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The 1980 LEGO Catalogue – A meander down memory lane

January 5, 2017 By Helen 35 Comments

Take a trip down memory lane, with a flick through the 1980 LEGO catalogue – which were your favourite sets?
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. I had not seen this for well over 25 years – unearthed from the loft on Boxing Day (along with all my old school books)

The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. The wonders of the basic brick sets!
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. I had the Battery Motor set, I can remember making windmills, using two wheels and a rubber band to turn them, and also a platform which held and rotated a piece of paper to make circular and spiral artworks.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. I remember wanting some light up bricks, and I also had the 836 box of windows and doors, as well as 838 roof tiles, and 837 wheels!
lego-catalogue-1981-page-10
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. I was too old for Fabuland by 1980, but it looks such fun.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. I loved my Lego Town and had the Snack Bar, Digger, Beach Buggy, Ambulance, Fire Truck and Police Car.  Very affordable, simple and small toys.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. I never really saw the point of Lego Castle, too limiting really.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. Despite being very interested in things like the planets and space, LEGO Space never really interested me.  It is all considerably simpler than the Star Wars sets today.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. Even in 1980 the technical sets were eye wateringly expensive.  Today I am amused by that very very late 1970s / early 1980s haircut!
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more. The spares service, in the days before the internet when you had to write to ask for items, and send a postal order to pay for them!
The 1980 LEGO catalogue. Featuring Duplo, Fabuland, Lego City, Lego Castle, Lego Space, Technical Lego, Lego Train and more.
A mere £1 for the LEGO builders club membership for a year.

What were you playing with in 1980?

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Filed Under: Design

About Helen

Helen is a Freelance writer

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Milly Youngman says

    January 8, 2017 at 2:43 pm

    This is so cool! I had loads of lego when I was younger, a giant box at my grandparents’ that I used to build all sorts of things from.

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:08 pm

      It is a timeless toy.

      Reply
  2. Sophie's Nursery says

    January 8, 2017 at 4:13 pm

    You have just taken me back to my childhood!! As a child of the 80’s / 90’s I can remember lots of these Lego sets that I was obsessed with! Especially the castles. I now buy my toddler Duplo, but can’t wait to get her into the Lego sets 🙂 x

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:02 pm

      I never had the castle sets.

      Reply
  3. Deborah Nicholas says

    January 8, 2017 at 4:57 pm

    haha you can’t even buy one of those little sachets of lego pieces for £1 now let alone a whole year subscription!

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:08 pm

      It is so expensive. The £1 for club membership would only cover one stamp!

      Reply
  4. Jess says

    January 8, 2017 at 5:49 pm

    Ah this takes me back! I was a 90s baby but loved my Lego <3 Fancy just being able to go online to order spares! Madness.

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:10 pm

      I did chuckle at the mention of postal orders.

      Reply
  5. Jazmin Williams says

    January 8, 2017 at 7:26 pm

    My step brother always had LEGO which was so fun to play with!

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:10 pm

      hours and hours of fun!

      Reply
  6. Stephanie Cummings says

    January 8, 2017 at 7:41 pm

    A real nostalgic look. I had a lego hospital in the late 80s/early 90s. We never finished building it as either bit were missing or more likely my grans dog ate some of the crucial pieces

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:02 pm

      I had a wonderful Playmobile hospital set. I loved it so much.

      Reply
  7. Lauretta Wright says

    January 8, 2017 at 8:00 pm

    Love these images – they’re great! I wasn’t playing with Lego in 1980 but I was playing with dolls and makeup! Great that you’ve kept the mag – that it itself will be worth a few bob in years to come, if not already.

    Reply
  8. hannah says

    January 8, 2017 at 8:46 pm

    This looks awesome. I grew up in the 90s and i used to love Lego, would have hours of fun with it x

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:10 pm

      I adored my Lego, as they said “a new toy every day”

      Reply
  9. Pinkoddy says

    January 8, 2017 at 9:08 pm

    I remember building a lot of LEGO houses. This LEGO is really great as I saw it at Bricklive – especially the Fabuland stuff.

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:00 pm

      I was slightly too old for Fabuland, but did love my Lego.

      Reply
  10. Kara says

    January 9, 2017 at 5:06 am

    I loved all my Lego sets and remember some of these well. It has certainly come on in recent years

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:01 pm

      I sort of prefer just bricks, but it is all eye wateringly expensive sets these days. but i suspect that lots of adults buy it for themselves.

      Reply
  11. Amy says

    January 9, 2017 at 8:42 am

    I wasn’t born so I was still playing the waiting game! I did play with lego growing up though as my cousins had millions of pieces 🙂 ox

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:07 pm

      Millions of pieces are the best thing!

      Reply
  12. Rhian Westbury says

    January 9, 2017 at 9:16 am

    I used to play with duplo as a kid but I never got into lego until recently x

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:06 pm

      I never had Duplo – the made the first sets in 1975 when I was 3, so I was already nearly ready for the regular bricks

      Reply
  13. Charlotte says

    January 9, 2017 at 9:21 am

    haha wow I haven’t seen some of these sets for years! and only £1 for the membership! Those were the days when everything was cheaper and not all about the money! Still love lego and duplo years on

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:04 pm

      I think the little police car I had had a price tag of 81p on the box!

      Reply
  14. Rachel says

    January 9, 2017 at 11:45 am

    I remember Lego of old and the change between then and now is huge, there is so much more which is aimed at girls rather than being quite masculine x

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 9, 2017 at 12:03 pm

      Yes, although they were really good back then about it being a gender neutral toy. I’m not sure what I think about the pink.

      Reply
  15. Leigh at Fashion Du Jour LDN says

    January 9, 2017 at 12:38 pm

    Love a good bit of nostalgia! I would have been at an age for Duplo and remember my sets clearly.

    Thanks for sharing!

    Leigh at Fashion Du Jour LDN x

    Reply
  16. Jen says

    January 9, 2017 at 2:57 pm

    One Christmas, many moons ago; must have been around 1980, I went with my parents and sister to stay with friends in London. We traveled by train. The house was a large town house with many floors. One of my big brother’s joined us. To my utter delight, I got a box of Lego, which may have been number 40 from the images above. My sister got the hospital, a little more complex as she was older. We pawed at the boxes, and could seen inside, under the clear film that stopped us from getting in to it. We weren’t allowed to open it until we got home. It was so cruel. Both those sets still exist, at my Mother’s house. My grown up children have played with them, and Jasper will of course soon be able to. Cannot beat Lego, and this era was surely one of the best EVER! Amazing find Helen. Fabulous.

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 10, 2017 at 10:41 am

      that must have been torture. It is a long old train journey!

      Reply
  17. Jennifer durrans says

    January 9, 2017 at 5:07 pm

    Vintage stuff is the best!!! I used to love lego!!!!! Ahh good old days

    Reply
  18. Laura says

    January 12, 2017 at 1:33 am

    I absolutely love looking at old adverts and catalogues as well as watching old ones on youtube – so much fun.

    Laura x

    Reply
    • Helen says

      January 13, 2017 at 10:17 am

      I love those YouTube advert compilations. Just amazing.

      Reply
  19. Borys says

    November 10, 2018 at 4:39 pm

    Nostalgic trip down memory lane. I still have all those catalogues including the one from 1980. I even kept all my Lego sets. I’m 45 yrs old and my three kids now play with them, although they call them “daddy’s Legos” and prefer the new sets.

    Reply
  20. Adrian says

    February 20, 2019 at 6:58 pm

    At the age of 7 in 1978 I was part of Lego’s great and timeless sets. I never realised this was the year that the minifig was introduced but I’m glad I was part of this time. I was lucky to have the first Fire Station set, Castle, Space outpost and smallest of the three spaceships. all around 78 to 80 I guess. Various other smaller sets such as the Chef snack bar and lots of the single smaller road vehicles. Later I finished with 6927 and 6929 which I adored. In around 1981 I think was when I got the fabulous Yellow Trainset. From then I had a bunch of technical Lego . Forklift, Bulldozer , Pickup 8846 and the Car chassis which was pretty large and I had zero enjoyment with

    For me Lego was about the spaces within these sets that they would create. Life within a created architecture is a fascinating thing but it’s never mentioned as far as Lego goes

    The best of times

    Reply

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