Interesting Britains figures

[jaywilli7610]

Picked these figures up with some other figures and older Herald animals.  

 

 

They are identical to the Britains versions but half the size. As shown in photo 2.

 

 

 

 

If anyone has any information on maker, age etc. I would be very interested to hear.

[super6]

I have some of these including the shepherd, scarecrow and milker on a stool. I suspect that they may be by Blue Bird I think they are called. Plagiarism I think its called, but I could be wrong. Herald and Britains had a lot of this trouble    

[david_scrivener]

I have some of these including the shepherd, scarecrow and milker on a stool. I suspect that they may be by Blue Bird I think they are called. Plagiarism I think its called, but I could be wrong. Herald and Britains had a lot of this trouble    

Close, but the company is (it still exists, but doesn't make these any more) called Blue Box (some lines branded Red Box), and back in the 1950s & '60s had factories in Hong Kong and Singapore. They made a lot of copies of Britains/Herald and Timpo farm & zoo in three scales, the small ones pictured here, full (Britains) size or slightly smaller, and some about halfway between the two.

 

They also made a variety of soldiers, cowboys & indians, etc, mostly copies of Britans/Herald, Timpo, Lone Star, Crescent, Cherliea, Marx and others, but there were some quite good original designed figures as well. They may have been making stuff to order for the US  based companies Marx (such as their miniature range in hard plastic, about the same size as these) and Transogram (such as copies of Britains/Herald 'Wars of the Roses' knights).

 

Their products, and other HKs, have been generally regarded as junk by UK collectors until recently, but in the last couple of years interest seems to be increasing, if the bids they attract on ebay are a guide. I've long since removed them from my junk boxes, and now have quite a lot of them, equivalent to three large biscuit tins full up, one of farm, one of zoo, and one of mostly wild west, plus some soldiers.

 

Edit to add: I've just found a reference about the copies of the Wars of the Roses Knights. Apparently they were wholesaled by Transogram, but actually made by 'Innovative Promotions', a company set up in Hong Kong by New York, US, based Effrem Arenstein in 1964, one of the former owners of US toy figure company Lido. Transogram was also based in New York, but had stuff made in HK.  

 

(Researching this stuff keeps me off the streets I suppose) (we still need a nerd/geek emoticon)  

[NIGEL FORD]

Very interesting.....I have a number of these too and wondered the same- thanks David, not a nerd at all!

I have a number of Blue Box tractors and combines aswell, of course.

[jaywilli7610]

Thanks for the information everyone. Very interesting. However, as they are not strictly Britains I may have to try them on Ebay.

[david_scrivener]

Thanks for the information everyone. Very interesting. However, as they are not strictly Britains I may have to try them on Ebay.

 

These figures are very common (some other Blue Box items are rare though), so probably not worth trying to sell. I doubt you'll get a bid for just these, even @ 99p for all 3. You might as well keep them as novelty items, after all, not as though they take up much storage space.

[jaywilli7610]

These figures are very common (some other Blue Box items are rare though), so probably not worth trying to sell. I doubt you'll get a bid for just these, even @ 99p for all 3. You might as well keep them as novelty items, after all, not as though they take up much storage space.

I see. Thanks for the info.

I did think about using them on a train layout, but slightly too big for oo scale.