Aloysius, nee Delicatessen, an American Teddy Bear, circa 1907, with golden blonde mohair, black glass eyes, black stitched nose and claws, swivel head, jointed limbs with felt pads, pigeon chested, hump and inoperative growler —25in. (64cm.) high (patched, repaired and wear); with Daks of London. Simpson scarf with Aloysius picture badge and British Airways gilt air stewardess pin; an Aloysius postcard signed by Anthony Andrews, Jeremy Irons, Diana Quick, Clare Bloom and the producer Derek Granger at BBC Radio 4 ‘Reunion’ in 2010 with BBC Broadcasting House visitor pass; a 1st and 2nd edition of Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited; a Granada Television booklet on the 1981 series; and an antique brush inscribed ‘Aloysius’ - owned by Peter Bull and the star of Brideshead Revisited (ITV drama 1981), he was later owned by Rosemary and Paul Volpps before coming to Witney in 1996 - a major catalyst in the growth of the antique Teddy Bear market - features on page 119 of The Ultimate Teddy Bear Book - Peter Bull was born in 1912, he became an actor playing character roles in many films. When he was sixteen, and away at boarding school, Peter’s mother gave his childhood bear to a local jumble sale. He thought it ‘unmanly’ to show any sign of emotions but the loss remained with him. More than thirty years later he was at a dinner party in New York when a ‘beautiful lady guest’ recounted how her childhood bear had met an untimely end many years previously, and how this sad event had never left her memory. Peter then realised that it was not just the English who held their bears so close to their hearts, and decided to research the subject and to write a book. Bear with Me was published in 1969, it was a great success and was republished in 1970 as The Teddy Bear Book; following a television appearance on the Johnny Carson’s Tonight show, Miss Euphemia Ladd from Maine, sent her own Teddy Bear to Peter’s Chelsea flat with a note apologising for the hump he had acquired after all those years sitting! She had just closed down her dry goods and grocery store where her bear had sat on a shelf for over forty years. On arrival he was immediately christened ‘Delicatessen’. When Derek Granger, the producer, was looking or a ‘large and rumpled’ bear to play Aloysius, Peter’s collection was an obvious place to start and Deli was chosen. The rest is history, he was seen by millions across the world and was a huge part of why old Teddy Bears became popular to collect! We, us arctophiles, have a lot to be grateful for to Peter and Aloysius.