Toys Of The 80s And 90s

Some of these lasted decades. Some lasted a single term and were banned by half-term.

Here's the lot, by type rather than strictly by year.

The eighties

• Transformers, from 1984, and the arguments about which ones were actually good.
• He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, with Castle Grayskull as the thing you never got.
• My Little Pony, Care Bears and Popples.
• Cabbage Patch Kids, which caused genuine scuffles in shops.
• Sylvanian Families, from 1985 in the UK, and still going - which very few toys on this page can say.
• Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles, renamed from Ninja for British television because of concerns about the weapons.
• Ghostbusters figures, Thundercats, and the Action Man revival.
• The Rubik's Cube, Simon, and Speak and Spell.
• Lego, which has simply never stopped.

The nineties

• Tamagotchi, 1996 to 97, the digital pet on a keyring that died while you were in double maths.
• Furby, 1998, which talked, gradually learned English, and was banned from several workplaces over eavesdropping fears.
• Pogs - milk caps and slammers, a craze that arrived and was banned from most playgrounds within about a year.
• Beanie Babies, bought by adults as an investment, which did not end well for most of them.
• Polly Pocket, the original small ones, and Mighty Max for the other half of the playground.
• Power Rangers, Teletubbies merchandise, and Buzz Lightyear - the 1995 Christmas shortage that made the news.
• Yo-yos, specifically the 1998 Coca-Cola yo-yo craze with the clutch mechanism.
• Pokemon cards from 1999, which changed playground economics permanently and got banned everywhere.
• Game Boy, Tetris, and the Game Boy Camera and Printer.

The crazes that were banned

• Pogs - banned as gambling, because children were playing for keeps.
• Pokemon cards - banned for the same reason, plus the trading disputes.
• Yo-yos - banned for injuries and windows.
• Slap bracelets - banned over cut fingers from the metal inside.
• Tamagotchis - banned for beeping through lessons, which is the most reasonable ban on the list.
• Bulldog, conkers and various playground games, which is a separate argument entirely.

The things every house had

• A Spirograph nobody could work.
• Buckaroo, Operation with the dead battery, Mouse Trap that was never fully built.
• A View-Master with three discs, two of them the same.
• An Etch A Sketch, used for approximately four minutes.
• A Fisher-Price record player or garage, handed down through cousins.
• Sticker albums - Panini football, and the swaps.
• A dressing-up box made of actual old clothes rather than bought costumes.

What they're worth now

• Mostly nothing. Beanie Babies in particular are the standard cautionary tale about collectables bought as investments.
• Boxed and unopened is a different market from played-with, and almost nobody kept the box.
• First-edition Pokemon cards in graded condition are the genuine exception and can be worth a great deal.
• Sylvanian Families and early Lego sets hold value reasonably well.
• Don't buy anything as an investment on the strength of an article. Buy it because you want it in the house.

Shop cards

How to write it so it lands

• Every big 90s craze got banned within a year.
• Beanie Babies are the cautionary tale, not the exception.
• Nobody kept the box, which is why nothing's worth anything.

Where to shop next

• Sweets that disappeared
• School dinners we all remember
• Christmas presents every child got
• Computers and consoles we grew up with
• Phones before mobiles
• Dial-up, MSN and MySpace
• Cassette tapes and taping the charts
• Video shops and late fees
• The Argos catalogue and the wishbook
• School stuff we all had
• Cars, caravans and the British seaside
• Things kids today will never understand
• Out until the streetlights came on
• What childhood cost then vs now
• Sweets quiz
• Guess the year quiz
• Growing up in the 80s and 90s
• Free feel good tools
• Shop cards
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Birthday cards for kids
• Pin badges
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What was the biggest toy craze of the 90s?

Tamagotchi in 1996 and 97, Furby in 1998 and Pokemon cards from 1999 were the three biggest. All three were banned from a large number of schools.

Why were Pogs banned in schools?

Because children played for keeps, which schools treated as gambling. The trading disputes that followed were the other half of it.

Are Beanie Babies worth anything?

Almost never. They were mass produced in enormous numbers and bought largely as investments, which is precisely why nearly all of them are worthless now.

Do you sell retro toys?

No - we make greeting cards, prints and pin badges. Nothing on this page is for sale here.