Beanie Babies are stuffed animal toys. They are made of brightly coloured velour fabric, and stuffed with synthetic 'beans'. They are a convenient size to hold in the hand (adult or child), and being only loosely stuffed with beans, can be squashed into a handbag at a moment's notice if necessary.

They were initially popular with children, but have subsequently become popular with adults too. There are now Beanie fairs, and Beanie traders at toy fairs. The earliest Beanie Babies are now worth thousands of pounds, should you want to sell one. The most expensive one, to my knowledge, was Peanut, who was produced in one colour for only two months, and who changes hands for £2500.

All the Beanies have 'humorous' names, such as Scorch (the Dragon), Chilly (the Polar Bear), and Chocolate (the Moose). Beanies have become sufficiently profitable for the manufacturer that they are now produced in various sizes from Teenies (approximately 2/3 normal size, given away with Happy Meals at McDonalds), through Beanie Babies, to Beanie Buddies, Pillow Pals, and Plush. There have also been some 'spin-off' toys produced - most toy manufacturers produce a Bean Bag Toy range. Best of all, however, are the 'Meanies': these are deformed toys, such as the Dalmutation (a Dalmatian dog with two heads, and each head having 1 or 3 eyes and ears), or Didn't Duck In Time (a headless Duck), or Boris the Mucousaurus (a runny nosed dinosaur), and many other limbless, squashed, or tyre-marked creatures.