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Rare 1930s Mickey Mouse cuddly toy to be put in museum

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Nigel who found Mickey Mouse. (Monmouthshire County Council via SWNS)

By Lauren Beavis via SWNS

A vintage and ''very rare'' Mickey Mouse cuddly toy has been saved from a recycling center bin - and will be put in a museum.

The cuddly toy which dates back to the 1930s was discovered in a container destined for the dump.

It was found at a council site run by Monmouthshire County Council's waste and recycling contractors Suez.

The Mickey Mouse which was found. (Monmouthshire County Council via SWNS).

The authority's MonLife’s Museum’s team say it was made at one of UK’s oldest teddy bear manufacturers, the Deans toy factory in Pontypool.

The business, which dated back as far as the 1700s, was the first manufacturer to make the Disney character in the UK in the 1930s but fell into administration in 2005.

An almost identical example of the toy – the earliest version of Mickey, as he appeared in his debut 1928 film "Steamboat Willie’"– is held within the collections of the V&A Museum in London.

After discovering the historical importance of the toy, Rachael Rogers, curator of Abergavenny Museum, suggested that Mickey’s forever home might best be Pontypool Museum - which is less than a mile from the old Dean’s factory where it was made all those years ago.

Councillor Jane Pratt, Cabinet Member for Neighborhood Services, said: “I think it’s wonderful that Mickey has, after his very long life, been saved from the rubbish!

"I hope that the publicity he creates will encourage people to think carefully before they throw things away. I am delighted that he will be viewed by generations to come in his new home.”

Ms. Pratt added: “Our Reuse shops at Llanfoist and Five Lanes have gone from strength to strength, with fantastic support from the staff at these recycling centers who spot lovely things, as well as the dedicated team of enthusiastic volunteers.

"It is not every day you find something as special as Mickey, but you would be amazed at what great things get saved that would have simply been thrown away.”

Jane Pratt & Mickey Mouse. (Monmouthshire County Council via SWNS)

Upon receiving the donation, Caitlin Gingell, Pontypool Museum Curator, said: “The curatorial staff are very pleased to be acquiring Mickey into the collections at Torfaen Museum.

"Dean’s toy factory, where Mickey was made, has been an important strand of Pontypool’s history and it is lovely to be bringing him back to his hometown.

"We hope that Mickey can go to a professional conservator in the near future, to be cleaned and structurally supported before going on display as part of a small exhibition about the toy manufacturer.”

Bargain hunters and antique enthusiasts will be able to head to Monmouthshire County Council’s Llanfoist and Five Lanes Reuse shops from mid-March.

Buying reused items is a great way to help the environment and reduce waste.

All profits from the reuse sites go to tree planting in Monmouthshire to help in the fight against climate change.

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