Since his first appearance in a story in 1926, Winnie the Pooh and his friends have been popular with children around the world. The writer A.A.Milne was inspired to write the stories and poems by the toy bear that his son, Christopher Robin Milne owned. This famous bear is on display at a library in New York City. The reputed children’s illustrator, E.H.Shepherd drew the characters and original stuffed Winnie the Pooh toys based on those drawings are highly prized by collectors.

Pooh The Cash Cow

Purists like to collect the images that Shepherd made but others prefer the Disney characters from the many films, TV shows and shorts over the years. The Pooh franchise has made a lot of money for Disney, including DVDs and video games. Other merchandise includes backpacks, lunch boxes, party packs and jigsaws. Pooh mug, bowl and plate sets are very popular presents for babies.

The stuffed figures, whether from the E.H Shepherd or the Disney era are a firm favorite. There are traditional jointed bears and more modern bears available. Children’s bedrooms are adorned with Winnie the Pooh toys and figures of Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore, Piglet, Owl, Rabbit, Kanga and Roo. Their owners imagine that they live in the Hundred Acre Wood and have adventures there.

Good For Babies

Babies are not too young to enjoy the characters and there are bath toys such as the Floating Fun Tree. Cot mobiles and night lights show Pooh and his friends and play lullabies. Bedrooms can be furnished with Winnie the Pooh toys, including play tables, cozy chairs and light up alphabet desks. There are activity packs with posters, stickers, height charts and crayons for coloring in.

Play is fun with a Buildable Clubhouse for the whole gang or a Splash and Bubble Treehouse with toy slide and swing. Some children like to play the game of Poohsticks. This featured in the Pooh stories and is the most traditional of all Winnie the Pooh toys. Anyone can play and all they need are some sticks of equal length and weight that will float. Pooh and his friends like to stand on a bridge and drop the sticks into the river. The winner is the one whose stick races first to the finishing line!

Not all the items are so traditional. Merchandise keeps up with contemporary pastimes too and there is a range of Winnie the Pooh toys, designed to be played on computers. These include the Rumbly Tumbly Adventure for GameCube. Winnie the Pooh is just as popular in the 21st century.

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