Toys R Us opens at WHSmith in Weymouth town centre

Toys R Us opened inside the Weymouth WHSmith store on St Mary Street this morning with crowds waiting patiently - some for nearly an hour - for the 8.30am opening.

About 40 people were in the queue ahead of the doors opening.

The new concession is located upstairs and it has resulted in the creation of four part-time jobs.

Weymouth is one of 37 WHSmith branches to host a new 'shop-in-shop' from Toys ‘R’ Us, with openings in the run-up to Christmas.

The toy shop chain went bust in 2018, shutting the doors on all of its 100 shops and resulting in the loss of more than 2,000 jobs.

It announced plans for a relaunch in October 2022, before striking a deal with WHSmith for concessions in the UK.

People queueing for the Toys R Us opening (Image: Alfie Lumb) Mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe was around 10 minutes late to open the Weymouth shop, but was welcomed by waves and cheers from the children waiting in the queue.

Children were given a sticker and a headband before meeting Geoffrey. The first 50 children were also handed a goody bag worth more than £15.

People queueing for the Toys R Us opening (Image: Alfie Lumb)First to go through the doors and cut the ribbon were Noah, Wilf and Fred Holmes-Casey.

Dad Chris said he had been waiting at the front of the line for around 45 minutes before but to get to the front was ‘well worth it.’

Noah, Wilf and Fred Holmes-Casey opening the Toys R Us with staff members and Geoffrey the Giraffe (Image: Alfie Lumb) Rachel and Danny Moore were waiting in line for 20 minutes, with mum Rachel wanting to look at the toys before Christmas.

Rachel and Danny Moore outside Toys R Us (Image: Alfie Lumb) Jemma and Craig Williams brought their two children down for the opening. Mrs Williams said: “We had to come for this - it brings back history.”

The Williams Family outside the Toys R Us (Image: Alfie Lumb) Elizabeth Crabb, 10, was ‘really excited’ to meet Geoffrey the Giraffe and look at the toys.

Elizabeth Crabb with Geoffrey the Giraffe (Image: Alfie Lumb) Leila, Joe and Lexi from Weymouth were visiting for the morning for something to do, and to meet Geoffrey the Giraffe.

Leila, Joe and Lexi outside the Toys R Us (Image: Alfie Lumb) Leanne McKay said: “I’ve waited a long time for it to come back.”

Leanne McKay and Emily-Rose Tombrew outside Toys R Us (Image: Alfie Lumb) Tim Diament, WH Smith cluster manager for the area, said: “It’s been a very successful opening. People have been really pleased to see Toys R Us on our high street.

“It’s definitely created a buzz around town. We have had people coming in all week to ask when it’s open.

“We were a little delayed in opening this morning, but that’s only because it took Geoffrey some time to get down the stairs.” 

Geoffrey the Giraffe outside Toys R Us (Image: Alfie Lumb) Explaining the set-up inside he added: “The upstairs will be half books, and half Toys R Us. The upstairs section was closed completely for a while, and we have now moved the books upstairs, with that part open again.”