Bobs y’r Uncle
“Bobs y'r Uncle” nursery rhyme card game designed by Frank H. Simpson for John Waddington Ltd. in 1935.
Described on the box as a “new card game, a riot of fun, a million laughs,” Bobs y’r Uncle is a nursery rhyme game designed by Frank H. Simpson for John Waddington Ltd. in 1935. The game is clearly designed with children in mind. The cards have scenes from nursery rhymes and six cards are needed to make up each rhyme in a set. Games turned out to become an important part in the progress of Waddingtons, who eventually acquired the rights to Monopoly in the UK, and then published Cluedo, opening the way for their supremacy in the toy industry.
Above: “Bobs y'r Uncle” nursery rhyme card game designed by Frank H. Simpson for John Waddington Ltd. in 1935. The pack contains 54 cards plus nursery rhyme leaflet + rules in a box.
The game was re-published in 1963 with a new box and back design. See the Rules►
Above: “Bobs y'r Uncle”, 1963. Images courtesy Matt Probert.
By Simon Wintle
Spain • Member since February 01, 1996
I am the founder of The World of Playing Cards (est. 1996), a website dedicated to the history, artistry and cultural significance of playing cards and tarot. Over the years I have researched various areas of the subject, acquired and traded collections and contributed as a committee member of the IPCS and graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal. Having lived in Chile, England, Wales, and now Spain, these experiences have shaped my work and passion for playing cards. Amongst my achievements is producing a limited-edition replica of a 17th-century English pack using woodblocks and stencils—a labour of love. Today, the World of Playing Cards is a global collaborative project, with my son Adam serving as the technical driving force behind its development. His innovative efforts have helped shape the site into the thriving hub it is today. You are warmly invited to become a contributor and share your enthusiasm.
Activity for Bobs y’r Uncle
Sign in to comment or save this article.
Related Articles
Learning to play Cribbage
I learned to pay cribbage when I was very young, aged around six or seven.
Waddingtons Nursery Rhymes
Nursery rhyme playing cards by Waddingtons, Leeds, UK, 1975.
Radio Banker
Radio Banker by John Waddington Ltd for Marconiphone Co Ltd.
Beaver!
The Game of Beaver designed by G E Studdy and published by John Waddington Ltd in 1927.
My Word
My Word “The last word in card games” designed by Michael Kindred and Malcolm Smith, published in 19...
Crown the Queen
Crown the Queen card game invented by Elaine Burton, c.1953.
Pooltella
Pooltella cards by John Waddington Ltd, the cards that simplify football pool forecasts, 1930s.
Cheers & Tears
Cheers & Tears by John Waddington Ltd, 1963.
Drownin’ Surfer
Drownin’ Surfer card game
District Messenger
District Messengers were uniformed young men wearing little pill-box hats and mounted on bicycles wh...
The New Game of Animals
Victorian card game with imaginatively designed letters which spell the name of an animal, with one ...
Waddy Productions
Waddy Productions Ltd was a member of the giant Amalgamated Press group and only published card game...
Whot
Whot was invented by William Henry Storey in 1935. It comes from the days when friends and family pl...
C.W. Faulkner
C. W. Faulkner & Co Ltd, London, an important publisher of games, pictorial souvenirs, children’s bo...
John Waddington Ltd, early type
John Waddington Ltd, early type Ace of Spades and court cards, 1922-30.
Waddington’s “Rural England” Series, 1933
Waddington’s "Rural England" Series, 1933.
Waddington’s “Envoy“ Series
Waddington’s “Envoy“ Series.
Waddington’s Varsity Series
Waddington’s Varsity Series.
Waddington’s Old Master Series, 1933
Waddington’s Old Master Series, 1933
Waddington’s Classic and Wildlife Series, 1933
Waddington’s Classic and Wildlife Series, 1933.
Most Popular
Our top articles from the past 60 days
