Rupert the bear and the dragon race full#

My favourite story from that time was RupertвЂ™s Rainy Adventure from the 1944 Rupert Annual as it is one of those adventures anyone could get caught up in. I can recall the bombs and doodlebugs going off around me. 'In 1944 when the air raids were going on, I remember sitting in my cot, aged four, reading a Rupert book that my mother had given to me.

They have three children and eight grandchildren. He now lives with his wife of 44 years, Sheila, in nearby Beckenham. Peter grew up in Petts Wood, south-east London. HeвЂ™s such a lovely natured bear and what every mother would like as a son.' I think Rupert is looking remarkably well for having reached 100 years old. I did have Rupert pasta but I ate it because I didnвЂ™t want the tin to blow as it was getting a bit old! Elsewhere, I have lots of Rupert bath toys and squeakers. Edward Trunk and Bill Badger sit side by side. RupertвЂ™s pushing a wheelbarrow, with a little Steiff Algy Pug sat inside. My Rupert concrete ornaments used to live in the garden but IвЂ™ve cleaned them up and brought them inside. I adore my Rupert stationery from Woolworths, and my Beswick chums figurines. My favourite item is my musical Rupert box with its twirling figurine, which dates back to the 1970s, and my most expensive is an original 1936 annual for which I paid a four-figure sum. But anyone who visits for the first time is always surprised вЂ“ it is still eye-catching. Over the past few years IвЂ™ve had to trim down my collection as I have less space in my bungalow than in my old home. Then I came across an unusual Rupert with porcelain hands and it got bigger from there. In my early 20s, I began working in a toyshop and came across a leftover Rupert annual, which started my collection.ДЄfter my husbandвЂ™s death 30 years ago, I found I really loved all the annuals I was finding. I was convinced one of the trees would start walking at any minute. My father would take me to a Birmingham beauty spot called the Lickey Hills where they had a small plantation of Christmas trees. When I was a child, I remember reading Rupert and the Christmas Tree, in which the tree took up its roots and walked. 'When I got together with my partner, Martyn, 24 years ago I told him, вЂњLove me, love my bears вЂ“ if not then at least tolerate them!вЂќ Thankfully, he does. The retired receptionist, from Worcestershire, has a room dedicated to Rupert decorated in curtains, bedding and cushions of her favourite bear. So many people stopped in amazement вЂ“ it takes them straight back to the delight of opening a new annual on Christmas morning.'Дoreen fell in love with Rupert as a small girl and has collected memorabilia for more than 40 years.

Rupert the bear and the dragon race full#

One night I imagined a Rupert Bear store full of books and ephemera.ДЄwake, I was determined to create that vision and, in pre-Covid times, set up a monthly stall in the Tavistock Pannier Market in Devon to test my theory that Rupert still exists in peopleвЂ™s hearts and minds.

I ran a Judo club until recently but left to focus my efforts on Rupert. Now I have amassed a hoard and have had to sell surplus items to keep some kind of control. The world of Nutwood and all its chums lay hidden away until a few years ago when I suddenly had a real pang to start collecting again.

Upon meeting my wife, she persuaded me to develop a вЂњrealвЂќ career so I became a qualified accountant, aged 29. In my early 20s, I set up a bookstore in the antique market of PlymouthвЂ™s Barbican neighbourhood.ДЇor three years I sold childrenвЂ™s annuals and memorabilia, predominantly focusing on Rupert. Lthough I wasnвЂ™t a devout reader, I was always drawn towards the annual, admiring its artwork, colour and the prevailing happiness in the stories. My passion, like most people, began as a child when I received a yearly Rupert annual at Christmas. I also own a retired but working childrenвЂ™s coin-operated ride machine, which I keep in a 24-foot-long Rupert container. I own an unpublished set of seven-by-four panels of original artwork from Alex Cubie, who drew the annual cover artworks after Alfred BestallвЂ™s retirement. It makes me laugh every time I think about it. 'The most unusual item in my collection right now is a 10-foot-high pink dragon on loan from The Followers of Rupert, originating from the story Rupert and the Knight. He is married with two daughters, Lucy, 13, pictured, and Layla, nine. Charles is a chief finance officer, Mensa member, licensed and master practitioner of neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), and a black belt in Judo.