Remember when everyone was just really obsessed with London for some reason? It’s like the Spice World Movie came out and suddenly London was everything, only further kept buoyed by the Doctor Who revival a few years later. There were so many Union Jack throw pillows, bedazzled handbags, and other cheap merch to convey the message of “yay empire”. Anyway, Lego has just announced a brand-new set based on the iconic London telephone boxes.
The Red London Telephone Box set (item #21347) clocs in at 1460 pieces for $199.99 (13.7c a piece), this 31cm tall, 19cm wide, 15cm deep, and is designed to inspire nostalgia in all who view it, whether it’s because they saw them in person, used them, or enjoyed one of the many pieces of media that featured them.
There are two options for the phone box: you can put in a vintage rotary phone (a classic), or one of the phones that more invoke nostalgia for the 1990s. The model also has a light brick, which can be activated by pressing a button on the roof of the phone box.
The idea for the phone box was submitted by a fan going by the username Bricked1980. The original designed included 1856 bricks, and had more poster and flower elements than the finished model. The original also included a classic London post box, which didn’t make it to the final model. The final model, however, does have a really nice wrought iron fence, which is a really nice touch.
In the original proposed design, the inspiration was stated as coming from the K2 model of the phone box, introduced in 1924. However, the finished model also seems to have taken some inspiration from the K6 phone box model introduced in 1935 (at least, to my uneducated eye).
The set is targeted towards people with nostalgic feelings towards the phone boxes, tourists, and competionists who already have the Double Decker Bus and Tower of London sets.
The Lego London Telephone Box is available from the 4th of February on the Lego website.