PVC Toys

Boober, Wembley, and Junior Gorg PVC figures by Applause, made in 1983.

Tomy

The first series of Fraggle plush toys ever to be made was produced by Tomy. Below we have Red and Gobo.

The dolls in this series are quite odd and do not look very much like the actual Fraggle characters. They are not proportioned very well, with large hands and feet, and the production quality is somewhat lacking. This is in contrast to the specific details that were included. Gobo, for example, has a small hat attached to his head and the back of his vest has pockets (Unfortunately, the eyes on this Gobo have discoloured and turned yellow). In any case, I consider this series of Fraggle dolls to be among my favourite Muppet collectables.

Here is a variation of Tomy's Red plush toy for die-hard Fraggle collectors: one version has longer pig-tails than the other!

In addition to Red and Gobo, the other characters in this series are Wembley, Mokey, and Boober. Uncle Traveling Matt (below) and Sprocket the Dog were later additions to the series in 1984. You can see that Uncle Matt has a plastic hat and shoes. This one even has the original store tag. I've included a picture of the back view to show his hat and the detail of his outfit which has pockets and pleats.

Sprocket looks very much like the puppet character. The head and mouth are moulded plastic covered with fabric. There is a wire frame inside the body to keep him standing up. The nose is painted black over the grey plastic, and can be easily scratched or chipped, as this one has. This Sprocket is also missing his collar. Sprocket is one of my earliest Muppet collectables that I bought when I was about eight years old, and he was played with quite a bit. As a result, his legs don't keep him standing as well as they used to. He was a fixture in my room as I was growing up, along with my Fisher-Price Muppet show puppets.

Pedigree

This is the Pedigree version of Mokey Fraggle. She came with a removable shawl that is easily lost, and therefore it is rare to find one in this condition. All the other Fraggles were aslo included in this series (Gobo, Wembley, Boober, Red and Uncle Matt) as well as Sprocket.

Hasbro

Hasbro's plush toys of Gobo and Wembley look nothing like the Tomy versions, and do not have the usual fleece like fabric that most Muppet plush toys have. These Fraggle dolls were sold in boxes with an open front window. I actually bought this Gobo new from the store shelf when I was very young and didn't bother to keep the box! Other Fraggle characters in the series include Mokey, Boober, Red and Uncle Matt. Sprocket was never made for this series.

Hasbro also made three plush Doozers. I have one of these, though in very poor condition. I've shown it next to Gobo so that you can see that the size of the Doozers compared to the Fraggles was not in keeping with the TV show.

Sababa Toys

Below, the 10" Fraggle Rock dolls by Sababa Toys that were sold at Mrs. Tiggywinkles stores: Boober, Red, Gobo, and Wembley. They were first available in 2003 along with some 10" Doozer dolls and the PVC Doozers below. Boober was added to the set in 2004. The 10" Doozers were very similar to the Hasbro Doozer doll seen in the above picture. By 2005 Sababa's Doozer dolls were discontinued, or are only being produced in limited quantaties. (I have one of these so I'll post a picture soon.) There has been some buzz about adding Mokey, Uncle Traveling Matt, Sprocket,and even Junior Gorg to the set though this will likely only happen if and when the Fraggle Rock movie, currently in productin, is released.

These PVC Doozers by Sababa Toys were sold seperatley in window boxes. I believe they are now discontinued.

Here is the Fraggle Rock Lunch Box from 1982, which proves how silly I am when it comes to collecting Muppets. This is the lunch box I used in grade two! The fact that I still have it and have posted it on my website is quite silly. Even as a seven year old I was very careful not to scratch or tear the picture! It's a bit embarrassing actually, but well, there you have it...my lunchbox! :)

Questions, please e-mail Mike Artelle at
artellephant@webruler.com