Selfridges Toyshop

Selfridges might have a vast new Denim Studio and the biggest shoe department in the world, but if you’re under ten, there’s only one place to be: on the fourth floor in the brand new toy department. Located between the kids’ clothes (home of the mini-me Roksanda Ilincic frocks and the gorgeous Step2wo shoe collection) and glittering Christmas shop, it’s the first permanent space in the store dedicated to toys in over a decade. While the toy department is not the overwhelming multisensory experience that Harrods’ Toy Kingdom is – it covers about a quarter of the floor space – it’s well edited and feels much more manageable. There’s lots to keep parents and teens happy too, such as the Makies design-them-yourself dolls and one-off Barbies by London designers Sister by Sibling, Nasir Mazhar and Fred Butler. The staff are attentive, and properly interact with the children and there's plenty to keep nippers occupied including a Lego table, a Play-Doh station and Barbie-zone complete with a shiny plastic fuchsia work station. Overall, it's not too gender specific and nothing is labelled 'boys' or 'girls'. Parents will be drawn to the classic toy selection in the middle which includes wooden Vilac xylophones, Le Toy Van dolls houses and a display of Paddington Bears (apparently the original story by Michael Bond was inspired by a bear he saw in Selfridges’ windows). Thankfully, it’s located near the Food Garden Café, so you can stop for food when the inevitable ‘I want that’ tantrum kicks in.