Lego fans celebrate 50 years

Updated 09.31 Mon Jan 28 2008

Keywords: Lego

Children's favourite Lego is celebrating its first 50 years with a series of events, including a world record attempt.

From Easter onwards, there will be a Lego Brick Road tour around the UK, and a special commemorative pack will be available for collectors.

Lego was founded in Denmark in 1932 when carpenter Ole Kirk Christiansen began making wooden toys

The toy's manufacturers are also hoping to build the biggest Lego tower ever.

The simple toy, which got its name from the Danish for Play Well - Leg Godt, has allowed generations of children and adults to construct everything from houses and castles to monsters and robots.

In 2005, artists Darren Neave and John Cake recreated pieces including Tracey Emin's My Bed and Damien Hirst's shark out of Lego for an exhibition.

In 2006, a team at Legoland in Billund, Denmark created a model of the world's largest passenger plane, the Airbus A380 superjumbo

Made of 75,000 Lego bricks in eight different colours, it was around 10ft long, and took its creators more than 600 hours to finish.

Last year, an avid Manchester City fan reconstructed the team's former Maine Road stadium out of the little bricks.

Such is the power of the brick that it has spawned a number of fan clubs. In Britain, there is the Brickish Association for AFOL's (Adult Fans of Lego).

Member Warren Elsemore, from Edinburgh, recently completed a scale model of the Forth Rail Bridge, a project that took 18 months to complete.

He said: "I blame my wife. I had built a model of the GNER trains, and my wife said I should make the bridge for it to go over.

"The model's got about 12,000 bricks in it."

Meanwhile, another couple are set to marry after bonding over Lego. Pete Reid, 33, from Romford, Essex and Yvonne Doyle, also 33, from Dublin, Ireland met at a private gathering of Lego lovers three years ago.

Mr Reid said: "We met at a Lego meeting around someone's house in Scotland. Our eyes met over a pile of bricks.

"We build together most weekends now. The biggest thing I've built by myself is a four-foot space ship. but we've made bigger things collaboratively and with others."

He added: "I've never not been into Lego. It's an all consuming thing for me."

Lego was founded in Denmark in 1932 when carpenter Ole Kirk Christiansen began making wooden toys.