New Walk Museum and Art Gallery, Leicester

21 July 2018 – 28 Oct 2018

Monday – Friday: 11:00  – 16:30

Saturday – Sunday: 11:00 – 17:00

A free exhibition of Star Wars action figures and movie posters is a great way to spend a hour in the East Midlands this summer.

Ask someone about popular  media connections with Leicester and invariably they’ll mention the Attenboroughs rather than Star Wars. But in the late 1970s and early 1980s a company on the outskirts of the city – Palitoy – was making Star Wars fans’ dreams come true by being the UK distributor of the new-size action figures, which for a certain generation of kids were the defining toys of their childhood.

The exhibition in the city’s New Walk Museum is the collection of Matt Fox, featuring 460 items. From the cardboard Death Star (the item here is in incredibly good condition – though I preferred the plastic Kenner version) to the rare variants and wrongly-scaled vehicles, this is a time warp back to my youth, creating happy remembrances of toys I once owned to renewed jealousy of the cool, limited edition figures and playsets that I coveted.

Figures are displayed in acrylic cases, with variants stood alongside, in their original release batches. Running from the first 12 Star Wars figures through to the Power of the Force collection which also included coins, these beautifully-preserved figures are complemented by dioramas of Hoth and the Rancor’s Pit, where the vehicles and playsets come into their own.

This might be the only chance you get to see a rare long-legged blue Snaggletooth, vinyl caped Jawa or carded Yak Face in front of you, and there’s also tasty snippets like the urban myth that somewhere in Leicester is a landfill site full of unwanted figures, and proof that the Mike McShane Robin Hood Prince of Thieves action figure was actually a repainted Gamorrean Guard with a new head. In a bizarre variant on their trademark ‘pick ‘n’ mix’ there’s also a Woolworths pack which contains 8 figures for £1.50! Oh, and you have to smile at the counterfeit collector’s case for the Turkish ‘Star World’ range!

In addition to the toys there’s a collection of all the UK posters used for the original trilogy’s release, including the double and triple bill versions, some front of house ‘photobusta’ display items and lobby cards.

Verdict: If finally getting to see what a Dewback lizard figure looks like, or seeing all the original figures Star Wars lined up, is your idea of fun, make your way to Leicester by 28 October. A treasure trove of pricey toys and priceless memories. 10/10

Nick Joy