Nostalgia Games

This page has a few of everything, to whet your appetite, so scroll down for a look. I'm afraid I haven't a search facility but it's quick to look through the pages and almost every game etc mentioned has a photo. If you're looking for anything that isn't showing, email me and I'll see if I can find it - or I might even have it, hiding somewhere in my stock room.

OSCAR

This is always a popular board game with its twelve 1940's film stars, its 'fine living' and its own Oscar! There is a large board - in great condition, in this case - with a smaller box containing 'money', cards, playing pieces including dice and Oscar as well as the rule sheet.
The board is illustrated with lots of great pictures showing the rise to fame of a film star and is superbly coloured. PRICE: £95.00

TIT-BITS TEASER PUZZLE

This is probably the earliest Tit-Bits Teaser as it has no number (unlike the others).
It comes in a cardboard box with instructions on the lid, the seller (George Newnes Ltd), the price (6 old pence to anyone who remembers) and MADE IN USA. Inside the box are nine little pieces of wood which have been cut and rubbed down so there are no sharp bits. The idea is to move the big square block from the top left corner to the bottom left corner without jumping over or lifting up any of the others - in other words it's a sequential movement puzzle - as are the other two. The cardboard box and lid and the wooden pieces are all in remarkably good condition for objects made in the first half of the twentieth century; a previous owner has marked the pieces with numbers, presumably so he could write down the movements in a way he could understand. PRICE: £12.00

TIT-BITS TEASER NO. 2

Here's no. 2 of the lot. It differs from the one above in that it comes in a bigger box and the idea is to get the big block (which is a plane) to 'Paris' (the lower right corner). This one, too, was made in the USA and is in very good condition though the lid has a split corner and is a little grubby and rubbed, with a small hole under the 't' of the word 'but'. On the inside bottom of the box it says that the solution to the puzzle will be published in Tit-bits on a certain date, but it doesn't mention the year. PRICE: £12.00

TIT-BITS TEASER NO. 4

I think this might be the most sought after of the Tit-Bits Teaser puzzles - it's the one with all the classic cars. This one has been well-used to the point where the writing has all but been rubbed off some of the pieces (I had to use a magnifying glass to see which pieces were which). The box, too, is in a rather poor state but it is decipherable and all the pieces are there. PRICE: £12.00

TIT-BITS TEASER NO. 5

This is the second copy I've had - the other having sold recently. This one is in really great condition, including the box which has no split corners and very little rubbing. The pieces are all good though one or two have slightly faded writing. It dates, as did the other, from 1931. PRICE: £15.00

PETER RABBIT'S RACE GAME

This is a much-sought-after game with its lead figures of Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddleduck, Mr.Toad and Squirrel Nutkin and a three-fold board game. The unpainted figures are in quite good condition (Peter has sadly lost an ear). The board is scuffed on the edges and the paper on the inside of its folds has split but it is, nevertheless, in very good, playable condition and at this price, even a collector would find it good value! PRICE: £75.00 (for a better photo!! please email me and I'll try harder)
KEEP GOING!

GORGEOUS ROMANTIC FIRST WORLD WAR ERA JIGSAW - THE PROPOSAL

This is a lovely 300 piece jigsaw cut in thick ply with colour cutting and push-fit pieces. There are also a few whimsies. It comes in a plain brown box with an original label but no maker's name. PRICE: £40.00

THREE CARD GAMES

These two games have nothing in common! First is WORLD WEDDINGS by William Sessions Ltd of York. This appears to be quite a rare game as I can find no mention of it anywhere in books or on-line. It consists of sets of four - two men and two women - from twelve countries. Of the two men and two women there are two with colour and two black and white. The two coloured cards of a country comprise a "society wedding" and the others a "quiet wedding". The object is to get pairs or fours of a country. There is a rule sheet (thankfully). Everything is in very good condition though the box is a little tatty. PRICE: £25.00

And second is WOODLAND HAPPY FAMILIES is a Pepys game with illustrations by Racey Helps. The cards, rules and box are all in good condition. PRICE: £15.00
sold

I've found another set of ENGLAND EXPECTS. This is in quite good condition although there are several bent cards and the box it tatty and taped. The rules are all there as are the cards. PRICE: £20.00

FOR MORE CARD GAMES, SEE LIST TO THE LEFT FOR MORE PAGES OF CARD GAMES

GREYHOUND RACING GAME

This is a really excellent game made by Spear around 1932. As you can see from the photo, the graphics on this quite large box are superb. Inside is an excellent three-fold board illustrated by the same artist, a set of five gorgeous little tin greyhounds together with a hare and a nice dice cup and die. The box is in good condition apart from one split corner and consequent slight tear. PRICE: £35.00

BUCCANEER GAME

This is an early boxed set with separate board. The ships are there with their sails and some toothpicks to attach the sails. Many of the jewels remain along with barrels and two sets of cards but only one "gold bar" is there. There is a large square hole in the centre of the board where you put the "Treasure Island" (a cardboard box with all the treasure in) and a set of rules which I've copied off the internet because the original ones are lost. The whole lot is in remarkably good condition considering it must date to the middle of the twentieth century if not before. PRICE: £70.00

TWEEDLEDUM AND TWEEDLEDEE

And, here's another Spear's game made in Bavaria. This one says it was registered in 1897 (Reg nr. 304585) though I doubt that this set is quite that old. There are two little "men" made up of wooden pieces - one predominately orange, the other purple. They have both been painted by hand with gorgeous faces. There are three "lifters" (there should be four) and the rules in the lid. The box, the men and the three remaining lifters are in wonderful shape. PRICE: £35.00 (EMAIL IF YOU'D LIKE A PHOTO OF THE "MEN")

THE GAME OF TRAVELLING

This is an early Spears game, made at their factory in Bavaria. It is a simple race game on a very attractive board which starts at the station and goes by various means (depending on which spots you land on) to the big city. There are 6 "men" (coloured wooden pieces), a cardboard dice cup and a wooden die. The rules are in the lid along with a couple of small adverts - one for the Bonzo Chase and one for Springrings. PRICE: £18.00

NEVER TOO HURRIED FOR A FRIENDLY WORD

This, of course, is my motto but as well it's the name of this 200 piece Chad Valley jigsaw which comes in a green book box. It was made in 1932 and shows a group of hunters enjoying a drink or two. The puzzle is complete and in good condition. PRICE: £20.00 RESERVED

TWO PEACOCK PUZZLE SOUVENIRS

These two little wooden puzzles were made by Peacock sometime before they sold to Chad Valley. They are both souvenirs, one of Buckingham Palace, the other of the Union-Castle Line Steamer "Gloucester Castle". Each is complete in its original cardboard folder marked with the Peacock symbol of a peacock and the words "Toys to Teach". The Gloucester Castle was built in Govan in 1911 and sunk by the Germans in 1942. I'd say the puzzle comes before the second war, possibly the 1930's. The Buckingham Palace puzzle is taken from an early 20th century, picture in which there is pictured a very early motor car as well as a cart and pedestrians with a pram. PRICE: £10.00 EACH GLOUCESTER CASTLE sold

DOVER PATROL – INTERNATIONAL SERIES

This is a great tactical game in a series made by HP Gibson & Sons Ltd which includes Tri- Tactics, L’Attaque and Aviation. This one comes in a box covered in a tartan-type paper which also covers the back of the board. The game is complete with all its men on stands, the board and rules. All are in good-to-very good condition, though the rules are a little foxed. The box has split corners but is otherwise good. PRICE: £70.00

CHAD VALLEY SCOUTING GAME - COMPLETE

This is a gorgeous, complete game with a heavy board and seven hand-painted tin scouts and the rules in the lid. The game is played without dice, each of the two "teams" moving in turn. One scout (he has black trousers) is a Despatch runner and has to go from the top to the bottom of the board and back with a message and its answer. At the bottom are the six other scouts who have to try to hem the despatch runner in. The board is beautiful, the base of the box is good, the lid has a wonderful picture but is missing an edge and other bits. One of the scouts is missing his head but the piece is still usable. [I have looked all over to find when this was made. Chad Valley produced their first Scouting game around 1910 but this board doesn't have pictures of Baden Powell at the top and the picture on the lid is slightly different.] PRICE: £40.00

SUBBUTEO TABLE CRICKET – DISPLAY EDITION

The lid tells me that this game comes with “00 scale player figures, stumps, balls etc.” This set is from the late 1960’s (there’s a dated price list) and appears to me to be complete and in excellent condition. There are also The Rules, score sheets, and tiny initials which are still on their sheet but which can be carefully cut out and stuck to the players so you can identify the individual players. The game is in great condition as is the box – though it has a little staining on one side. PRICE: £45.00

STAR TURN - CARD GAME BY CHAD VALLEY

This is a, seemingly, rare card game made by Chad Valley, I'd guess in the 1960's but I can't find out anything about it from usual sources (Google). The game consists of two decks of cards, one with red faces, one with black. The rule booklet is in the box and the whole lot is in incredibly good condition, though there is a little grubbiness on the lid of the box. There are also a few red and yellow counters (eight of each). PRICE: £20.00