Pocket Dragons are collectible

Collectible

A collectable or collectible is any object regarded as being of value or interest to a collector . There are numerous types of collectables and terms to denote those types. An antique is a collectable that is old...

 depictions of friendly dragon

Dragon

A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...

s in various situations. They are produced primarily in figurine form, but also are released as ornaments, in flat artwork and various other forms. They were created by, and are still designed by, Real Musgrave, and are manufactured by Collectible World Studios. Unlike many artists behind collectible lines, Real not only creates the flat artwork for them, but also sculpts them. Both Real and his wife, Muff, have enjoyed nearly complete creative control over the line.

History

The story of the Pocket Dragon goes back to a limited set of black and white drawings done by Real Musgrave in the mid-1970s, depicting a small dragon in the pocket of a tweed sport jacket.

The first set of Pocket Dragon figurines went on sale in June 1989, and included twenty-seven of the figures. They were produced in Stoke-on-Trent

Stoke-on-Trent

Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

In 1998, an animated television series was produced based on Pocket Dragons, called Pocket Dragon Adventures

Pocket Dragon Adventures

Pocket Dragon Adventures was a short-lived 1998 syndicated cartoon series, based on the Pocket Dragon character created by artist Real Musgrave, best known from Pocket Dragons figurines also based on his work. The cartoon was about the Pocket Dragons who live with a kindly old wizard, and their...

. It ran for fifty-two episodes. The writers of the series collaborated with Musgrave.

As of 2006, over 400 different Pocket Dragons have been released.

Real & Muff Musgrave announced their retirement in the fall of 2005, along with the Pocket Dragon collection, to be effective on December 31, 2006.

In May 2006 the distributor Collectible World Studios has gone into receivership due to high debts and ceased trading. So far, the production and distribution of what would be the last Pocket Dragon pieces is uncertain. Since then the official website and the website of the distributor are no longer online. Xystos, a company linked with the Collectables (Fine Glass and China) LTD company bought CWS later that year.

On the 12th of November 2006, the last ever Pocket Dragons event was held at Collectables (Fine Glass and China) LTD, Stockton on Tees. Real and Muff Musgrave have now retired and Pocket Dragons are no longer being made.

Pocket dragon is also a slang name for the everyday cigarette lighter.

Trivia

• Although Pocket Dragons were created by an American
  North America
  North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
  
  , the British
  United Kingdom
  The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
  
   Pocket Dragons Collectors' Club is triple the size of its US counterpart.
• Over 50% of all Pocket Dragons are sold in England
  England
  England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
  
  .

• Real often uses coffee cans to ship his original sculpts to the factory for production.
• The very first Pocket Dragon was called "New Bunny Shoes".
• The Pocket Dragon that has the highest secondary market value (SMV) is "Gargoyle Hoping for Raspberry Teacakes" and regularly fetches over £1000.