10-MINUTE EXPERT

All you need to know about the big names in collecting.

Wow, they’ve got real windows!” Words that were no doubt heard in toyshops all over the land in the summer of 1956 when millions of kids got their first glimpse of Corgi Toys. They were certainly eye-catching with those natty silver spun aluminium wheels, real plastic windows, bright two-tone paint finishes and attractive boxes, and at three shillings a-piece they were just about affordable from your pocket money.

My first ever Corgi Toy was the Chipperfield’s Circus International Crane I remember receiving it from my mum and dad and excitedly unwrapping it at my fifth birthday party. This was soon followed by the Fordson Major tractor, which had fantastic play value with its lifting plough attachment and real steering! I got through three or four of those, I reckon, as the front axles always tended to wear out through constant play. Another of my personal favourites was the Ford Thames Wall’s Ice Cream Van… what a fabulous feature those working chimes were! That was the great thing about Corgi, it was always coming up with new features that got the kids buzzing in the playground.

The history of Corgi Toys can be traced back as far as 1933 when German born Philiip Ullmann formed a company called Mettoy – derived from the words Metal Toys. The factory was based in Stanley Street, Northampton and, despite Britain being in the grip of a deep recession with over two million unemployed, Ullmann managed to make a go of it producing a range of attractive tinplate toy vehicles.

Rather ironically, despite his German roots, Ullmann soon found himself supporting the British war effort following the outbreak of World War Two, when the Mettoy factory was turned over to the production of Brengun magazines, shell carriers and land mines both at Northampton and the firm’s newly opened factory in Swansea.

Following the war, amid a fresh mood of industrial optimism, Mettoy returned to its roots manufacturing pressed tin toy vehicles once again and developing a healthy export market to the United States.

Here in Britain, Mettoy’s products were sold mainly through Marks and Spencer’s stores and it was Sir Simon Marks who, in search of a range of solid, hard wearing solid metal toy vehicles, led Mettoy to venture into the world of diecasting – an area until then largely dominated by Dinky Toys. Boosted by the enthusiasm of Henry Ullmann, the founder’s young son, and other new recruits from the Birmingham Alluminium Casting Company, Mettoy’s answer to Marks’ request was a range of diecast models called ‘Castoys.’ While sturdy and robust, Castoys were heavy and fairly crude in detail. They did, however, have one truly unique feature - an internal flywheel mechanism to power them over the kitchen linoleum! Two motorcars were released initially in 1954, a Standard Vanguard and a Rolls Royce. Despite the heavy castings being hard for the small internal mechanism to handle with any great success, Mettoy remained convinced that novel innovation was the key to its future success within the diecast market. Other Castoys followed including a motor coach, racing car and a farm tractor and they sold quite well. It was clear, however, that they were still no match for Dinky Toys.

With this in mind Mettoy decided to release a new range of toys in a similar scale to Dinky and it went in search of a catchy name. A shortlist of seventy proposals was drafted and from this list came the name CORGI. This was one of the names proposed by Henry Ullmann and seemed the perfect solution being short, snappy and representing a sturdy Welsh dog, as the new toys were to be made at the newly extended Swansea factory. The dog also proved to be a very successful branding tool when it came to marketing.

The 24 new models, each with smart clear plastic windows, were marketed by ‘Playcraft’ and launched at the British Industries Fair in February 1956. Entering toy shops for the first time in July 1956 the new Corgi models included the Ford Consul, Austin Cambridge, Morris Cowley, Riley Pathfinder, Vauxhall Velox, Rover 90 and the Hilman Husky. They were instantly popular, and within five months a Corgi Model Club was launched. Application

ABOVE Only the Batmobile has managed to exceed the spectacular sales success of the DB5, with total sales of five million before it was finally withdrawn in the 1980s. It has become a regular sight at toy fairs and auctions around the country.