Old toys from our childhood could be worth thousands of pounds. So if you have any of these toys hiding in your cupboards, you could be sitting on a goldmine. That's because plenty of out-of-circulation play things are now sought after by collectors.
Here, Cath Kidston has put together some of the under-the-radar nostalgic toys that could net you some money. This is what they say about the valuable items and how much they could potentially be worth.
Have you got any of these hiding away? Would you sell them if you do? Have your say in the comments below.
The rarest Beanie Babies
Did anyone else’s mum religiously collect Beanie Babies because they were promised they’d all be valuable in years to come? While all Beanie Babies eventually becoming valuable turned out to be a bit of a myth, there are some specific soft toys that could net you some money – so if you loved your collection as a little one, you don’t need to part with all of them.
The original Peanut the Elephant is one of the most valuable Beanie Babies around because of its very limited production run. Only 2,000 of the royal blue Peanut were ever produced – but there’s debate as to why there were so few. Some said it was a production error and that he wasn’t supposed to be royal blue, while others believe the creator of Beanie Babies, Ty Walker, wasn’t happy with its initial sales. Either way, the original Peanut could earn you close to £4,000.
Read More: Rare Star Wars toy bought for 99p in Tesco bargain bin sells for £2,000
Unique Lego sets
Lego is one type of nostalgic toy that’s still just as popular today. According to the manufacturer itself, the number of adults buying Lego sets has increased fourfold in less than a decade. But when it comes to valuable sets from days gone by, you need to have some specific sets.
The lucrative Lego Airport Shuttle set has a unique place in history. As well as producing a limited run, it’s said that Lego outsourced the production of the monorail tracks to a company that folded, so the tooling pieces were lost forever. You could fetch close to £2,000 for one of these sets.
It’s well-known that original Star Wars action figures are worth big money, and the same applies to Star Wars Lego sets. A used Ultimate Collector’s Millennium Falcon bundle is worth around £1,184.99 – around treble its original value. The Imperial Star Destroyer, from the same collection, could be worth around £1,830.
The most valuable Barbies
It’ll come as no surprise that an original of the very first Barbie doll is worth a lot of money. But there are plenty of iterations of Barbie through the years that could bring in some money that you might well have in your collection.
The three most valuable Barbies all have real jewels sewn into their outfits and were either extremely limited or one-of-a-kind, but you don’t have to have a diamond-laden Barbie to make some cash. Barbie Millennium Princess, designed in honour of the year 2000, is commanding a price of around £1,988. Calvin Klein Barbie, a quintessentially ‘90s toy, is worth around £1,124 if you’ve kept her in good condition.
If your mum passed down some of her vintage Barbies to you, they could be worth even more money. Vintage Parisienne Barbie, from the very first catalogue of Barbies in 1959, could be worth £2,305.
A spokseperson for Cath Kidston added: "We’re loving nostalgia right now, and that’s translating to a huge demand for vintage children’s toys. Adults are making up a bigger share of the toy-buying market and people are searching for classic playthings from their own childhood.
"If you have boxes of toys gathering dust in your attic, why not take a trip down memory lane and bring them out? If you have any of the above, you could be in for a lucrative payday if you can part with them. And be sure to keep your own children’s toys in storage once they grow out of them – their action figures, game consoles, and boys’ backpacks could be worth something one day too."
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