The Magic Roundabout at Stafford Co-op Department Store

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Date:1971

Description:During the early 1970’s the Stafford Co-op Department Store usually had a theme for the opening of their Toy Fair and Santa’s Grotto to coincide with the Christmas shopping period. Throughout November and December 1971 it was arranged for the characters from the famous Magic Roundabout television series to visit the Store.

The Magic Roundabout series ran from around 1965 to 1977 and achieved cult status. It was set in a brightly coloured stylised park and the main characters were Dougal the dog, Zebedee the jack-in-the-box, Brian the snail, Ermintrude the cow and Dylan the rabbit, and there were human characters with Florence, Mr Rusty and Mr McHenry.

The Co-op hired copies of these animated characters which were placed in the store windows to catch the eye of passing shoppers and a second set of characters were positioned in the Toy Fair and Grotto. The Toy Fair was a temporary department set up in a newly opened extension on the first floor of the building. After Christmas the area was cleared, provided with new fixtures and fittings and became the Ladies Fashion and Bridal Departments.

The surrounding walls of the Toy Fair and Grotto were decorated with stylised trees and clouds cut from polystyrene sheets, the trees were copied and painted in bright colours from the TV series, the department also featured several carousels and roundabouts to display all the latest toys and games of the day. All of the fittings were made by the Co-op’s own Maintenance Department which at the time was based in premises in the Town Centre in the South Walls. A section of the Toy Fair was divided off to make Santa’s Grotto and inside a platform was made for the Magic Roundabout characters, next to the characters Santa had a chair and a helper to assist with the children who wanted to visit Santa, receive a gift and see the characters.

Hiring the Magic Roundabout was very successful with children (and many adults) who were captivated by the sight of the animated/moving characters.

The Co-op Department Store closed on Friday 26 April 2013.