FORTHCOMING EVENT DATES

2012
25th February - 28th April - 23rd June
6th October - 1st December

Maidstone Vintage Toy Fair

(Click here to read more about the history of this event)

Five events a year in February, April, June, October, & December

9am-3pm

Maidstone, Kent, ME16 8RQ

Public Admission £2 per person
Children Free (16 and under)
Refreshments available

Exhibitors/Stallholders, Please contact 01732 840787 for further details
GeoffMartin57 AT hotmail.co.uk

Maidstone Vintage Toy Fair .co.uk

This long running established Toy Collectors Fair, started as an Autojumble and Collectors Fair on the 8th November 1980. A previous Autojumble Event had closed on the 7th of May 1979, which had taken place in the Agricultural Hall area of the Maidstone Market. At this period of time, this was a vibrant Cattle, Poultry, Fruit and Vegetable General County Town Market. The success of this Autojumble encouraged the then organisers to arrange another Autojumble for the Saturday 24th October 1981, followed by another booked for the October 1982. During the 1981 event, Jim Mills a trader in Collectable Toys suggested that a Swapmeet was set up. (Toy Fairs were originally Swapmeets, where individuals swapped around items within collections, unlike Toy Fairs which became regular stallholders and dealers) Information on a vacated date was booked for the Saturday 28th February 1982 titled "The Mid Kent Toy Collectors Fair" with following additional dates.
The Autojumble section was dropped through lack of support although the Toy Fair continued to trade in the Victorian Agricultural Hall until 1998 when the event moved into the new Market Hall after a major rebuild and redevelopment of the Market area. After 23 years the long standing organisers decided to retire, but not wanting this long running Toy Fair to close, they handed over management to an already experienced Toy Fair team who, from the February 2004 event entitled it to "The Maidstone Vintage Toy Fair" so after 30 years of trading in the Lockmeadow, this established Toy Fair well supported by both the trade and customers alike, continues into the future as popular as ever.

Taken from a writing of the events history by and with permission of Dave J Hatt 2011.