A chatter ring (also known as a gyro ring or jitter ring) is a
New Zealand toy ring of thick metal wire with several beads. The toy is used by swiping the beads to get them spinning, while keeping the ring turning. Around fifty thousand rings were purchased in New Zealand at department stores, street markets and
dairies in 1996, and was a popular Christmas gift for children that year. During this time, there were several mentions of chatter rings on both radio and television.
2011 revival
The toys were originally popular in the 1990s, and had a revival in 2011 when Apple Activities Educational Toys hosted the
Hawke's Bay Chatter Ring Reunion in
Hastings. Prizes were awarded in a
lucky dip as well as for winners of a number of categories such as best performance, oldest verifiable ring, youngest player and oldest player.
Toshiaki Sasaki, recognised as the world's number one chatter ring player, visited New Zealand for a twelve-day tour to support and promote the re-release of the rings. The chatter ring has been played with by the former
Mayor of Invercargill Tim Shadbolt
Sir Timothy Richard Shadbolt (born 19 February 1947) is a New Zealand politician. He was the Mayor of Invercargill and previously Mayor of Waitemata City.
Early life
Shadbolt was born in the Auckland suburb of Remuera in 1947. His father died ...
.
A new generation of chatter rings was launched by Murray Potts who described the unveiling of his newly developed and produced jitter rings as a case of "what goes around comes around". Potts had previously made them commercially, working out of
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. He later worked with a toy maker in
Taiwan to produce the new jitter rings and along with
Hawaii, both New Zealand and Taiwan became the first locations to experience the toy.
Chatter ring performances were included on an episode of New Zealand children's television series ''
What Now'' and at department store
Farmers
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mi ...
.
Jitter Ring Demonstration
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References
{{reflist
External links
L'anneau bavard, a.k.a. Chattering, a.k.a. Jitter ring
Gyro Ring Fascinations
Jitter Ring Official Website
Rings (jewellery)
1990s toys
New Zealand culture
2010s toys
Physical activity and dexterity toys