Inspired by the story of the Ramsey-based family who inherited 50,000 vinyl records, we went in search of unusual collections that have taken over people’s spare rooms, garages or whole houses.
The wife of Douglas resident Billy Hay has amassed a collection of more than 500 fridge magnets from around the world.
’It’s been going for quite a few years now,’ Mr Hay told the Examiner.
’It started with us buying them on holidays and it accumulated from there.’
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Family and friends began sending them too: over time they’ve covered the fridge and the rest are stuck to the boiler in their home.
’They don’t bother me at all,’ he continued.
’They’re nice and small and they keep my wife happy.’
Castletown-based Mark Kneale inherited the amazing collection of a much-missed Manx figure.
Mark has two suitcases of TT memorabilia from his late stepfather Peter Kneale.
Known as the voice of the TT, Peter acted as commentator for every TT from 1965 to 2000.
’There are jiffy bags full of transfers, brooches, lapel pins, there’s so much of it that I’ve never really gone through it all,’ Mr Kneale said.
’But I’m glad it came to me instead of ending up on a scrapheap somewhere.’
Laura McCoy, from Peel, keeps souvenirs from her trips around the world: ’I’ve got handwoven baskets, earrings made from locally carved stone, just small things like that.
’It’s nice to have something that gives you an instant memory of a place.’
As the curator of natural history for Manx National Heritage, she doesn’t need to fill the spare room - she has a whole museum to work with.
MNH has glass cases filled with creatures great and small: ’My job is full of weird things, but my house is more normal,’ she said. ’Of course I don’t think they’re weird, but other people might not agree!’
Our favourite answer came from Bev and Keith Sabey of Laxey: ornamental frogs.
Bev revealed that she has been collecting them for years, but she doesn’t remember exactly how it started.
’You tell someone that you like frogs, then every birthday and Christmas somebody brings you one. It snowballed from there’, she told the Examiner.
’It’s not as bad as it used to be,’ Keith added, mysteriously. ’But they’re still all over the house.’
Bev revealed that she’s usually wearing a frog-themed necklace, and used to have an unnamed soft toy frog which acts as a good luck charm and mascot.
’I took him everywhere with me,’ Bev said. ’New Zealand, America, you name it. It’s been all over the world’.