The Post Box Topper Phenomenon

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A crocheted Christmas Post Box topper from Inverkip in Scotland (Photo by By dave souza – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=97993838)

Dear Readers, after yesterday’s rather heavy blogpost, I wanted to share a phenomenon that seems to be gathering momentum here in the UK – the post box topper. These are knitted or crocheted ‘scenes’ that local knitters pop on top of a postbox to cheer people up, to highlight an issue or to celebrate something. Sometimes they get vandalised (usually by drunken adults), I imagine that they get grubby, and that birds occasionally poo on them, but the Post Box Topper gang are undeterred. Anything that we put out into the world is vulnerable, but from the response to these woolly wonders, the positive responses far outweigh those who like to destroy things. Here’s just a selection from the interwebs…

First up is a Postbox Topper from Walthamstow, full of poppies for Remembrance Day.

 (Photo by By GrimsbyT – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=96009048)

The next one is to celebrate the Coronation of King Charles III – it’s from Godalming in Surrey.

(Photo By Doyle of London – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=131071989)

Royal occasions are something of a favourite – the topper below was for Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee. Not content with the Queen, we have corgis, a beefeater and a Queen’s Guard.

 

It’s not all about royalty, though…this one is in honour of the Hospice at Home service run in Sidmouth, Devon.

This one celebrates autumn in Liscard Village in The Wirral.

This one is celebrating the new school year, in Orpington, Kent.

This one celebrates a donkey sanctuary in Devon..

Bug Woman obviously approves of this topper…it’s by@ToppersBySteph on Queen Square near Great Ormond Street Hospital in London.

And finally, this one is very special. It was made to commemorate the life of Sophie Lancaster, a young woman who was murdered because she looked ‘different’ (she was a goth). The photos are from the Bailgate in Lincoln, and were taken by Glen Red Imp Hughes (Photos from here).

So, are postbox toppers just a British thing, or does anyone else have something similar? I think what I love about them most is that people spend many hours on them, then release them into the world to take their chance. I’m leaving the last word to Sue Cockcroft, a topper-maker…

“Although it can be a bit gutting if the thing you’ve made is taken, I think we all do it with the idea of spreading some happiness into our communities… That’s something you have to do knowing that not *everyone* will feel the same way.
But we keep on going, and sharing happiness, because it gives us happiness too. 💚”

4 thoughts on “The Post Box Topper Phenomenon”

  1. Anne

    I have seen a number of pictures of these postbox toppers on blogs over the years. Last year, a friend of mine in the UK was asked to contribute to the making of one in the village where she lives. She told me that anonymity adds to the ‘mystery’ of these popping up unexpectedly. I would love to know what happens to them in the end.

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    1. Bug Woman Post author

      Me too! Though someone reported that when they were replacing a Topper that they’d made, a woman from the pub opposite stormed over to tell them off for ‘vandalising’ the post box, so clearly most people love them. Pub woman was very red-faced when it was explained that, far from vandalism it was a whole new postbox topper being installed…

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