singing doll from Otley.

I bought a singing doll in Otley. This is where she came from originally.......

346 Harrow road. London. w 9 The singing doll company. There is a blue sign above the door that still exists here.

The singing doll company.( Mark Payne Ltd)



Here is an old photo of Harrow Road...not completely sure if this is the actual building......but I guess it would be something like this.......


And look at this the advert for her!!!!



Here is a picture I found of this doll in a bit better condition than the one I just bought.

Mine still has on her original dress and shoes. The years have not been kind to this poor dress. The lady that owns the old curiosity shop in the arcade called her Scruffy Emma and had brought her into the shop last week thinking she would make her into a bride doll in the hope that some one would buy her. She used a 1950s Roddy doll as her bride and discarded Scruffy Emma.

Along came me on my Friday paddle around the junk shops and paid my usual visit to this shop. I rarely buy as the prices are more than I like to pay.....I am not saying she is expensive! In fact compared with some stuff I see on Ebay her prices are cheap really.  Next to mucky scruffy Emma was a 1950s British doll company walker doll in really good condition.....£40.00!!! sounds expensive? no. I am just not to the point where I carry that much money...otherwise I would have bought her!

Any way...so I went on in to the shop. I spotted scruffy Emma and asked how much she was. The owner thought I wanted the expensive doll and started to tempt me.......Lee stood outside with that look men get when money is required and shook his head through the window.

I chatted for a few more seconds and said that I had bought a lot of dolls lately......1960s Roddy......two composition dolls from the 1950's ...the other Roddy from the other week ...ETc and then said goodbye....see you next week.

We got to the end of the old arcade just about to reach the street and lee said " oh okay then!!!" and handed me a ten pound note.
I went back to the shop and said " quick sell me the doll...he's given me a tenner!!!"

So mucky scruffy Emma got put into a mucky scruffy carrier bag and she accompanied around the rest of the charity shops.

She was a talking singing doll back in the day and so would have had plastic discs which worked a bit like a wind up record player.....she does not work now. Lee has looked to see if she can be fixed...."she is knackered" he declared.

Her original dress has been washed. It is not that much better. So I will keep it

And I have put her in a summer top and shorts for now. she has had a bath and a hair wash and now is not scruffy at all. I will buy her some new shoes as her original ones look mucky and I can't get them to look good again.


Below is a link to a similar doll working....singing and talking.



Singing doll working!!!       Click on this purple link and you will see what I mean when I say I am kinda pleased my doll is old and does not do this anymore.