A 94-YEAR-OLD built a shed to house his huge bizarre collection worth £3,000 - of teddy bears. Dennis Addelsberg, a granddad from Lancashire, proves that age is just a number when it comes to pursuing passions and creating something truly unique. At the ripe old age of 93, Dennis began building a shed from scratch to house his incredible collection of 1,000 teddy bears.
A lifelong collector of die-cast toy cars and planes, Dennis recently found a new love for teddy bears. He said: “Somebody has put an awful lot of effort into making these [teddies] and I think they’re masterpieces.” His collection, meticulously gathered from charity shops, includes fluffy bears, pottery bears, door stops, and pictures, all of which he estimates to be worth around £3,000.
Dennis began constructing it a year ago, utilising old conservatory roofing donated by his daughter, Gill, for the roof. He built the shelves, fencing, and decorated the exterior with artificial flowers from B&M. Dennis proudly completed “99 per cent” of the work himself, with only a small helping hand for installing a double-glazed window.
Despite entering his shed into the 'unexpected/unique' category for Shed of the Year 2024, Dennis didn’t make the final shortlist. Yet, his enthusiasm remains undimmed. He said: “It’s entirely different - no one has one of these.
” Dennis enjoys spending time in his cosy, bear-filled haven, where he often eats dinner and even takes the occasional nap. The shed itself is .