The Think-JD Blog

Have you ever tried to buy a wooden toy bow and arrow set? If your experience of buying one of these was some 40 years ago you would have had no trouble at all. These days however it’s a very different story. The health and safety brigade have well and truly arrived. Forget the Sheriff of Nottingham, these guys mean business!

With many toy shops banning the sets because they fall into their anti weapons category, and others who are unable to find a reliable source of them. Yet children the world over are still desperate to get their hands on a set. They don’t care how dangerous it is, they just want to play Robin Hood!

Of course, the guys that import bows and arrows these days have to be a bit more sensible and make sure they pass the very strict European toy safety guidelines. Don’t give up searching for the ultimate wooden toy though will you, there are still some sets out there. You just need to find the bravest of shop keepers who will dare to stock them. Good luck!

Now that summer is upon us it’s time to dig out the croquet set, mow the lawn and dust off the barbecue. The game of garden croquet has always been popular with the upper and middle classes in Britain and is often associated with garden parties of the landed gentry. These days however it’s appeal has grown and croquet has become a game played by many. Famously John Prescott, the socialist former deputy PM, played croquet one summer in front of the cameras instead of doing any work. This gave the game new exposure and showed that you didn’t need to possess any degree of sophistication to play. Since then Croquet has become hugely popular and many low priced sets made available to the masses.