The First Great Western train company recently launched a website dedicated to toys that have been left behind by children travelling on their train in the South of England. The campaign aims to reunite children with their lost cuddly toys, both through the bespoke site and via posters displaying mugshots of the dozens of toys currently pining for their owners in First Great Western's lost property office at Bristol Temple Meads Station. The campaign was inspired by the soon to be released big-screen adaptation of the beloved Paddington Bear, himself a bear famously abandoned at Paddington station.
The campaign, dubbed “Teddy Rescue,” features bears found in 10 different counties, from “London Paddington to Furze Platt, from Bere Alston to Patchway, and from Honeybourne to Peru’sey,” and provides an email address that owners can use to contact First Great Western, should they recognise their cuddly buddies. Of course, it's not just teddy bears that qualify for the campaign, with the site currently featuring a trio of stuffed monkeys, a flowertot doll, a Pepper Pig backpack and a knitted elephant. There was even a Paddington bear found in Reading.
The campaign aims to reunite children with their lost cuddly toys
The website states (with tongue firmly in cheek) that “Unable to negotiate the gap unaided, these little bears and other cute cuddly toys have been separated from their families. Eventually, aided by our helpful and friendly staff, they have found their way to Lost Property in the vaults of Bristol Temple Meads Station.” He adds that “They have been fed, looked after and many adventures have been had. But now they are missing loved ones and want to return home.”
