Never Die
Toys that Teach from James May’s Toy Stories
Will our children reflect on the toys and computer games that they have today with the same enthusiasm that James May exhibits for Plasticene, Meccano and Scalextric?
In the new TV series ‘James May’s Toy Stories’ we se Mr May blowing big chunks of the BBC’s budget building huge structures using toys from yesteryear. They’ve concocted a series in which Mr May builds a full-size plastic Spitfire plane, a full size house from Lego bricks, a full size bridge over the Leeds and Liverpool canal built entirely from Meccano and a 3 mile replica of the Brooklands banked racing circuit built entirely from Scalextric.
Mr May’s favourite toys all involve construction and making something. They come from a time when toys were inspiring and didn’t involve a blasting virtual adversaries into oblivion with a range of improbable weaponry.
His TV programs are aired at a time of year when many of us are considering the Christmas gifts requested by our youngsters. For some years now these have been dominated by the latest games consoles and computer games. Last year it was the Wii fit and Guitar Hero. This year they want Santa to bring them DJ Hero.
I’ve found myself thinking about which form of toy is actually the most beneficial for a childs education and development? Computer games and modern games consoles or inspiring, creative construction toys like Meccano, Scalextric or Lego.
I come from the same generation as Mr May. I grew up with Action Man, Lego, Bicycles and Model Airplanes. I’ve never really understood why computer games have grown to become as popular as they are today. Personally, I would get a lot more enjoyment and satisfaction from building a model railway circuit than I would from pretending to be a disk jockey or pretending to play guitar. I suppose that building a model railway is actually pretending to be a railway engineer. Choo choo!
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Win a Scalextric Street Car Race Set by answering just one simple question in this free-to-enter competition. Competition ends 29th Nov.
YOUNG CHRIS “NEVER DIE”
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