Transformers obsessed father and son’s 1,000-strong toy collection

Transformers superfans Glen Cooper and nine-year-old Thomas Cooper have collected more than 1,000 of the toys in just four years. When Thomas went down with a bad bout of the flu in 2012,

the Essex dad-of-one decided to share his greatest childhood love with him to cheer him up. Glen, 41, from Chelmsford, Essex, put on an episode of the 80s Transformers cartoon and within

moments Thomas fell in love - and he is now known as 'Transformers boy' at school. Since then the duo have been strengthening their father and son bond one Transformers toy at a

time, exchanging them as gifts on Father's Day, Christmas and birthdays. Glen, a transport manager, had tried for years to find something him and his little boy could enjoy together and

says having a joint hobby has done wonders for their relationship. He said: "I had loads of Transformers as a kid and I loved them so when Thomas was poorly I thought I'd stick on

some of the videos from the 80s. "Even though they were the old ones he absolutely fell in love so for his next birthday in February I bought him a box of 80 on eBay and we've not

stopped since. "We'd never been into the same stuff before - I'm mad about football but he's not sporty - so it is really great for us to have a shared interest.” Glen

and Thomas keep their collection out on display on book shelves and the hoard is so big it fills two rooms in their house. The dad said he likes to keep all the Transformers out because,

unlike a lot of collectors, he thinks Thomas should be able to play with them whenever he likes. Glen said: "I think some collectors would be horrified if they knew I let him play with

them but they are toys at the end of the day - they are there to be played with. "There are only a couple of special ones that I got for 'big birthdays' like my 40th that he

knows not to play with but I want him to enjoy them.” Glen and Thomas started hunting for Transformers online and at second hand shops but have expanded their search, snapping up all the

latest accessories and even limited edition toys from Japan. The dad reckons they have spent around £10,000 and it could easily have been more without family and friends helping them build

their robot army with gifts. He added: ”All parents try to find something to bond with their kids over - it is not as easy as you think. "But having this shared hobby has made our

father/son relationship so much stronger and we go to all the conventions together. It's quite nice."