Boxing Day joy that actually holds their focus
or 4 payments of £3.24 with Klarna
🛡️ 30-day full refund, no questions. Fewer than 30 returns from 23,000+ orders.
- Hand-eye coordination
- Colour recognition
- Fine motor skills
- 12 months and up
- Solid wood
- Ships 2-3 days
- 30-day returns
- Klarna available
Delivery in 2-3 working days · 30-day returns · Est. 1795
as seen in
Real talk
It's 1:58pm. She's already at your elbow.
Pop Up Penguins gives you 40 uninterrupted minutes. Four wooden penguins, coloured green, purple, orange, blue. Spring-loaded base. Your toddler pushes each one down, it pops back up. Again. Again. And again.
You take the call. They stay at the desk, hands fully engaged. No screen, no mess, no guilt.
Joe Jaques, Jaques of London
What's in the box
What arrives
A wooden base with 4 penguin sticks and spring mechanisms. Jaques signature boxing with hand-tied ribbon. Ready to give or play immediately.
4 Wooden Penguin Sticks
Green, purple, orange, blue. Each one sits in the spring-loaded base and pops back up when pushed down. Sized for toddler hands, painted non-toxic finish.
- ✓ 17cm tall when assembled
- ✓ Designed for ages 12 months and up
- ✓ Hand-finished wood, hand-tied ribbon
Spring Mechanism Base
Four independent springs. Each penguin pops at its own pace. The resistance and spring feel teaches cause-and-effect through touch, not screens.
- ✓ Weighted wooden base stays put on the table
- ✓ Springs tuned for toddler strength
- ✓ No batteries, no electronics
Jaques Signature Packaging
Arrives gift-ready. Hand-tied ribbon, branded box. Grandparents say it alone justifies the cost. No wrapping needed.
- ✓ Gift-wrap ready at checkout
- ✓ Opens to reveal the toy fully assembled
- ✓ The box itself is part of the first impression
Order by 2pm, arrives Tuesday
Was £18.99
Penguins - Pop Up Toy: £12.99
While they play
What they're quietly building
Looks like play. Works like a lesson.
Hand-eye coordination
The precision of pushing the right penguin at the right angle builds control and tracking. Kids learn what their hands can do.
Colour recognition
Four distinct colours. Repeated push-and-pop links the colour name to the physical object. Natural, no flashcards.
Fine motor strength
Grasping, pushing against spring resistance, timing the press. Fingers, wrists, hands get stronger with every pop.
Cause and effect
Push down, something happens. Instant, physical, repeatable. The foundation of learning before words.
What families say about Jaques of London
What parents say
"Excellent quality wood toys, so well made, no sharp edges, all lovely & smooth, very colourful & plenty of choice. Very reasonably priced & so beautifully wrapped you don't want to open them. Highly recommend this company."
"Fast delivery, excellent products, extremely good quality and long lasting. My granddaughter loves the toys from here. Good age ranges covered."
"These toys tick all the boxes, educational, colourful, fun, well made and great service. I just keep buying more and more."
"We love our toys from Jaques of London. The quality is excellent and they're the perfect size for little hands to hold and play with easily. Beautifully made, sturdy wooden toys that will last for years. Highly recommend!"
"Harrods grade gifting for a very reasonable price. Not the usual tat from China. Had several hand picked orders fron Jaques, nice to know its a UK business with old school quality."
"I am a real fan of this company. If only I had come across them years ago when my boys were little. It's my go to for beautiful, good quality toys for my granddaughter now and any gift I need to buy. They arrived quickly, prices are reasonable and the special touch is they are beautifully packaged too. I love the heritage of this business!"
Get ready for life
Why real play matters
Real brain growth comes from real play.
Independent play, no screen
From the moment they sit down, hands are busy with one toy, one action, total focus. Enough for a work call. Enough for you to breathe.
Colour and sequence learning
Each penguin a different colour. Kids naturally start to name and remember them. Play becomes a quiet first lesson.
Grows with them
A 12-month-old pats it. A 3-year-old strategises which penguin pops fastest. A 5-year-old invents games. Years of play for one toy.
Why this matters right now
We really are different
Why Pop Up Penguins beats the plastic version
| Jaques Penguins - Pop Up Toy | Cheap Alternatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Material | ✅ | ❌ Painted plastic, hollow |
| Spring resistance (learning tool) | ✅ | ❌ Weak springs, no feel |
| Weight and stability | ✅ | ⚠️ Topples when they push hard |
| Finish (safe, hand-done) | ✅ | ❌ Mass-painted, chipped easily |
| Silent play (no beeps) | ✅ | ❌ Sounds that repeat and repeat |
| Heirloom playability | ✅ | ❌ Breaks after a season |
| Resale or pass down | ✅ | ❌ Landfill after two children |
- ✅ Solid wood construction
- ✅ Tuned spring feel
- ✅ Weighted base
- ✅ Hand-finished paint
- ✅ No sounds
- ✅ Years of play
- ✅ Passes to next child
- ❌ Cheap plastic
- ❌ Weak springs
- ❌ Tips over easily
- ❌ Paint chips fast
- ❌ Beeps constantly
- ❌ Breaks in weeks
- ❌ Breaks then bins
Order by 2pm, arrives Tuesday
Was £18.99
Penguins - Pop Up Toy: £12.99
30-Day Money-Back Guarantee
Not right? Return it within 30 days. Full refund, no questions.
Questions & answers
Questions before you order
What age is this for?
12 months and up. At 12-18 months, they pat and watch the pops. At 2-3, they start to aim and push deliberately. By 4-5, they're inventing games and teaching younger siblings. One toy, years of changing play.
Will it really keep them busy for 40 minutes?
Depends on the child and the day. Most parents report 25-45 minutes of uninterrupted focus, especially if you introduce it fresh on a work-call morning. The spring resistance and colour variation mean it doesn't get boring the same way a single-action toy does.
Is it worth the price over the plastic version?
If you're buying for one child, do the maths: played for 4 years, then passed to a cousin or sibling. That's pennies per game per year. If you're buying as a gift from a grandparent, Catherine McCulloch said it was a perfect gift for a 1st birthday and Manda Monium called it worth every penny full price. Solid wood, hand-finished, stays on the desk, doesn't break after five minutes of play.
What if they don't like it?
You have 30 days to return it. No questions asked. We also offer a 60-day warranty. If you're ordering for a birthday and timing is tight, order by 2pm and it arrives next business day, gift-wrapped and ready.
How much does it cost?
The Penguins - Pop Up Toy is £12.99 today (down from £18.99). Klarna is available at checkout if you prefer to spread the cost.
What's your returns policy?
30 days, full refund, no conditions. Return it for any reason and we refund in full. We've been standing behind what we make since 1795.
Order by 2pm, arrives Tuesday
Was £18.99
Penguins - Pop Up Toy: £12.99
Our story
Making toys worth keeping since 1795.
Jaques of London was founded in 1795. We invented croquet, table tennis, and the Staunton chess set. For 230 years, we've been making things that pull children away from passive entertainment and into active, curious, hands-on play.
We made Pop Up Penguins because the best toys don't lecture. They just work. A child pushes a penguin, it pops back up. That's it. No batteries, no screens, no instruction manual. The learning happens because the toy is honest: wood, springs, colour, cause-and-effect. It's the same reason we've been making games for 231 years. Toys that last teach more than toys that break.
Toys and games that leave something behind: a skill, a memory, a piece of play that gets passed on.
Joe, Jaques of London
Ready when you are
Order now
arrives Tuesday
Was £18.99
£12.99 Save 31%
🛡️ 30-day money-back guarantee · 🚚 Delivery in 2-3 working days · 🏛️ Est. 1795
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