Toy collectors boing along to Birmingham NEC fair
It was a toy extravaganza at the NEC as the Birmingham arena was filled with collectables including a Baggies Action Man.
Colin Smith, originally from Rowley Regis, was among those who boing boinged along to the NEC Toy Collectors Fair with a 1964 West Bromwich Albion Action Man said to be worth about £110.
The event has been going for more than 40 years, with event organiser Barry Potter, now 76, first starting it with just one stall and a handful of toys in 1979.
Now it has more than 500 stalls and thousands of visitors flocked to the event to snap up a post Christmas treat.
Almost 4,000 avid and amateur collectors visited the NEC Arena in Birmingham on Boxing Day, for this year's toy fair, selling pop figures, tin cars and a 5ft Darth Vader figure.
Barry said: "The first fair we had was around 43 years ago, it's amazing seeing it grow to this level, I am quite proud of it, it's a nice feeling you know.
"When we first started, it started with these old Dinky toys, scale model cars and the like, but now we include TV and film collectables too; Star Wars and more recent stuff like Harry Potter."
Barry, from Northampton, now runs the toy fair with the help of his two sons, Simon, 52, and Ellis, 47, who help set up stalls and organise the day's events.
Barry continued: "We all arrived at around 3am this morning to get everything ready for the show. It took us around an hour and a half to get the initial queue in, it was amazing.
"I would say that this event tends to be the most popular now, we have an event in Sandown Racecourse that does really well too but this one is probably the biggest at the moment."
Colin Smith, stall operator for Vintageactionman4u, talked about attending the event and what it means for him, he said: "It's been a very packed day, the Christmas period always is.
"We have always enjoyed the NEC shows, it's a really friendly place and you meet up with a lot of like-minded people, and while it's just a hobby for us, we are all avid collectors; it's a club of really like-minded people."
Barry added: "If there are toys or items that you remember from being a kid, then go out and get them, it's an awful lot of fun and it's a fantastic group of people, but it is very addictive."
The toy fair will return to the Birmingham NEC arena on April 16, where Barry hopes it will be the biggest one ever. More information on upcoming dates can be found on the organisation's website bpfairs.com/nec-birmingham
