Wilfred thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at Young V&A
Play Gallery, Moving and Making, Case 3

This object consists of 2 parts, some of which may be located elsewhere.

Wilfred

Pull-Along Toy
ca. 1927 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Soft toy rabbit in upright lugging position, of golden coloured mohair plush with white mohair plush stomach. It has painted upper paws with an inner wire armature, and long upright ears. It has small glass eyes and an embroidered red mouth and nose. It is stuffed with wood wool. The rabbit is tied to a wire frame which has four solid wooden wheels. A length of coloured plaited cord is attached to the front of the frame for pulling the toy along. He has tied to the neck a circular card printed with the maker's logo.

With the rabbit is a handmade coat made from red fabric, with black fur trimmed collar and cuffs. The coat has snap fastenings and decorative oval buttons, which are of metal with an orange patterned celluloid coating.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Pull Along Toy
  • Doll's Clothing
TitleWilfred (popular title)
Materials and techniques
Mohair, wood, metal, glass, kapok, celluloid
Brief description
Pull-along soft toy rabbit with coat; 'Wilfrid', mohair, metal and cloth; English, J K Farnell Ltd., ca. 1927
Physical description
Soft toy rabbit in upright lugging position, of golden coloured mohair plush with white mohair plush stomach. It has painted upper paws with an inner wire armature, and long upright ears. It has small glass eyes and an embroidered red mouth and nose. It is stuffed with wood wool. The rabbit is tied to a wire frame which has four solid wooden wheels. A length of coloured plaited cord is attached to the front of the frame for pulling the toy along. He has tied to the neck a circular card printed with the maker's logo.

With the rabbit is a handmade coat made from red fabric, with black fur trimmed collar and cuffs. The coat has snap fastenings and decorative oval buttons, which are of metal with an orange patterned celluloid coating.
Dimensions
  • Rabbit with frame height: 240mm
  • Rabbit with frame width: 180mm
  • Rabbit with frame depth: 205mm
  • Of rope length: 720mm
Marks and inscriptions
Printed on a circular card tied to the rabbit's neck is the trademark Alpha Make on one side and Made in 'Wilfred', England on the other side.
Gallery label
This rabbit was a chatacter from a popular newspaper comic strip of the time. He had two companions called Pip (a dog) and Squeak (a penguin). He sits on his pull-along wheels.
Credit line
Given by Miss J. Branch
Object history
Given by Miss J.Branch in 1927 [89/137]
Historical context
This rabbit was a character from a popular newspaper comic strip of the time of World War I. He had two companions called Pip (a dog) and Squeak (a penguin). They featured in the Daily Mirror newspaper. The characters were named by the cartoon illustrator, Austin B. Payne, after his wartime batman (servant) whose nickname was 'Pip-Squeak'. Bizarrely, a series of British war medals at the time gained the same cartoon character nicknames. Coaster toys such as these were typical of the 1920s.
Subjects depicted
Collection
Accession number
MISC.80-1989

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Record createdJuly 1, 2009
Record URL
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