Could your Palitoy items in the attic be worth a fortune?

From AT-AT’s to Action Man, Pippa to plastic bags anything associated with iconic British company Palitoy could be worth serious money to collectors.

One of the most valuable lots sold recently by world’s leading toy auction company Vectis was a Palitoy (Kenner) Star Wars Return of the Jedi Bib Fortuna Prototype Resin Master Tooling Aid. This vintage figure was in excellent condition and was a unique item sent by Kenner (the company that has the licence to sell Star Wars in the USA) to the then Palitoy/General Mills European Tooling Manager, at Coalville in the early 1980s. This master model was used in the production of Beryllium Copper castings, which were then used in the manufacture of production injection moulds. It sold for a world record figure of £36,000 against a pre-sale estimate of £6,000 - £12,000. In May 2017, a Palitoy Star Wars Vinyl Cape Jawa vintage figure measuring 3 3/4" on a 12B un-punched card back sold for £21,600 against a pre-sale estimate of £8,000 - £10,000.

It is not only the toys that achieve excellent results but what seems mundane items have a value too. A set of Palitoy plans for their forthcoming Earl's Court Toy Fair Exhibition, dated 1978/9, including outlines of areas for Star Wars, Action Man, Strawberry Shortcake, Mainline, Dolls, etc; sold for £960 and a Palitoy vintage carrier bag, which had originally came from Palitoy's Staff Shop over on Baker Street in Coalville sold for £240.

Star Wars specialist Nick Dykes explained “Vectis have recently seen an increase in prices realised for toys that are within living memory. The toys that tend to reach the highest price are in good condition and unusual but you could be surprised that the contents of your general toy boxes could be worth so much. A tiny, loose Star Wars gun from the 3 ¾” could fetch as much as £100 on its own. 

Vectis will be sending not just one but three specialists with a combined knowledge of over one hundred years of handling and cataloguing all types of toys. They will be able to advise on Palitoy items but also trains, tinplate, diecast models, lead and plastic figures in fact any type of collectable toys and associated juvenilia.  Vectis hold over 80 toy auctions per year and regularly achieve world record prices. In the next two months alone, they will handle over £1 million worth of toys more than most general auction houses will handle in several years.

It is thought that 92% of Brits have unused items stashed away in their homes, with toys - such as dolls, teddies and board games - being the most held onto items. Why not find out their worth? Free valuations and information will be provided by Vectis on Tuesday 5^th November from 10.00am until 3.00pm, as part of the month-long exhibition - The Many Faces of Palitoy. The presentation by the Coalville Heritage Society, who are leading on the project in partnership with North West Leicestershire District Council, Leicestershire County Council and the National Trust Museum of Childhood was awarded lottery funding to enable it to go ahead.  

It celebrates 100 years of Cascelloid and Palitoy and has run from October until the 10th November. It is located at the old Palitoy factory on Jackson Street, Coalville which is now the Heartwood Conference Centre, Rothley House. The exhibition is open 10.00am – 4.30pm during this period with free admission.

The Cascelloid and Palitoy exhibition features 100 toys for 100 years and the story of Palitoy is told through a selection of iconic toys including pre and post war dolls, Girl’s World, Tiny Tears, Care Bears, Action Man and hobby ‘toys’ such as Mainline Railways.

The free exhibition includes how the company was established, the growth and popularity of each of the toys plus historical dolls and toys from the 1920s up to when production stopped in 1985. There is a chance for visitors to hear some of the key people at Palitoy telling their story of the work they did, as well as an activity area for children to play with modern representations of the historic toys.

If you are unable to attend the exhibition but would like more information Vectis can be contacted on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Regular Vectis customers, and avid Dinky Toy collectors, may remember the phenomenal David Ireland collection which was held at our North East Auction house in 2011.

Many of the pre-war boxed sets from that collection realised record breaking prices, and the sale at the time was described as “one of the finest private owner collections ever to come onto the market”. A number of those sets were bought by a single buyer, who has now decided the time is right to part with some of his collection. And the quality of those lots is still as magnificent today as they were eight years ago.

The collection includes the Hornby Series No.22 motor vehicles set, which at the time sold for a record price of £22,800 (inclusive of Buyers Premium), the set includes an Army Tank, Delivery Van, Sports Car, Motor Truck, Sports Coupe and Farm tractor. It has been described as a bright example of a hard and rare to find set and graded Excellent Plus to Near Mint, contained in a generally Good to Excellent blue patterned lift off lid box with original card.

Another pre war set, this time no. 24 “Motor Cars” set is in a later type wide box with display insert and contains 24a Ambulance, 24c Town Sedan, 24d Vogue Saloon, 24e Super Streamlined Saloon,  24f Sportsman's Coupe, 24g Sports Tourer 2-seater and 24h Sports Tourer 4-seater, conditions overall are generally Good to Excellent (although some are showing signs of fatigue) however they are still beautiful examples in a hard to find set.

The French Collection, consists of the some of the finest examples of pre war sets, including Gift Sets, Trade Boxes, Aeroplane sets, plus many superb single models.

The catalogue is now online to view, and the sale will be held on Tuesday the 5^th of November - a date, definitely to remember, and starts at the earlier time of 10am.

For further information please contact Andrew Reed on 01642 750616 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Part 3 of the Simon Hope Matchbox Collection was held on the 26th of November at the earlier time of 10am. This sale featured Superfast models from the Lesney period and was packed with hard to find and rare variations of standard models, whether this is wheels. interior, windows or body/base colour. The collection included road and racing cars, buses and coaches, vans, trucks, military, emergency vehicles and motorcycles. The sale produced some amazing resaults with many highlights to choose from, here are just a few. 

The Specialist Sale held on the 5^th of November was definitely be one to remember. The sale started at the earlier time of 10AM with The French Collection, 489 lots of superb quality models including predominantly Dinky and French Dinky pieces. Lots included boxed and unboxed road and racing cars, coaches, vans, tankers and trucks, construction vehicles, military and farm; plus a fantastic selection of pre- and post-war Gift Sets and Trade Boxes, including a Dinky Pre War (Hornby Series) 22 “Motor vehicles” gift set and a 24 “Motor Cars” set. Other items included Dinky petrol stations and accessories, figures sets, ships and pre- and post-war aircraft. Further items included Corgi Chipperfield Circus, MA Collection white metal/resin vehicles, Tekno, and Marklin, and Dinky restored and repainted groups. The sale also featured a further 61 lots of boxed and unboxed Dinky, Corgi and other models.