
THE room is packed to the rafters with enough cuddly creatures to fill every corner of the 100 Acre Wood.
Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore, Piglet, Rabbit, Kanga, Roo, Owl and Christopher Robin – they’re all there in their hundreds, jostling for space on shelves, peering out from the tops of cupboards, snuggled up on the windowsill, hogging every available centimetre of the floor.
Pooh and his friends are Deb Hoffmann’s pride and joy – and her impressive collection of the characters author AA Milne made famous has put her firmly in the record books.
Deb (58), who lives in Wisconsin in the US, has the biggest Winnie the Pooh collection on the planet – a fact confirmed by the people who decide the Guinness World Records.
Her collection boasts 23 600 pieces and includes T-shirts, jackets, mugs, plaques, pictures, notepads and earrings depicting the honey-hungry bear and his famous friends.
Deb has been the holder of the world record since 2008, which is “quite an honour”, she tells YOU when we chat to her via video call. “I never set out to set the Guinness World Record – it just kind of happened.”
Deb, who’s growing her collection all the time, submitted proof of her stash to the global record body after a friend remarked she probably had the biggest bank of Winnie the Pooh memorabilia on the globe.
The friend was right. “And it kind of took on a life from there,” Deb says.
She purchases most of the items for her treasure trove through thrift stores but people have also started donating to her collection.
“The value is well over a million dollars,” she says proudly.
Esta historia es de la edición 17 August 2023 de YOU South Africa.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición 17 August 2023 de YOU South Africa.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar

TWICE AS NICE!
Adrien Brody’s best actor Oscar has put him among a handful of performers who’ve won the award a second time

NEW LOVE TO HEAL OUR HEARTS
They've both known devastating loss but their relationship has helped to fill the void in the lives

CLUB OF WOE
Manchester United are struggling under crippling debt and sinking dangerously close to the relegation zone

OLDER AND WISER
It’s one of Brooke Shields’ big regrets – that she waited until she was 22 to lose her virginity and then let her hangups stop her from exploring her sexuality. Now as the actress navigates menopause, she opens up in a new memoir about how hormone replacement, backgammon and make-up sex have helped keep her marriage on track

Is it a plane? No, it's a car!
IMAGINE a world where people don't have to plan their lives around traffic, where you no longer worry about a traffic jam making you late for class or your sports practice.

HOW TO GET RID OF AN APRON BELLY
An overhanging belly isn't just frustrating, it can also make you prone to infections and posture problems. Here are three ways to shift it

MOM'S THE WORD
Octomom Natalie Suleman has decided to speak out about her choices and her 14 children because she's tired of 'living in hiding'

DON'T POKE THE BEAR
After his White House battering, Volodymyr Zelenskyy could learn a lesson from other world leaders about how to handle the world’s most powerful man

MY FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
A Cape Town mom was horrified when she got an exorbitant cellphone bill after a holiday in France – and she wasn't about to leave it there

'NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE'
A devastating virus robbed Chris of his sight yet he's brought light and hope to many young lives