The day the magic died
As a lad, our annual summer hols were for many years spent at the South East's premier coastal hot-spot: Hastings.

One year whilst perusing the usual tat on the beach-front shops I spotted a circular tank which contained a bright blue worm. The worm had big goggly eyes and a long nose, but amazingly it was wriggling up and down a wooden pole (arf!)

I'd never seen such a creature, and amazingly this one (and dozens of others) were available to buy for the paltry sum of 50 pence.

I begged my parents to let me get one, but they refused on the grounds it was a load of old tut. I was confused and angry, why couldn't they see how amazing this was?

The following year the worm was still there and available to buy. I was determined not to be denied and talked incessantly about said worm until my parents could stand it no longer.

Handing over my 50p, the sense of anticipation was immense. I had it all planned out, I'd train my worm to crawl across my arms and then into the pocket on my shirt (like the way he did in the instructional videos that ran next to the tank). I'd be dazzling the kids back at the caravan park, and then be the talk of the school after the summer hols.

None of these things happened obviously. A part of my childhood died that day when it transpired that my new pet was in fact a fluorescent pipe-cleaner with a length of fishing wire attached.
(BinDipper, Mon 3 Oct 2011, 12:18, 4 replies)

My grandad invented those things
true story.
(leviticus no longer likes the cut of your gib on, Mon 3 Oct 2011, 13:32, closed)

You talk, I believe, of the wounderful
SQUIRMLES

www.funny-toys-store.com/magic-wigglee-wigglees-squirmles-wonder-worm-toy-twisty-fuzzle-wurli-squirmels-wiggle-worms-toys.html
(karnuvap, Mon 3 Oct 2011, 13:35, closed)

That's it!

Blimey what a load of old tut :-)
(BinDipper, Mon 3 Oct 2011, 15:59, closed)

I had one of those too.
I also had a white mouse which worked on similar lines.
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Mon 3 Oct 2011, 19:51, closed)