Polly Pocket facts for kids

Polly Pocket is a famous toy line of tiny dolls and playsets sold by the toy company Mattel. The dolls are usually about an inch tall and come with their own little worlds to explore.

The first Polly Pocket was created by a father named Chris Wiggs for his daughter in 1983. The toys first appeared in stores in 1989. For a few years, from 2012 to 2018, the toys were not sold in the United States but were still available in other countries like Brazil.

Besides the toys, Polly Pocket has also inspired movies, a TV show, and even clothing for fans.

The Story of Polly Pocket

How It All Began

The idea for Polly Pocket came from Chris Wiggs in 1983. He wanted to make a special toy for his daughter, Kate. He used an old makeup powder case, called a compact, to build a tiny house for a very small doll.

A toy company in England called Bluebird Toys liked his idea and started making Polly Pocket toys for everyone. The first ones hit the shelves in 1989. In the 1990s, the American toy company Mattel helped sell them. Later, in 1998, Mattel bought the entire Polly Pocket brand. Today, the original toys made by Bluebird are very popular with collectors.

The first Polly Pocket toys were small plastic cases that opened up to reveal a dollhouse or another fun place. The dolls were less than an inch tall and could bend in the middle. They had round bases that fit into small holes in the playset, so they could stand up securely. Sometimes, the tiny dolls came inside jewelry like pendants or rings.

A New Look for Polly

In 1998, Mattel decided to change Polly's look. The new doll was bigger and looked more like a real person. Instead of her classic curly hair, she now had a straight ponytail.

A year later, Mattel released "Fashion Polly!" These dolls were about 3 and 3/4 inches tall and were part of the same group of friends (Polly, Lea, Shani, Lila). Instead of regular fabric clothes, they wore special rubbery plastic outfits called "Polly Stretch" that were easy to take on and off. The toy line also included boy dolls like Rick and Steven.

Just like other popular toys such as Barbie, Polly Pocket grew to include movies, books, and a website.

Recent Years and a Big Comeback

In 2004, Mattel introduced a new line called "Quik Clik." These dolls had plastic clothes that snapped together with magnets. However, in 2006, some of these playsets were recalled because the small magnetic parts could come loose, which was a safety concern for young children.

For a while, Polly Pocket toys were not sold in the U.S., starting in 2012.

Then, on February 12, 2018, Polly Pocket made a big return! The new toys were a lot like the original 1990s version, with tiny dolls in small playsets. The new dolls are a little bigger than the originals and are made of a special flexible plastic. This plastic helps them stick to certain surfaces in the playsets, and they can bend to sit in chairs.

The classic Polly Pocket style has also inspired fashion designers. Brands like Hot Topic and Marc Jacobs have created clothing, makeup, and bags for adults based on the vintage toys.

Polly Pocket on Screen

Polly Pocket and her friends have starred in their own movies and TV shows.

Movies

• Polly Pocket: Lunar Eclipse (2004)
• Polly Pocket 2: Cool at the Pocket Plaza (2005)
• PollyWorld (2006)
• An untitled live-action movie is planned for the future.

Web and TV Shows

In 2010, Mattel created a web series about Polly Pocket that you can find on YouTube. The first season was made with flash animation, and later seasons used CGI.

In 2018, a new animated TV series called Polly Pocket was launched. In this show, Polly is a young girl with a magical locket. The locket lets her and her friends shrink down to a tiny size for big adventures. You can watch the series on streaming services like YouTube, Netflix, and Hulu.

A special movie, Polly Pocket: Adventures in Rio, was released on Prime Video in September 2024.

Main Characters

Over the years, Polly has had many friends join her on her adventures. Here are some of the most well-known characters.

• Polly Pocket: The main character of the series. In the beginning, she had curly blonde hair and wore a headband. Later, her look changed to feature a long ponytail. She is known for being clever, brave, and a great friend.
• Shani: One of Polly's best friends. She is an intelligent and talented girl, often interested in science and technology. She has dark, curly hair.
• Lila: Another of Polly's best friends. Lila is very fashionable and loves trying out new styles. She originally had a short brown haircut, but in later versions, she has a red ponytail.
• Lea: A friend of Polly who is known for being athletic and a bit of a joker. She has long red hair.
• Rick: One of the boy characters in Polly's world. He has blond hair and often joins the girls on their adventures.

Other Toy Lines

From 1995 to 1999, the original company, Bluebird, also made Polly Pocket-style playsets featuring famous Disney characters. These were known as the Disney "Tiny Collection."

See also

In Spanish: Polly Pocket para niños

• Mighty Max