My dad used to work for them in Hackney. He used to bring one home every Friday I have a large tea chest full of them lol

I lived in England from '63 to '66. My Dad was career US Air Force. Best 3 years of my life. I love the people of England and the historical places. My best friend Simon, whose father was a headmaster at a local school, collected Lesneys with his pocket money and I'd ride the double-decker bus to Bedford on Saturday with him to check out the latest ones. I quite fancied the model steam engines that really worked and still have mine after all these years in working condition. I got it for Christmas of '65. I'm certain it cost my parents a pretty penny considering my father was making about $300/month (about 110 quid). All my best to my Brit friends. You made those 3 years some wonderful memories.

BP wasn't a private company at the time, it was the state petrol company, so, there would be no charge for using the logo.

8:10 "the child would have to remove the sprus before eating them" You got me laughing loud enough to wake the wife!

A real nostalgia trip, remembering the models I used to own.

"Remove the cows from the sprue before eating them". LoL

Thank you. Marvelous time travel back 58 years! I recognize so many i had! All arranged in the Matchbox carrying case. I can still smell the plastic.

Thanks for the video! From a Matchbox fan born in 1961 ❤️🇺🇸❤️🇺🇸❤️🇺🇸🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧

I recognised the artwork in the thumbnail. This was my first Matchbox catalogue. I was 5-6 years old. What a thrill to see it again. I always wanted the old fashioned cars, but I was told they cost too much. $1.25 - $1.50 looks much more reasonable now. Thank you for posting this!

Great video . Loved them growing up . Love them now . I managed to recollect almost all that era cars 1-75 just missing a few of the proper # for the era . Went to many a toy show when I was younger & Classifieds No eBay back then 😊

Many of these models were part of my childhood. Now I see 31 persons dislike it. Poor them!

In an austere post war Britain, kids were grateful for anything they got - even cardboard roads!!

Only just seen this - I have an extensive collection of old Matchbox and are still collecting. Only in May 2022 did I pick up the 1966 BP gas station in mint condition for £15 U.K.- the best thing I have. Your video inspires me to do more about my collection

I miss the hand drawn artwork of things from back then.

Wonderful trip down memory lane. My automotive interest was evident even as a child. Owned the Ferrari, BRM and Lotus F1 cars, the green Ferrari Berlinetta, the Ford GT 40 and the race car hauler.

I have the Ford GT40 in my collection. Nice video. 👏

I grew up within a mile of the Lesney factory and my mum even worked there for a time. Every Christmas I'd get about the entire collection. Mostly seconds that had minor imperfections. Some were grey unpainted versions. They'd be worth a fortune now. Gave them all away when I was a teenager and felt too old for toys. What a fool I was.

I was born in 1964 and I remember to have had many of these cars, and might still have some of them stashed away somewhere. But not in very good condition, far from it. And I remember these catalogues, got to choose my christmas and birthday presents from those. Of course a bit later than -66. Maybe beginning from -68/69. I had that BP petrol station. Thanks for this, brings back memories. Greetings from Finland!

Nice clip, takes me back to my childhood in New Zealand as a 6 yr old in 1966, I had 4 or 5 of these examples, my favourite was the yellow wreck truck (no 13) that my aunty gave me.

Magnificent! Thank you for a look at the cars & such an excellent history capsule.

Awesome videos, big fan of your work and cars . MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL. Mike Espo ...

what a treat from the early morning !

Another great video - very much appreciate your incredulity in the mythology and the realistic assessment of the business strategies, and the nature of collecting. Again, great editing.

Great video! So much information and wonderful art! Thank you!

Wonderful - thank you so much! I still have so many of those early Matchbox vehicles (in well-played condition) and seeing the catalog really brought back a lot of happy memories. I certainly remember the racing-car transporter, and scratching cars wasn't nearly so much of a concern as having cars get stuck inside! I hadn't thought of the 'Hoveringham' name for more than 50 years, but as soon as you showed and said it, the memory of it came right back to me! I don't recall seeing a catalog back in the 1960s, but I did have one of those BP service stations - or a similar one at least. I remember having one with an operating car elevator and a ramp at the rear so you could raise a car to the upper level then let it roll down the ramp back to the ground. Maybe that wasn't a Matchbox product though. Anyhow, thanks so much for the memories!

Great video. Very nostalgic to a simpler time

I had a lot of these as a child, being born in the mid 60s - I've still got some of them. Even as a small child the scale thing really bothered me. Having a bus that was the same length as a saloon car was just plain wrong in my youthful eyes. It didn't stop me spending hours playing with them though.

I really enjoy this updated format with the scanned images and voice-over. Looking forward to the next one!

Great video! Love the historic aspect of this. Props for your dedication to your hobby and sharing with you friends and fans!!!

Love looking at these old catalogues especially the playset as I never had any of these as a kid.

My dad worked for Lesley, I own blue prints from yesteryear cars and even better, the original scale up wooden models that were used to make the actual moulds/ dies

I had this catalog though it's whereabouts are unknown today. I still have many of these cars in the catalog and are still cherished. Thanks for your video.

I remember as a kid having a Matchbox "Motorway #-12" track, it had a spring that ran through the tract and "drove" the cars along. Did any one else own such a toy?

Thanks for the rememberies!! Can't remember how many of theses catalogs my brother and I had. Every time we found Matchbox cars in stores, we'd each ask for one!! And got them!!! Same with the models; we had very few autos, mostly trucks, buses, fire trucks, etc. The fire station we got was different from the 'MOD' one. Had the cardboard road play set too, but ours was a different version of the one shown here!

The year I was born. I was fortunate as a child to be allowed to play with my uncle’s 60’s pre superfast Matchbox cars whenever I visited my Grandmother. I treated them like gold, never taking them out of the house, only playing with them in the living room on the floor in front of the fireplace. A decade later, my uncle had a child of his own, and those two full cases of cars were given to him. Now they are lost forever. Thanks for sharing this fantastic informative content!

There's a picture of me as a 6 yr. old on Santa's lap w/a 1969 catalog fatalg him telling which cars I wanted. Still have that catalog and all the cars I had. It's all I would think about!

thank you so much for uploading, brings back lots of memories - i owned almost all of these matchbox cars as a kid except the big ones, including the sets - i was a little entrepreneur when i was a kid and would buy cars from other kids for a quarter each and then resell them at a matchbox car store where collectors there would pay from a dollar to 25 dollars for used collectible ones, once sold a bullnose cowley for 100 dollars (from the yesteryear collection) in the 60's that was a lot of money for a kid

Thanks for the exceptionally well produced video. One of the best I’ve seen in a long time. I owned a lot of these cars as a kid. Get nostalgia. As a side note, your voice-over was AMAZING! Perfect annunciation, clarity, and pace...and oddly soothing 😁

Delightful video. Pure nostalgia, presented in a soothing voice. Great channel.

still collecting at 60 years old

I had so many of these Matchbox cars and trucks that I stored them in an extra large Matchbox carrying case and a single carrying case. Both had a Matchbox toy on the front. This brought back a lot of memories. Thanks for sharing this.

Thank you, well done. Much help to my understanding of what I am finding that I like very much!

You brought back a lot of found memories as I was born in January of 66 and several of these my parents bought me to play with in my crib since I didn't care for any other toys.

Lovely illustrations in this catalogue.

well done, loved the video. I had an aunt that worked in the factory that gave me one of the king size models as a gift that came directly from the factory. still have it to this day. would like to see more on the king size series.😄😄😄

Thank you for an amazing video and trip down memory lane!

Seeing that busy London street scene with a Ford Galaxie fire chief's car conspicuously right in the center makes me think of the old Sesame Street song; "One of these things is not like the others One of these things just doesn't belong..."

Thanks for rekindling so many fond memories not only of the toys but also the fun had sharing and playing with them in the company of brothers, schoolmates and local kids. Also recognising many of these particular catalogue items and sets I cherished (and as you rightly identified, chewed!) The larger, King Size Matchbox series we’re in competition with such names as Corgi, Miric, Spot-on and Dinky before the joys of Hot Wheels graced us with speedy, metallic flake, surfboard carriers and detachable sub chassis track racers. Their appeal was that you had a bright, durably-painted, wheeled vehicle that could be pushed or sent rolling and that it easily fitted in your hand. As cars were not as prevalent, you could hold sway over many more model cars in your garage than were perhaps in a whole street. The articulation of say, a Hoveringham truck’s (nicely damped) tipping system also added to the thrill and fantasy factor of such toys. The appeal of the tracks and cardboard dioramas were that they stimulated the imagination rather than present a scaled down system like Scalextric or even Matchbox’s later effort with a driven wire coil track set. Also prevalent at the time were building block systems such Lego or a smaller, more apt scale from Betta-builder. So the that vital element of play was integrated into its simplicity rather than those vintage, scale model series such as early Rolls’ or Model Ts.

My brother has the complete collection in the original boxes never taken out. He also has all the catalogs in brand new condition. Also has all major size and all king size. Started collecting when we were kids, now in our late 60's. I still have a few out of that catalog in fair condition because we played with mine and kept his in the boxes. Used to spend our allowance every week on those Matchbox toys.

That was awesome my friend, I really enjoy looking at the old catalogs. I'm going to re-watch this video tomorrow

Thanks for sharing these catalogs.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing! I only wish I still had my childhood "MB" collection. Thank you for these memories indeed!!

4:30 I'm pretty sure I've seen that ambulance at my grandparents'. IIRC it's missing at least one rear door though. I also remember they have a lot of other familiar cars from this catalogue. Bedford tipper truck, Cadillac ambulance, the yellow Impala taxi, the police car, Studebaker station wagon, Ford Anglia, military scout car, BP tanker, Lincoln Continental (missing the boot lid), long distance removal truck, blue version of the Land Rover Might've been even more. I'll need to make an inventory of that car collection when I visit next time.

When I was a child in Melilla those were the toys they offer me, I did have quite a few, regretfully I gave to other boys so they’ll be my friends... but seeing your video I remember some of the cars and trucks I did own , a souvenir from 50 years in the past , thanks for that!

One of your best videos! Never got into matchbox (I was an Airplane freak when I was a kid),,but the catalog is awesome.

Very informative video and a lovely review of past times. Thanks for sharing, Mate and best regards from Cuxhaven at the northsea-shore. 😁👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

Thanks for posting this video. I was born in 1966. My mom made put my cars back in their cases after playing with them. They occasionally saw flour and some fine dry dirt outside. I had to wash them after play. Needless to say, I have many of these models in mint condition. Sorry I won't part with these. I sold all my super kings and a boat load of Corgi, Dinky and Solido. My daughter and I played with them in flour just as I did as a kid. These are meant to be played with. Just take care of 'em and they'll last decades. Many, many fond memories. Thank you.

Wonderful Matchbox toys from 1969-1972.Ricardo

Thank you so much for posting this. Loved the commentary too. Just wanted to point out for others that the Bedford newspaper delivery van shown at around 16 min 48 sec is former Model # 42, which last appeared in the 1964 Matchbox catalog, & then was replaced in the 1965 catalog with the Studebaker station wagon. Again, thanks for the wonderful video & commentary.

Thank you for the amazing videos. Hope you and your family have a good Thanksgiving!

Thank you for all of the information

The old match box factory was near my house in the east end of London.

Great video, very interesting to watch. Had and destroyed most of the cars in the catalog when I was a kid so im trying to make up for it now.

Great stuff. My brother and I had many of these models.

I miss my mach 1 mustang it was yellow black hood it was from early 70's it had motor sticking out of the hood i had it up to the 1980's but sold all my toy cars to buy my first real car i babied my cares never took them outside im 52yrs old now such good memories i still miss that car so much

I really enjoyed your video. I was born in the mid 1960’s, so I started playing with these around ‘68. I had a few of these models as hand-me-downs, but most of my cars were from the early seventies. I also had a lot of Mattel’s Hotwheels. I remember at the time, Matchbox cars cost 50 cents, and Hotwheels cost a dollar. It’s funny because Matchbox cars were much more detailed, and lots of them had doors and hoods that opened.Those were cool features I loved. Hotwheels seemed to carry more prestige, and thinking about it now, it’s probably because of how they were marketed. My favorite Matchbox cars were the Mercedes ambulance and the Mercury station wagon with the dogs in the back. I think I’m going to start looking for the Cars of Yesteryear. Thanks again for this beautiful video.

Its ironic how all the new casts run rings around the originals but the originals sell for so much more. Amazing people's love for the nostalgic.

OMG... this brings back so many memories.

As a Brit and being of an age to remember Matchbox toys when they were originally produced, I don't remember ever playing with them. I was a Dinky lover from my earliest years and any pre-1960 Dinky still gives me pleasure. That said, I enjoyed your video and as a diecast collector, up to a point I buy any of the earlier Matchbox when I see them. FYI Hoveringham was an aggregates company, named for the village in Nottinghamshire, that went out of business in 1982. Like most words ending in -ham in this country it isn't pronounced 'ham' but 'um'. Hoveringham, Nottingham, Windlesham, Snettisham, Aldenham, Altrincham, etc., all end in the -um sound with no 'h'.

Had the Triumph motorcycle and side car as a kid. Also #46, 47 and 48 too. Great memories.

Great video. Makes me regret not buying all those beaten up matchbox cars in carbootsales of the early 90's. They were readily available in varying conditions at that time.

Very interesting and informative!!!

Very nice clip, amazing fotage and informations of that time.

The 3 publications I looked MOST forward to as a kid in the 1960s......the Fall TV Guide ( new shows ) edition.....the Sears Christmas catalog....& that annual Matchbox catalog.

Great video, thank you my Car Love'n friend!

Cool, thanks for sharing that with me!

I want that catalog I been picking up most those cars at antique stores and flea markets here recently. I'll be doing a video of them once I get time. Thanks for the video.

Awesome video! I look forward to the 70s.

Good content. It was a very nice presentation of the history of matchbox

Very interesting and informative about Matchboxes history..

Wow, wish i had these all back, had so many including the G-2 set car hauler

This was cool thanks. Early morning entertainment.

Very interesting! I had very few Matchbox as a child- my brother and I had mostly Husky and later on Hot Wheels!

Awesome. Thanks for sharing

thank you. i did not know that about the silver ghosts and front wheel drive mg. i missed two. very well done my friend.

Very good video friend, very cool vehicles, greetings

I'd love to see a 1960 Catalog. I have a lot of the Lesney Matchbox toys from the '50s and early '60s, and those are of particular interest to me. The Evening News Van is one of my absolute favorites. It doesn't even have an interior, but it's just a cute little thing. There's just something about the early vehicles I suppose. I have some of the Major packs stuff like the BP Autotanker, but I don't actually have any of the King-size toys as of yet. In regards to Matchbox people and the scale of the cars: That ice cream guy would have to be 10' tall! lol. Hard to find him with the ice cream cone still intact, but these little figures are a lot of fun, and add extra interest. Thanks for sharing this catalog and the information in this video!

great video!

Nice nostalgic video on Matchbox vehicles! Thanks for sharing. It is my understanding that the reason older Matchbox vehicles have their tires come loose is due to the plastic resin wheels shrinking, not the tires expanding (note that Matchbox vehicles with diecast metal wheels don't suffer from this issue of loose tires). There are dealers that sell replacement tires on-line that have a narrower center to fit the shrunken wheels, but they're pricey.

I still have my catalogs from when I was a kid. 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, and 3 1969, just looking at them the other day.

Thanks for the cool video.

Good video and very informative.

What a great video. I have never seen the '66 catalog. I have from childhood the '69 catalog, it looks much the same. Also many of the cars from it as well. I should make a video of all the cars and shots from the catalog

I still have so many of these still in the carrying case.

I have a spare vehicle transporter in need of restoration, it's literally in front of me right now. Shipping from the UK could be a problem, you are welcome to it if something can be figured out. I have another in much better condition and you're right, it does make a fantastic display when filled with cars.

7:55 I need that TV van, I need it so much!

I have about 70 models of yesteryear. I collected them boxed since I was like 3

Thanks for this video. Looking forward to seeing more catalogs. I have the Dodge twin tipper as well: a superb model. The prime mover cab is very accurate representation of the Dodge 700 series. If you plan on restoring yours, it breaks down into something like 80 or more parts. Probably the most of any Matchbox.

15:12 I have one of these fire stations in just about perfect shape and it looks like the artist rendering. Mine is missing doors sadly. Nabbed it for $2 at a yard sale over the summer.

I still have some of these cars from my childhood. Also Matchbox City and Matchbox Farm