LEGO Land Rover Classic Defender 90. Photo: courtesy LEGO Canada.
International LEGO® Day is celebrated on January 28th each year to commemorate the day the original LEGO brick was patented in Denmark in 1958.
Lego began in 1932 in the carpentry workshop of Ole Kirk Christiansen, a Danish furniture maker. During the Great Depression, he started making miniature versions of his products, which inspired him to produce toys. In 1934, the company was named “LEGO,” a contraction from the Danish phrase “leg Godt,” meaning “play well.”
Since the early days of producing children’s toys, LEGO car models now come with functioning steering, working suspension, and accurate interior details, making them cult favourites for adult car lovers who enjoy the satisfaction of building their models.
For fans of British vehicles, LEGO has produced versions such as the London Double-Decker Bus (1,680+ pieces), James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5 (1,295 pieces), which contains almost all of the gadgets seen in ‘Goldfinger’, and the Land Rover Defender (2,336) pieces.
Here’s to many days of creativity, innovation and the joy of building with LEGO blocks.
Visit the annual Vancouver ABFM at VanDusen Garden on Saturday, May 17, to see the large-sized versions of these and other British vehicles.