Brits are famed for their eccentricity and peculiar habits, and Norwich Unions search for the UKs Quirkiest Collectors has only confirmed the countrys love of the weird and wonderful.
Norwich Union, soon to be Aviva, has scoured the country in a nationwide search to find the UKs most unique and unusual collections to star in a short film about collecting to be screened from 20th April on www.happysback.com.
Throughout February and March the public uploaded images and anecdotes of their treasured collections. And the UKs Quirkiest Collections can now be revealed.
Earning the accolade were five triumphant winners: collectors of cowboy memorabilia, salt & pepper pots, banana labels, frogs, and baked bean labels. Equally notable were the collections that didnt quite make the top five skulls, butter moulds, antique razors, miniature shoes, post-boxes and not one, but two toilet paper collectors. All going to show Brits are collecting mad.
About the winners
Wild Wild West
Cowboys arent just a collection for 58 year old Dennis Maskery, from Mansfield, it is more a way of life he even dresses like a cowboy! As a young boy, afternoons spent watching Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy matinees instilled a lifelong love of all things Western. He collects cowboy memorabilia from stage coaches to figurines, Wanted posters to life-size cardboard cutouts and dresses in spurs, leather tasseled jacket, neckerchief and of course a Stetson.
Going Bananas
Margaret Archer, 64, from Bournemouth kept her pastime of collecting banana labels a secret from even her closet friends and sought compadres online. Having started with one Winnie-the-Pooh banana label Margaret now has nearly 4,000 in her collection after trading with other collectors across the globe. Margaret is using her prize money to join her fellow collectors at a banana label convention in Munich later this year.
Hopping Mad
How Mary Halsteads, 64, collection began is as quirky as the collection itself - she saw a concert by country music singer, Raymond "Froggie"Froggatt and was pulled up on stage and given a toy frog. Ever since, green amphibians, of all shapes and sizes, have hopped into her house in St Helens and now feature in every single room! She has 3,000 plus, from scarves to earrings, cookies jars to socks, and they come from as far afield as Cuba and Australia.
A Seasoned Collector
Its a good job that Christines collection is made up of small pieces as her salt & pepper sets rule the roost. 65 year old Christine Edwards, from Burnley, has a collection that ranges from the novelty Betty Boop, ocean liners and toilets! to the themed, from fairy tales to farms and Noahs Ark. The bathroom, of course, has salt and pepper boats. The retired teacher lovingly logs each individual piece in a students old exercise book.
Mr Bean
When Robin Sharp, 55, from Bury St Edmunds, cleared out his larder more than 20 years ago, it set in motion a chain of events that would lead him to have one of the worlds wackiest collections baked bean labels. With a total of 354 labels, Robins bean around the world in search of unique baked bean labels.
All five of the winning collectors take home £500 and star in a short film to be aired on www.happysback.com from 20th April. For those not so lucky to be crowned one of the UKs Quirkiest Collectors, Norwich Union is still offering free contents insurance to new customers when they buy buildings insurance.
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ZilchZone Collections Response Videoby weirdtvcomedy882 views
I would love to know more about the banana lady! It's a VERY interesting thing to collect! I LOVE IT. :)
PerplexityStudios 1 year ago
margaret the banana lady is my granny :D! I love her ^___^
jessiejellybeany 2 years ago
Absolute Classic!
MrRedbreast 2 years ago
Margaret the Banana lady is a ledgend!
lizneon 2 years ago