Stratford - National Teddy Bear Museum

A completely different attraction for both young and old is the National Teddy Bear Museum, opened in 1988. The toy animal was named after the American president Theodore ("Teddy") Roosevelt, who refused to shoot a young bear while out hunting in 1902. Among the 1,000 exhibits assembled from 20 different countries are replicas of popular heroes from children's books, such as Winnie the Pooh, Paddington and Rupert, as well as bears belonging to prominent people, including Humphrey, the bear of ex-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and Teddy Iswlyn, the toy of the former Labour Party leader Neil Kinnock.