Thunderbirds was produced by ATV, and originally broadcast on ITV in 1965–6. The original Tracy Island toy was marketed to exploit a 1992 re–run on BBC2, and it proved so popular that there was a severe shortage in the run–up to Christmas. The story was reported in the national news, and is often cited as the archetypal mistake to be avoided by the toy industry during the Christmas shopping season. Blue Peter responded to the shortage by demonstrating how to build a home–made version; the BBC in turn was then overwhelmed by viewers' requests for copies of an instruction sheet for making the model.
The 'official' 1992 model went on to be the British Association of Toy Manufacturers' Toy of the Year in 1993.
A further BBC re–launch of Thunderbirds, beginning in 2000, prompted a resurgence of consumer and press interest in Tracy Island, and a second demonstration on Blue Peter of how to build your own. The 'official' playset, marketed by a company called Vivid Imaginations, was ranked among the British Association of Toy Retailers' Top 10 toy products; it went on to become the best–selling toy of 2000, with demand estimated to exceed supply by a factor of as many as ten.
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