Bookery Shops: The Paddington Store at Paddington Station, London

It was Paddington Station where the Peruvian stowaway was found and subsequently went on to be named after so where better to put a store dedicated entirely to the bear than the station itself?!

We visited this store as our first stop in doing the Paddington Paw Trail in London. I absolutely adore stores like this and as literary themed stores go, this is one of the best I've visited.

As well as being a treasure trove for all things Paddington, the shop has some wonderful features dedicated to the bear, making it more exhibition-like than just a place to buy memorabilia. There is a huge tag printed on the floor with the famous words "Please Look After This Bear", a wall mural displaying Paddington's story and a chance to look in Paddington's secret compartment! You can also find a sculpture of Paddington that was designed by Michael Bond himself for the Paddington Paw Trail in 2014.

As you'd expect from a shop dedicated to a specific literary character, there is all kinds of merchandise sold here: clothing, stationary, postcards, soft toys, umbrellas, tea towels...you name it! I'd recommend a particular look at the collection of Paddington audio CD's they stock here; we didn't purchase any but I noticed that they stocked several that we have borrowed from the library. These are brilliant to have in the car or on at home and a great way to introduce Paddington tales to younger kids.

For me browsing through shops like these isn't always about purchasing but a set of cookie cutters caught my eye and I couldn't resist; I'm looking forward to a session of Bookery Club baking Paddington biscuits with Ketchup and Mustard and enjoying them over a chapter of the book!