Denys Fisher (11 May 1918 – 17 September 2002) was an English engineer who invented the

spirograph Spirograph is a geometric drawing device that produces mathematical roulette curves of the variety technically known as hypotrochoids and epitrochoids. The well-known toy version was developed by British engineer Denys Fisher and first sold ...

toy and created the company Denys Fisher Toys. He left

Leeds University , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

to join the family firm
Kingfisher (Lubrication) Ltd
In 1960 he left the firm to set up his own company, Denys Fisher Engineering, in Leeds. In 1961 the company won a contract with

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

to supply springs and precision components for its 20 mm cannon. Between 1962 and 1964 he developed various drawing machines from

Meccano Meccano is a brand of scale model, model construction system created in 1898 by Frank Hornby in Liverpool, England. The system consists of reusable metal strips, plates, Structural steel#Common structural shapes, angle girders, wheels, axles and ...

pieces, eventually producing a prototype

Spirograph Spirograph is a geometric drawing device that produces mathematical roulette curves of the variety technically known as hypotrochoids and epitrochoids. The well-known toy version was developed by British engineer Denys Fisher and first sold ...

. Patented in 16 countries, it went on sale in Schofields department store in Leeds in 1965. A year later, Fisher licensed Spirograph to

Kenner Products Kenner Products, known simply as Kenner, was an American toy company founded in 1946. Throughout its history, the Kenner brand produced several highly recognizable toys and merchandise lines including action figures like the original series of ' ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In 1967 Spirograph was chosen as the UK Toy of the Year. Denys Fisher Toys, which also produced other toys and board games, was sold to

Palitoy Palitoy was a British toy company. It manufactured some of the most popular toys in Britain, some original items and others under licence. Its products included Action Man, Action Girl, Action Force, Tiny Tears, Pippa, Tressy, Mainline Model Rail ...

in 1970 and it was subsequently bought by

Hasbro Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational conglomerate holding company incorporated and headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Hasbro owns the trademarks and products of ...

. Through the 1980s and 1990s Fisher continued to work with Hasbro in developing new toys and refining Spirograph.

Toys and games

Denys Fisher Toys produced the following toys and games: ;Board Games * ''

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'' * ''Dig'' (1971) * ''Big Bully'' (1972) * ''

On the Buses ''On the Buses'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom that was broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 1969 to 1973. It was created by Chesney and Wolfe, Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, who wrote most of the episodes. It spawned thr ...

'' (1973) * ''The Fastest Gun'' * ''Thomas Cook – Snap Happy'' * ''

Dad's Army ''Dad's Army'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard (United Kingdom), Home Guard during the World War II, Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft (TV producer), David Crof ...

(1974)'' * ''Ghost Train'' (1974) * ''Bounce Back'' (1974) * ''

It's a Knockout ''It's a Knockout!'' is a British game show first broadcast in 1966. It was adapted from the French show ''Intervilles'', and was part of the international ''Jeux sans frontières'' franchise. History The series was broadcast on BBC1 from 7 Au ...

'' (1974) * '' Generation Game'' (1975) * ''Guinness Game of World Records'' (1975) * ''The Magic Magic Magic Game'' (1975) * ''Harvey Smith's Showjumping Game'' (1975) * ''

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'' * ''Hotel'' * ''Conquest'' (1975) * ''Miss UK Game'' (1975) * ''Miss World Game'' * ''The Bionic Woman'' (1975) * ''Jimmy Savile's Pop Twenty'' (1975) * ''Up Periscope'' (1975) * ''Doctor Who – with Tom Baker'' (1975) * ''

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'' (1975) * ''Six Million Dollar Man'' – Bionic Crisis (1976) * ''

James Hunt James Simon Wallis Hunt (29 August 1947 – 15 June 1993) ''Autocourse Grand Prix Archive'', 14 October 2007. Retrieved 4 November 2007. was a British racing driver who won the Formula One World Championship in . After retiring from racing in ...

's Grand Prix Racing Game'' (1976) * ''Perfection'' (1976) * '' The New Avengers'' (1977) * ''Trac 4'' (1977) * ''

Rod Hull Rod, Ror, Ród, Rőd, Rød, Röd, ROD, or R.O.D. may refer to: Devices * Birch rod, made out of twigs from birch or other trees for corporal punishment * Ceremonial rod, used to indicate a position of authority * Connecting rod, main, coupling ...

's Emu Game'' * ''Scream Inn'' * ''Morecambe & Wise'' * ''War of the

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s'' * ''

Multi-Coloured Swap Shop ''Multi-Coloured Swap Shop'', more commonly known simply as ''Swap Shop'', is a British children's television series that aired on BBC1 from 2 October 1976 to 27 March 1982. It was ground-breaking in many ways: by broadcasting on Saturday mornin ...

(1979)'' ;Toys * Cyborg, Muton and Android (reproductions of

Takara Takara Co., Ltd. (株式会社タカラ) was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy Co., Ltd. to form Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was 遊びは文化」("playing is culture"). Products Toys In ...

's Shonen Cyborg toys) * Incredible Stretch Hulk (1979, licensed from

Mego Corporation The Mego Corporation was an American toy company that in its original iteration was first founded in 1954. Originally known as a purveyor of dime store toys, in 1971 the company shifted direction and became famous for producing licensed dolls (i ...

) * Sound A Round Talking Story Game (1969) *

Etch-a-Sketch Etch A Sketch is a mechanical drawing toy invented by André Cassagnes of France and subsequently manufactured by the Ohio Art Company. It is now owned by Spin Master of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. An Etch A Sketch has a thick, flat gray screen ...

* ''

'' * ''

'' – Bionic Bust-out Kit * ''

'' – Oscar Goldman * ''

'' – Maskatron *

* Super Spirograph (1971) * Spiroscope (1972) * Spirofoil * Stickle bricks * ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' – Tom Baker Doll (1976) * ''

'' – Tardis (1976) * ''

'' – Leela (1976) * ''

'' – Giant Robot *

Roger De Courcey Roger De Courcey (born 10 December 1944 in London, England) is a British ventriloquist, best known for performing with Nookie Bear. He was the winner of the 1976 ''New Faces'' televised talent competition grand final. Biography De Courcey has ...

's Nookie Bear – Ventriloquist Bear (1976) * Skull Machine * Outrider * Stretch Armstrong (licensed from

Kenner Kenner Products, known simply as Kenner, was an American toy company founded in 1946. Throughout its history, the Kenner brand produced several highly recognizable toys and merchandise lines including action figures like the original series of ' ...

) * stretch octopus ( Ollie & Olivia ) * Star Wars – Large R2-D2 (1978) * Star Wars – Darth Vader (1978) * Star Wars – Stormtrooper (1978) ;General Games * ''Blockhead!'' * ''

George and Mildred ''George and Mildred'' is a British sitcom produced by Thames Television and first aired between 1976 and 1979. It is a spin-off from ''Man About the House'', and starred Brian Murphy and Yootha Joyce as constantly-sparring married couple Ge ...

'' * Smash Up Derby : T-Bone Crash * ''Chip Away'' (1972) a complete sculpting and painting set for Boys and Girls from 5-13
(three sets:Tom and Jerry/The Flintstones/Animals) * Screen-A-Show (1973)

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Denys 1918 births 2002 deaths Board game designers 20th-century British inventors 20th-century British engineers Businesspeople from Leeds 20th-century English businesspeople