played with it your toys in the back garden. Now you may remember the garden and the toy but possibly not that particular day. We all fill in these bits to give us a warm glow and complete the picture. I was recently recalling my years in Junior School to a friend. The rainy break times when they brought out what…

In the days before N gauge and Bachmann trains, ‘Farish’ was a big player on the post-war model railways scene. The company was set up to manufacture radio components in 1919. Its founder wasThomas Graham Farish. Evidently, Mr Farish had an eye for the latest opportunities, as the company successfully added related domestic products through the 1920s and 30s. These included electric fires, water pumps, and even lids for vacuum sealing glass jars. They were also one of the first companies to exploit an exciting new material: Bakelite. During the Second World War, the business was largely engaged in military production, their diecasting, general engineering and electronics expertise proving ideal. Such was the case with many toy makers. After the war, these firms were looking for new products, and like…

FAIRS 1 JANUARY • Newark JJ Fairs 01522 880383 4 JANUARY • Walsall Wood Transtar Promotions 01922 643385 • Ashington David Parsons 07742 609865 10 JANUARY • Brentwood J & J Fairs 01522880383 11 JANUARY • York Jim Corr 07504 035955 18 JANUARY • Bromley KRJ Vintage Toy Fairs 07534 939022 • Spalding J & J Fairs 01522 880383 • Newton Abbot Ray Heard 01823 480097 25 JANUARY • Port Sunlight Jackson & Jackson Events 07967 681080 • Lincoln J & J Fairs 01522 880383 31 JANUARY • Musselburgh Jim Corr 07504 035955 1 FEBRUARY • Ashington David Parsons 07742 609865 Potters Bar Joe Lock 07866 641215 • Kidderminster Tony Oakes 01270 652773 5 FEBRUARY • Theydon Bois Joe Lock 07866 641215 7 FEBRUARY • Ludlow Tony Oakes 01270 652773…