Celebrating 125 years of Teddy Bears

Toys have existed from time immemorial, but their popularity waxes and wanes. There is one toy that bucks the trend, the teddy bear. Beloved for 125 years, his original creators, Steiff, are still making classic traditional teddy bears today. This book is a light-hearted look at why Teddy has stood the test of time, exploring how bears became teddies, their ventures into the film world and sports, some of the records teddies have set, teddies marking history and amusing stories of their brushes with the law. Entertaining and informative, this walk through history in teddy’s paw prints is guaranteed to tell you something you didn’t know about bears and raise a smile along the way. Packed with photos of lovely teddies rare, old and new spanning the years, including Steiff, Ideal, Farnell, Chad Valley, Chiltern, Merrythought, Hermann, artist bears, famous bears, novelty bears and downright cuddly bears, the book looks at why teddies continue to provide comfort to all generations and why many cannot bear to part with their childhood ted. An essential read for lovers of bears, Debbie Jewson reflects with humour and affection on how the teddy bear has put his own stamp on history over the last century and a quarter.