With the summer blockbuster Barbie surpassing £1billion in the global box office, a Kings Langley resident has recalled the time she attempted to reach the world record for the highest number of Barbie dolls owned.
Norma Berry first started collecting the infamous dolls for her granddaughters. However, when the girls had a couple of hundred apiece, Norma’s daughter begged her to stop gifting them.
Whilst Norma agreed to this, she did not stop collecting.
As hundreds turned into thousands, she began to target the Guinness World Record. At the peak of her collection, Norma had somewhere in the region of 3,500 Barbies, and was only bested for the record by a German superfan.
She said: “It became a hobby of mine. I would never collect two of the same.
“I’d comb their hairs, wash their dresses; I loved their little outfits. My husband would say ‘what on earth are you doing?’. I just enjoyed it. I suppose it took me back to me my childhood.
“Most were only 50p or so at the car boot sale. But I do remember stumbling across one that would have been worth £100 or so, and I outbid a mother and daughter. I felt bad, but I really wanted that Barbie!”
Norma even appeared on an episode of This Morning showing off her vast collection. She was tasked with answering questions on the dolls, and had to give one away for every question she got wrong.
Norma only has a handful of dolls left after gifting many away and auctioning the majority off for a £1,500 fee.
She added: “Sometimes I still see one that I’d like, but my granddaughters are all grown up now, so I’ve got no reason to!”
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