Doll; One Direction; Niall Horan; Vivid Imaginations; made in China, 2014

Collector's doll representing Niall Horan, a member of the boy band One Direction. The doll's hair is moulded and painted dark yellow, its eyes and lips are also finished by painting. It is dressed in a long-sleeved white t-shirt with black sleeves and white printed buttons, black trousers and a pair of black plastic shoes, moulded to represent hi-top trainers, with the laces and soles highlighted with white paint. The doll is packaged inside a printed card box, with various photographs of Horan and his bandmates.

Purchased by the MoC in 2015 [2015/520].

Famous and influential persons, from Elizabeth I to the Spice Girls, have a long history of having their image used for effigies and dolls. Since the Beatles began to appear on Christmas cards, lunchboxes and lampshades in the early-mid 1960s, many successful popular musicians have had their image utilised in merchandising. One Direction are an internationally successful contemporary pop boy band, formed in 2010 by Simon Cowell, a judge on the ITV musical talent show, X-Factor. The incredible growth of their worldwide fame has been credited to the power of social media. Initially, their image was of the traditional teenage boyband: wholesome, clean-cut and innocent. This found wide appeal amongst young fans and approving parents. However, as the band members have aged, their appeal has actually broadened. Their image has shifted to be that of ‘typical’ teenage boys, particularly in light of humorous social media activity, scrutiny of individual members’ lovelives, and their public antics at awards shows.

One Direction dolls were Christmas bestsellers in 2012. Each of these five dolls (museum nos. B.85 to 89-2015) represents one of the five original members of One Direction: Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Zayn Malik and Harry Styles. Each of them is captured in time as a late teen, at the point of their greatest influence on popular culture. The fact that these objects are dolls is significant, and it can tell us a lot about the broad appeal of this group. These dolls (despite their careful branding) are not adult ‘collectibles’, they are children’s toys. A 2012 article in Toy News found that 61% of children surveyed played with dolls based on popstars. At the time of publication of that article, only 16% of children who owned One Direction dolls had collected all five. As with many aspects of children’s culture and storytelling, children had a favourite character.

B.86-2015