Weird & wonderful · London
Hamleys
The world's oldest toy shop, seven floors of Regent Street since 1760.
DS Pugh — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1 h–2 h
About
Hamleys, founded in 1760, is the world's oldest toy shop and one of the largest, occupying seven floors at 188-196 Regent Street. The store's in-shop demonstrators, magic-trick counter, life-size soft-toy zoo and the Christmas window displays make it a destination as much as a retailer. While not strictly an attraction, the experience of walking the seven floors of toys ranks high enough on most family London itineraries that we list it here. Sister stores in Glasgow, Cardiff and most major UK airports.
Photo gallery
From the Wikipedia article
Hamleys of London Limited, trading as Hamleys, is a British multinational toy retailer, owned by Reliance Retail. Listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's oldest toy store, it was founded by William Hamley as "Noah's Ark" in High Holborn, London, in 1760. It moved to its current site on Regent Street in London's West End in 1881. This flagship store is set over seven floors, with more than 50,000 lines of toys on sale. It receives around five million visitors each year, and is especially busy at Christmas. The chain has 11 outlets in the United Kingdom and also has more than 90 franchises worldwide. Hamleys became famous in the early Victorian era, with royalty among its customers. The store was granted its first royal warrant from Queen Mary in 1938. It held a Royal Warrant from Elizabeth II from 1955 to 2022 (her death).
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
Hamleys is the oldest, and in 1994 was the largest, toy shop in the world. It is named after William Hamley, who founded a toy shop called "Noah's Ark" at No. 231 High Holborn, London, in 1760. Ownership of the shop passed through the family, and by the time it was operated by Hamley's grandsons in 1837, the store had become famous, counting royalty and nobility among its customers. A branch at 200 Regent Street in the West End of London was opened in 1881. The original High Holborn store was destroyed by fire in 1901 and subsequently relocated to 86–87 High Holborn. Hamleys suffered a downturn through the 1920s and closed, entering receivership, in 1931. the Lines Bros toy company,…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 51.5128, -0.1395
- Address
- London, England, UK
- Established
- 1760
- Official site
- en.wikipedia.org
Sources
- manual: hamleys-regent-street (manual)
- wikipedia: Hamleys (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Featured in this guide
Other places nearby
Loading nearby places…
Nearby
📷 5Natural landmarks · London
Carnaby Street
Carnaby Street — a other in england-london, United Kingdom.
📷 5Gardens · London
50 Carnaby Street
50 Carnaby Street — a garden in england-london, United Kingdom.
📷 5Memorials & monuments · London
Green Plaque: Don Arden and Small Faces
Green Plaque: Don Arden and Small Faces — a memorial in england-london, United Kingdom.
📷 5Gardens · London
Murray's Cabaret Club
Murray's Cabaret Club — a garden in england-london, United Kingdom.
📷 5Memorials & monuments · London
Green Plaque: John Stephen
Green Plaque: John Stephen — a memorial in england-london, United Kingdom.
📷 5Public art & sculpture · London
Imagine
Imagine — a public art in england-london, United Kingdom.
Other places from this era
★ Iconic📷 10Weird & wonderful · South East England
Bekonscot Model Village & Railway
The world's oldest model village — a frozen 1930s England in miniature.
★ Iconic📷 10Weird & wonderful · South East England
Long Man of Wilmington
72-metre chalk hill figure on the South Downs, largest in Western Europe.
★ Iconic📷 10Weird & wonderful · South East England
Shell Grotto
A 4.6-million-shell underground passage of unknown origin, discovered in 1835.
★ Iconic📷 3Weird & wonderful · Yorkshire & the Humber
The Forbidden Corner
A four-acre folly garden of mazes, tunnels and surreal sculptures in the Yorkshire Dales.
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Hamleys?
- Hamleys is in London, United Kingdom.
- When was Hamleys built?
- Built or established in 1760.
- Who owns Hamleys?
- Hamleys is owned by Reliance Retail.