We all know Funko Pop! make collectibles featuring a huge range of pop culture favourites, but did you know they also make useful merchandise for around the home, and out and about? We've been sent a selection to look at - and there really was something to suit everyone...

Vanilla Underground call themselves the home of officially licensed merchandise for all the family and to prove it have sent us a big bundle of items - including something for everyone here. Favourite TV, movie, book, music and game characters on pyjamas, t-shirts, stationery, backpacks, lunchboxes and more...


I gave Vanilla Underground a rough idea of what sort of things we like, plus some sizes, and so our package was mainly a surprise parcel. It was a pleasant surprise too - we were delighted! First up, our 9 and 10 year old boys. Minecraft Pyjamas for the pair of them.


A big hit - I've already washed both pairs twice. No runs, loose threads or shrinkage, I'm pleased with the quality. My 10 year old's pyjamas are quite thick too, ideal for Winter despite the short sleeves. The same goes for the 5 Nights At Freddy's pyjamas in the photo below - great cold weather lounging pyjamas.

Modelling so that you can actually see the pictures on the pyjamas isn't their strong point...

I get a lot of pleasure from looking back at a review item later on and knowing I was right with my initial opinion. Some things stand out as being great, while others not so much. Here's a look back at some of the best or most reliable things we have looked at over the past 5 years....

These items we reviewed in the the second half of March 2013-2018...


Biff the Sorgenfresser or Worry Eater was a big hit here from the day he arrived in 2013, although to my knowledge my children have never actually posted any messages into his mouth. These were new and exciting 6 years ago and I'm delighted to say that they are incredibly popular now, used in schools, homes and other venues UK wide. He still looks as good as new, yet he's been a constant on someone's bed for 5 years, been fed a multitude of sticky things and been washed a few times. Nice one Biff...

When Hasbro offered me the chance to review Chewie, I was really busy and barely looked before thinking, "sure, I'm a big Star Wars fan and Chewie is great". When he arrived I was completely blown away. I'm smitten. He's a cuddly toy with supersoft furReal fur, but he's also an intelligent reactive animated Chewbacca who has over 100 sound and motion combos... and he's pretty darn impressive.


Chewie arrives in a standard display box and is fastened in my plastic tags, so you'll perhaps want scissors to carefully get him out, but it'll only take a minute. He needs 4 x AA batteries, but arrives with demo batteries that often last a good while, so he's Christmas morning friendly.

The full title for this toy is Star Wars Force Link 2.0 Kessel Run Millennium Falcon with Han Solo Figure and it's worth that mouthful. This is a fantastic vehicle which acts exactly as you'd hope, and we've been sent it to review by Hasbro...


We are long-standing Star Wars fans here and so Star Wars toys are always welcome. Over the last 24 years I've watched all of my children 'shhhhhooooosh' around the room with various Millennium Falcons and other Star Wars vehicles, and this is by far the most impressive and special. No longer do you even have to make your own sound effects...

Star Wars Mighty Muggs are not something we knew existed before we were sent a couple to review, but I'm glad we found them. Heavy little plastic figures who have overly-large heads which switch facial expression, and in fact their entire face, when you press down on their heads.


We've been sent Finn and Chewie Star Wars Mighty Muggs and there were no shortages of offers from my family to take them off my hands. You can see why though. These might be toys, but they are very cool toys that will look just as good on a collectors shelf as a young child's desk.

Stationery is always popular at Christmas. Every stocking should contain a special pen or pencil from Father Christmas, for you to write a thank you. Bic have recently released an awesome range of Star Wars stationery and this Christmas they're giving one of my readers a big bundle. Not only that, but the giveaway winner will also receive a tin of their excellent Conte Drawing Pencils and a pack of 20 Intensity Fineliners.


The Star Wars range includes Bic Ball Pen, Bic 4 Colours Ball Pen (and Bic 4 Colours Shine Ball Pen), Bic Evolution Graphite Pencil, Bic Glue Stick and Tipp-Ex Mini Pocket Mouse Correction Tape. Each has great easy to spot Darth Vader packaging and the products inside are printed with characters from Star Wars.

Many years ago my oldest boys had a Star Wars toy that spoke. We were in awe of the amazing technology that could tell which character had been placed in the base and then spill out accompanying sounds and phrases. Star Wars Force Link from Hasbro is a very similar toy, and it's been brought right up to date.


Force Link wearable technology works with every Force Link figure and vehicle, activating sounds and lights. It is motion-activated and when you move your character you can have a backdrop of sound effects to enhance your gameplay - and save you having to say 'schwoooosh, znnnnnnnrrrrr, schwoosh' yourself.


The Force Link Starter Set contains the Force Link wrist unit and the figure Kylo Ren. Packaging is mainly recyclable card with a bit of plastic, and unboxing is really quick.

The Bladebuilders Path of the Force Lightsaber is so much more than a light up stick you wave around. It knows whether you have chosen the light or dark side and has motion sensors and awesome sound effects. There's even a Hasbro Star Wars Studio FX app so that you can make your own videos...


Packaging is almost entirely recyclable card and it's super easy to open (great for Christmas morning). The Lightsaber needs 3 x AAA batteries, but does come with demo batteries and we haven't had to change them yet, so if it hasn't been played with a lot in store, you may be lucky.


There are 3 parts - the Lightsaber itself and two different handles - one Jedi, one Sith. Both handles have moving parts with retractable 'blades'. They're easy to use at the press of a button and not at all sharp or dangerous.

It really wouldn't be Christmas in our house without Star Wars LEGO, and very kindly Santa and LEGO conspired together for my latest review. My 8 year old found the LEGO Star Wars Captain Rex's AT-TE in his stocking, and it was built by Boxing Day lunchtime....


There are 5 minifigures in this set, which is based on characters and the AT-TE from Star Wars Rebels. Captain Rex, Commander Gregor, Commander Wolffe, Imperial Inquisitor Fifth Brother and a Stormtrooper.

You can't choose a girl their hero. You can supply them with all kinds of politically correct and gender neutral toys and books, teach them about Mary Seacole, Maya Angelou, Rosa Parks and Emmeline Pankhurst. You can tell them they can be anything that they want to be, but you can't decide which influences they'll find most important. You can only watch and hope they chose a sensible path.


Primary school for me was generally awful, but never during the Spring of 1978. I was in demand, because I was the only 1 of the 7 girls in my year who liked Star Wars. The boys couldn't play Star Wars properly without the female lead role, and none of them wanted to play a girl. For every breaktime that Spring, I was Princess Leia.

My kids have almost all loved Star Wars, and I love Star Wars. The Bladebuilders Lightsaber is the best Lightsaber I've ever played with by miles. It's also the first Lightsaber we've ever had (and we've had many) that 2 children can play with at once...


The Bladebuilders Lightsaber is made by Hasbro, recommended for age 4+, and my boys wouldn't leave it alone while I was trying to take photos. It's one of the most exciting things any young Star Wars fan could ever review.


The packaging is great, almost all recyclable card with thin plastic fastenings that pull out easily. Christmas morning-friendly, the Bladebuilder arrives with 3 x AAA demo batteries in the Red Lightsaber, and you'll need 3 x AAA for the smaller White Lightdagger.

It gives me sheer delight to be able to give away a radio controlled R2-D2 from Bladez Toyz. These are awesome, and ours has had so much play that it's clear it's still fun long after the initial novelty has worn off.

Surely the must-have gift for any Star Wars fan, BB-8, Darth Vader and Yoda are also available. If you aren't into Star Wars then you can also get all kinds of radio controlled inflatables from Bladez Toyz, including Olaf, Peppa Pig, Dinosaurs, Nemo, Minions, Thunderbirds, Big Hero 6 and Tellytubbies...here are a selection of those on offer...

A couple of days ago I posted our review of Star Wars Dobble, and today I'm delighted to say that Esdevium Games have offered a copy for one of my readers for my Christmas Present Giveaways.

A frantic and fast matching game that can be played by anyone aged around 6+, this is our youngest family member's new favourite game...


Any Star Wars fans might recognise a lot of the people, symbols, vehicles and other items shown, but only die-hard fans will know them all straightaway, and it's really no bonus as Dobble is all about speed!

You read it right! Bladez Toyz sell radio controlled inflatables, and just in time for Christmas this year they will have a host of new additions, including Star Wars. I'm delighted to say we've been sent R2-D2 and the incredibly cute BB-8 for review.


BB-8 is large enough at 43cm tall, but R2-D2 is a giant 64cm. Both have a 30m range and run on 2.4GHz, however multiplayer is absolutely fine. You just need to 'wake up' your droid, then wait ten seconds for player 2 to 'wake' theirs.
When you open the box you find the inflatable itself, the base unit/battery pack with wheels, and a familiar style controller with 2 dual direction buttons forwards/backwards, left/right. Each droid needs 1 x 9v battery for the controller, and 4 x AA batteries for the inflatable itself .

My 8 year old is a massive fan of Star Wars, so when he found out we'd be reviewing the LEGO star Wars Krennic's Imperial Shuttle, he practically waited by the door for the postman. Taken from the storyline of the next Star Wars movie, Rogue One, the shuttle set has 5 minifigures plus a K-2SO droid, giving a vehicle which is actually a functioning play set once built.


Krennic's Imperial Shuttle is one of the larger new Star Wars LEGO sets with 863 pieces. It also has some trickier techniques and bits where you need 3 hands, so it's recommended for age 9+.


Inside the box we have only 7 numbered bags and 1 sheet of stickers as well as the instruction booklet. Not too intimidating to newer builders.

This Father’s Day Egmont Books have treated the Dad of our house to some of their great new Star Wars mini-build books. They are exactly the type of the kind of gift he would buy for the boys – partly because he wanted to have a play and a look at them himself…


We've been sent Star Wars: Battle Stations: Activity Book and AT-AT Model and Smuggler's Starship: Activity Book and Millennium Falcon Model. We chose to give my partner the Battle Stations AT-AT model book for his birthday a couple of weeks ago, and we will be giving him the Smuggler's Starship Millennium Falcon book on Father's Day this Sunday.

It's May 4th, so a Star Wars post is almost mandatory. We've been sent some great Star Wars goodies to review from the new The Force Awakens range from Character World. A reversible duvet cover and pillowcase, and a First Order Stormtrooper/BB-8 double sided canvas cushion...


In our house Star Wars isn't only reserved for 1 day a year, it's been a part of our daily lives since my oldest son was old enough to watch A New Hope. The Force Awakens has brought Star Wars up to date for my youngest children and Kylo Ren may be very much a villain, but he has also become something of an anti-hero for youngsters.

We love the Itty Bitty's. Collectible plush figures depicting movie, TV and comic book heroes and villains, they stand around 4inch (10cm) tall and are on sale in Gold Crown branches of Hallmark for a mere £6 each. Suitable for children of all ages, they make a great alternative Easter gift, and there really is an Itty Bitty to suit everyone.


Two of the new ranges of Itty Bitty's in the UK for Spring 2016 are Star Wars, and Superheroes, we already had an advance look at Superman and Batman, now we've been sent 6 of the new Star Wars Itty Bitty's to review - Rey, Yoda, Darth Vader, Kylo Ren, a Stormtrooper and R2-D2.

We have just got home from taking our 5 and 7 year olds to see Star Wars The Force Awakens. Before I went I was party to a lot of discussion about whether it would be suitable. Our opinion is now a 'Yes', and this is why....

"I don't want a photo! I want to go and see the movie!"

If your child likes action movies then they've probably already seen at least one Star Wars movie. If they like Star Wars then they've probably seen more than one Star Wars movie. They're actually not going to see much that they haven't seen before.