Latest memories and comments from DoYouRemember.co.ukhttp://www.doyouremember.co.uk http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=8627 We still need an article for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air but in the meantime, check out what happened to the cast after the show finishedWed, 3 Sep 2008 12:58:43 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=4009 The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, a multi-Grammy winning artist, a hot shot hollywood actor, the list gones on and on. Will Smith is a definite household name as he has shown that family-friendly, hip-hop makes great sounding pop music. His skills as a songwriter and a rapper are highlighted with such classics as "Summertime", "Miami", "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It", to name just a few. A definite contender for coolest guy in pop.Wed, 20 Oct 2004 16:39:53 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3269 Where do I begin? Flower Fairies are the most beautiful dolls ever created! About 7 inches tall, they had sweet little petal costumes and wings that fitted into their backs, inspired by the Cicely Mary Barker drawings. Originally, in 1983 when they were first created there was just 6 of them, but by 1985 when the Flower Pixies were made there were many, many more fairies and accessories (including Fairyland Home set, Secret Garden, Snail Carrage, Fairyland Coach, Pegasis Horse, 3 Enchanted Mushrooms sets(Glitter, Fragrance & Healing) Fairy Bedchamber, Petal Pool, 6 Woodland Friends(Rabbit, Harvest Mouse, Field Mouse, Badger, Hedgehog, Squirrel), Ballet Fairy + dancing stand, Princess Fairy + Rocking Throne, Deluxe Costumes like Poppy, Fuchsia and Stork's-Bill, and Deluxe Fairies like Hazelnut, Fumitory and English Rose... and MANY more)! When their popularity was decreasing they tried a range of 6 'star costumes'(small versions of Rainbow Brite/Moondreamers style clothing) to modernise the dolls. Then they tried a range of 6 Star Fairies (Nightsong, Spice, Whisper, True Love, Jazz, Sparkle) which they marketed in the USA. Star Fairies (some brown skinned, some pale, some green eyed, some brown eyed, some blue eyed, a red head, brunettes, blondes and one with curly white hair) were more diverse than Flower Fairies (all blue eyed blondes or brown eyed brunettes). They ended up letting Tonka make them for the US market and they also added a 7th fairy(Princess Sparkle), and Castle Wishstar, a runway type changing room thing, a 'Lavender' Unicorn and Coach and 3 flocked animal friends (a rabbit, a cat and a swan). Also created was a Star Fairies film, featuring the voice of Drew Barrymore! Sadly flower fairies stopped being made in the late 1980s, but just before the end they tried a few more ranges, which are the hardest to find today: Magic Mist Fairies(their dresses had patterns which appeared only when sprayed with water), Magic Fairies (glow in the dark crowns and deluxe wands), a Treehouse, and more Deluxe Fairies (Marigold, Rosebay Willowherb, Celandine, etc) and Pixies (Strawberry Pixie, Bluebell, Double Daisy, Holly, etc). Photo Larah WyldeWed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:29 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=4040 Boo Boos were made by Hornby in 1986. They were little chubby pixies based on the Mabel Lucie Attwell drawings. These little guys (and later gals!) looked after Baby Twinkle (a doll in a treestump crib 'abondoned' in the forest) and her puppy. Boo Boos had glow in the dark antennae, shoes and came with appropriate accessories to match their names ('Tidy' had a broom, 'Playful' had a rattle and 'Tuneful' had a record)!Fri, 26 Nov 2004 16:33:18 +0000 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=5288 I had a Budgie - a bottle green one if I remember rightly. Where I was from you were either a Budgie / Tomahawk / Chopper kid, or a Boxer / Strika / Grifter kid. If I recall correctly, the Budgie only came equipped with one brake - front. It was the bike I learned to ride on, and I subsequently graduated to a Tomahawk when I was about 7 or 8. I couldn't wait until I was big enough for a Chopper, but by the time I was they had all but gone out of fashion and racing bikes were the thing to have. So I ended up going straight from my Tomahawk to a light blue Raleigh Arena (with no less than 5 gears!!) and never had the pleasure of owning a Chopper. Racing bikes seemed to be a realtively short-lived thing though - they certainly never enjoyed the longevity of the other Raleigh bikes - and within a few years were all but obsolete. The next big thing - which was massive at the time - was the "Son of the Grifter". The BMX, spawned by Raleigh's Burner which was ultra cool with its bright yellow mag wheels and contrasting blue frame. And pads. PADS!! They seemed so cool at the time. "Yeah, so I can, like, to table-tops and stuff cos if I crash out it won't hurt too much cos I've got pads on my bike". Those were the days...Thu, 22 Mar 2007 10:06:27 +0000 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=4871 Action came out in early 1976 and ran until around October, when it was withdrawn. It reappeared in early December and ran for a year or so, then merged with "Battle" to become "Battle Action". There were many stories including "Hellman Of Hammerforce" - a tale following a German tank commander in WWII. It was a story for all the kids who were reading Sven Hassel books. "Lookout For Lefty" a cross between a football story and "Steptoe And Son". "The Probationer" a kid on probation gets blackmailed into crime. That featured a girl stabbing a copper in the eye with a metal comb and blinding him. "Run For Your Life" a long distance runner has plastic surgery that makes him look like a Mafia Don's son who is wanted for murder. So he ends up being hunted by the NYPD and subsequently the Mafia too. When the comic reappeared in the December of 1976 it's heart and soul had been ripped out. A lot of stories were simply dropped and replaced with bog standard strips of car racing and rubbish like that. And the ones that stayed were changed as to be unrecognisable to the originals. I think that many of the artists, writers and office staff moved on to start "2000 A.D."Wed, 26 Jul 2006 22:15:34 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3392 Major Morgan was a hand-held electric organ with music cards that you could place on the front and make music with. I had one when I was younger and found it very hard to use. Major Morgan came with around 10 music cards and was shaped like an an army Major. When you slotted a card into Major Morgan the top section had a series of different coloured shapes or numbers in what looked like a random sequence. However, the shapes or colours in the bottom half of Major Morgan, when pressed according to the key sequence would make a tune. Each card was double sided so would contain two songs. However, there was also a blank card so you could make up your own card and record the key sequence.Wed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:35 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=2428 Major Matt Mason (and buddies) were astronauts and explorers. They were wire-framed / rubber action figures and were known for their wires breaking and not being able to pose any more! There were lots of extra gadgets available if you had lots of cash (or rich parents) and I think they were a spin-off from a series of books. Major Matt Mason had a white space suit and the others' were orange and possibly blue (lower ranks I think!). I remember lusting after the moon vehicle but it was expensive so I lusted in vain and made do with smaller accessories. My brother and I were the only kids on the estate to have this toy since everyone else had Action Man. Major Matt Mason was produced by Mattel and came out around the same time as the first manned lunar mission as Major Matt Mason was an astronaut who lived and worked on the moon. Other figures in the Major Matt Mason line included Sgt. Storm (blonde hair with a red suit), Doug Davis (yellow suit and brown hair), Lt. Jeff Long (African-American with a blue suit). There was also an alien figure called Captain Lazer along with a "Moon Base".Wed, 29 Sep 2004 14:29:23 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3390 Magna Doodle was a bit like Etch-a-Sketch but a lot easier! Mine was made of blue plastic, with a dial at the bottom that you pulled across to wipe out the picture. It was basically a magnetic drawing toy. When you pressed down on the screen with a pen or the magnetic shapes that came with Magna Doodle it would attract tiny bits of filings to the screen making a picture. First brought out in 1974, Magna Doodle was originally produced by Tyco right up until 1998 when the rights were sold to Fisher Price. This was far better than drawing on paper as you could just wipe the slate clean. Unfortunately, if you made a mistake you had to clear the whole lot!Wed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:35 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3389 I still have my Magical Musical Thing! It was a long blue stick the size of your whole arm with multi coloured numbered 'buttons' in two rows. It took a 9 volt battery and was really high pitched. I still have the music books that came with it and could play them all like "Home on the Range" and "God Save the Queen" and loads more. Sadly my Magical Musical Thing broke after too much use only a couple of years back. My son played with it but now he plays the piano. Magical Musical Thing was made by Mattel in the late 1970s. It came with a Magical Musical Thing Songbook so you could follow the coloured button insttructions to play a real song rather than just dab your fingers across the keyboard or, as the boy in the advert did, rub it across your forehead!Wed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:35 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=8570 I remember having the TV21 comic in the late 60s. It had a lot of Gerry Anderson's work in it like Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, Fireball XL5 and Stingray. I presume it was set in the 21st century and had stories from the above TV shows. I think that it was later merged with the 'Valiant' Comic.Sat, 9 Aug 2008 17:08:12 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=8571 Sherbet Pips used to come in the jars that you would get a quarter weighed out from. They were hard boiled, small, brightly coloured sweets covered in a dusting of icing sugar. They were very tasty - especially when you stuffed a whole load in your mouth at once!Sat, 9 Aug 2008 23:11:14 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=4557 I remember at the end of the 70's there was this toy called a Magic Stick. It was a long yellow plastic pole with a red plastic ball-shaped knob stuck to each end. The stick was attached to a clear fishing gut with a red hoop that fitted on to your thumb and when moved about it looked like it was moving by itself in the air. I had hours of fun with this!Fri, 18 Nov 2005 12:40:16 +0000 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=2442 The Magic Shot Shooting Gallery made by Marx Games was one of the most exciting games a child could own in the 70s and 80s.The game comprised a plastic gun with a magnetic tip and a shooting gallery like the sort of thing you get at a funfair. The front of the Magic Shot Shooting Gallery was screened with clear perspex and at the bottom of the screen was a row of 25 steel balls. Using the magnetic tip of the gun you would pick up a ball, drag it in to position and then fire the gun. A powerful hammer in the gun would fire the ball at the targets.Marx Games also produced a variety of other shooting range games including the Electro Shot Shooting Gallery.Wed, 29 Sep 2004 14:35:29 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3388 Would you beleive me if I told you that I still have my bottle of Magic Sand? Well it is true - I was one of those kids who really took care of their toys - perhaps it is because we didn't have as many toys as the kids have these days.My bottle of Magic Sand is red and I remember buying it from Woolworths. You poured the sand into water and you could model with it, and it went really shiny.Once you had finished playing with the sand and took it out of the water it 'magically' became dry and you could pour it back into the bottle. The bottle had an arabian shape to it.It has made a comeback and I have seen it in the shops recently.Wed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:35 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3386 When I was very young, I saw this commercial for a Magic Nursery Baby. It showed this little girl taking the doll's dress off, putting it in a bowl of water, swirling it around and then she said, "Love is Magic" and out of the bowl came this plastic bag, with a change of clothes, a diaper, and a birth certificate. It showed the little girl kissing the heart on the cheek of the doll, and a star appeared. Then the little girl smiled and said, "I'm such a happy Magic Nursery Mommy!".I thought Magic Nursery Babies were the coolest thing when their dress dissolved in water. So, for Christmas that year I got one, and I didn't even open any other presents, I went straight for the kitchen so I could say those magic words! I kissed the heart so much that eventually the heart stopped appearing and the star stayed there. To this day, my Magic Nursery Baby is my favorite toy of all time. One in every 36 Magic Nursery Babies were one of two twins, so, if you dissolved your diaper in water and found a message saying it was a twin you could send off to receive the other one.Wed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:35 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=7855 Magic Diaper Babies were small dolls made of hard plastic. They were about 2 inches tall and wore little white diapers. You would put ice onto the diaper and it would go blue or pink to let you know if it was a boy or girl. There were so many different varieties of Diaper Babies from the range made by Galoob. Magic Diaper Babies were available either in packs of five or three. There were also different themed Magic Diaper Babies you could get including Babies 'Round the World (no worry of stereotyping here, obviously) - these were little babies dressed up in costumes and carrying items associated with the country from which they originated. You could also get Merbabies - instead of diapers these had mermaid tails. Little Joys were a spin-off of Magic Diaper Babies. Instead of babies, you could collect different animals including Dalmations, Pigs and Dogs.Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:18:46 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3385 Magic Balloons used to be a kit with a tube of coloured goo (like squishy plastic) which you moulded around the end of a drinking straw, and then blew really, really hard (so your cheeks hurt). Then it made a bubble made out of really thin stretchy plastic and you sealed the end and took it off.I think they were called Magic Balloons because you could touch them without them popping which I remember thinking was pretty magic. I had red and blue ones, and the plastic stuff stunk!Wed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:35 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=8567 The Air Blaster was a dune buggy-type car incorporating a clear plastic air tank. You plugged in to it a pipe from a small hand pump to fill it with air, once full of air you gave it a small push and the air in the tank released through a piston and it raced off... I still have my Air Blaster somewhere but I lost the air pump twenty years ago but every time I find it it reminds me of all the fun I had.Tue, 5 Aug 2008 19:59:21 +0100 http://www.doyouremember.co.uk/memory.php?memID=3383 Madballs were rubber balls approximately 2-3 inches in diameter that had the most grotesque faces on them. They each had their own names and included; Screamin Meemie, Slobulus, Aargh, Hornhead, Dustbrain, Oculus Orbus, Skull Face and Crack Head. Due to the popularity a second series was also released as well as a range called 'Super Madballs'. Madballs were good for boys who wanted to "gross out" the girls. Released by AmToy, a subsidiary of American Greetings in the 1980s. The toys were so popular that they got their own animated tv series, a run of comics and a video game for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64.Wed, 29 Sep 2004 16:10:34 +0100