James May's Top Toys
Encyclopedia
James May's Top Toys is a BBC documentary in which James May explored and celebrated his favourite toys, including Etch-A-Sketch, Airfix
model aeroplanes, Lego
, Meccano
, Top Trumps
, Scalextric
, model cars, and Hornby
model trains.
The show included May dropping a parachuted Action Man
from a helicopter after an actor named George Huxley dropped it from a window, proving the parachute did not work. Further exploits had May shooting the Action Man figure with an automatic rifle, thereafter referring to the toy as "Killed-in-Action Man".
May also constructed a model of the Airfix Bismarck. Upon completion, he took it out on a boating lake and shot at it with an air rifle, while pretending to be a British seaman firing a salvo at the battleship.
In the feature of the Etch-A-Sketch, Rose Pipette of The Pipettes
is one of the students "etching" May on the toy.
A spin off of the show, James May: My Sister's Top Toys
, came on 23 December 2007. In October 2009, a series of 6 shows were broadcast, entitled James May's Toy Stories
.
Airfix
Airfix is a UK manufacturer of plastic scale model kits of aircraft and other subjects. In Britain, the name Airfix is synonymous with the hobby, a plastic model of this type is often simply referred to as "an airfix kit" even if made by another manufacturer....
model aeroplanes, Lego
Lego
Lego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
, Meccano
Meccano
Meccano is a model construction system comprising re-usable metal strips, plates, angle girders, wheels, axles and gears, with nuts and bolts to connect the pieces. It enables the building of working models and mechanical devices....
, Top Trumps
Top Trumps
Top Trumps is a card game. Each card contains a list of numerical data, and the aim of the game is to compare these values in order to try to trump and win an opponent's card...
, Scalextric
Scalextric
Scalextric is a toy brand for a range of slot car racing sets which first appeared in the late 1950s, as a creation of British firm Minimodels. The brand is currently owned and distributed by Hornby.-History:...
, model cars, and Hornby
Hornby Railways
Hornby Railways is the leading brand of model railway in the United Kingdom. Its roots date back to 1901, when founder Frank Hornby received a patent for his Meccano construction toy. The first clockwork train was produced in 1920. In 1938, Hornby launched its first 00 gauge train...
model trains.
The show included May dropping a parachuted Action Man
Action Man
Action Man is an action figure boys' toy launched in Britain in 1966 by Palitoy as a licensed copy of Hasbro's American "moveable fighting man": G.I...
from a helicopter after an actor named George Huxley dropped it from a window, proving the parachute did not work. Further exploits had May shooting the Action Man figure with an automatic rifle, thereafter referring to the toy as "Killed-in-Action Man".
May also constructed a model of the Airfix Bismarck. Upon completion, he took it out on a boating lake and shot at it with an air rifle, while pretending to be a British seaman firing a salvo at the battleship.
In the feature of the Etch-A-Sketch, Rose Pipette of The Pipettes
The Pipettes
The Pipettes are a British indie pop girl group formed in 2003 in Brighton by "svengali" Robert "Monster Bobby" Barry. The group has released two albums, We Are the Pipettes, and Earth vs...
is one of the students "etching" May on the toy.
A spin off of the show, James May: My Sister's Top Toys
James May: My Sister's Top Toys
James May: My Sisters' Top Toys is a British television documentary. Presented by James May, it was first broadcast on 23 December 2007 on BBC Two...
, came on 23 December 2007. In October 2009, a series of 6 shows were broadcast, entitled James May's Toy Stories
James May's Toy Stories
James May's Toy Stories is a television series presented by James May. The series was commissioned for BBC Two from Plum Pictures. The first episode, "Airfix", was shown on BBC Two at 8:00 pm on Tuesday 27 October 2009....
.