Tich the Baby Horse

Released by BRH Fibreglass in 1968, Tich the Baby Horse was one of their lower priced rides.  The horse originally sold for around £190.


The very first prototype Tich at a time when she was still known as "Baby Horse".  With her designers Mr T Ling and Mr Ray Gask, as well as BRH director, Mr Derrick Selby.  The Coin Slot, March 1968.

Tich shares many features with several other horse rides.  I believe Tich was the earliest of all of them, although even then he does share some features with Edwin Hall's Twin Gallopers (those had a completely different leg position though).

RL Smith Advert - The Coin Slot, September 1974

In 1973, the "Rocking Horse" became one of RL Smith's original range of rides.  This version remained popular for many years, and continued to be made by JM Kiddie Rides after Smith's business partner, John Mirgaux, founded the company a couple of years later.


Herne Bay (?), August 1997

The R L Smith version originally cost £195.00 (with a single coin mechanism) or £220.00 (with a dual mech).

One of two very nicely refurbished JM Kiddie Rides horses at Wookey Hole Caves, May 2023

Fantasy Island, Weymouth, May 2019.  This horse has been at Fantasy Island since at least the mid-1990s, when I used to ride it as a child.  It has since been repainted and looks a lot nicer than it did back then though!

Next up on the variant list is RJ Newborough's "Traditional Horse".  This one is even closer to the original Tich mould with more detail in her bridle than the JM Kiddie Rides version.  The Newborough horse was originally coloured orange with white neck and legs, a blue saddle, yellow saddle blanket and red harness.


RJ Newborough's Traditional Horse - American distributors' flyer, early 1980s

The Traditional Horse was widely distributed throughout the USA by Thomas Leon's Rides of White Rock, IL (a division of Universal Video Audiotronics Corporation).  A UVAC flyer gives her measurements as 37" x 24" x 35".

RJ Newborough Traditional Horse - Many thanks to Fab for this film!

Another similar horse which I would count as a variant is BAFCO's "Fair Lady".  I believe this pretty little horse was released shortly after BAFCO was founded in the early 1980s.  She remained popular into the 1990s, when she was sold as part of their "Mini Rides" range.  Lady was available in a range of different colours but the most common appears to have been brown and, in later releases, grey.


BAFCO Fair Lady - Teignmouth Pier, September 2011.  I believe this Lady had been at Teignmouth Pier since the 1980s, but she disappeared after the 2014 storms.  I have no idea if she was destroyed or had previously been sold as several other rides from Teignmouth had been.  While she had been well loved and some of her original colours had worn away on her saddle, she was still pretty much as she would have looked as new, including playing her original accompanying musical soundtrack.


1990s BAFCO Catalogue

Fair Lady measured 40" x 24" x 41" and, as of the 2000 BAFCO price list, cost £1275.00 to purchase.

There was also Wright Alarm Systems' "Silver".  More info coming to this post ASAP!