Some funny business has landed on Oxford Street, The Corner Shop at Selfridges has been transformed into The Joke Shop – London’s one-stop shop for all you need to get a barrel of laughs and has all the classic slapstick joke-shop tricks and old-school mischief-makers.
Open until March 30, The Joke Shop hopes to inject some laughs and smiles with its shoppable comedy store where you’ll find jokes, pranks, tricks and illusions galore along with curated products from Selfridges’ funniest designer friends including Adam Jones, Corrina Goutas, Judith Leiber, Puppets and Puppets, Aaron Esh, Anya Hindmarch and Cowboys of Habit.
Created to entertain the whole family and with price points starting at 99p for pocket money purchases, there’ll be some silliness in store for everyone. Along with having all the traditional gags, folks can expect live magic demos and some surprises and pranks while on their visit to The Joke Shop. On weekends, a Joke Shop Manager will be entertaining visitors at various times and you’ll also find an immersive Manager’s Office complete with giant jumping beans which will be accessible to Selfridges Unlocked Keyholders.
To accompany The Joke Shop, Selfridge’s window displays will feature work by multi-disciplinary artist Max Seidentopf and new work by British visual artist Mel Brimfield. The Oxford Street run of windows will celebrate some of Britain’s oldest jokes such as Custard Pie, Knock Knock, Whoopee Cushion and Rubber Chicken.
At the Duke Street entrance atop the Art Block in the Accessories Hall, you’ll find Brimfield’s ‘Slapstick Generator’ sculpture inspired by the physical comedy found in cartoons, reminiscent of the whimsical creations seen in vaudeville cinema and rickety contraptions associated with the eccentric 20th-century illustrator W. Heath Robinson. A staged moment of imminent peril sees a giant boulder at the centre of this sculpture that appears to be poised to flatten the Selfridges Concierge desk.
Laura Weir, Selfridges Executive Creative Director, says: “Creativity and fun are part of our brand DNA, brought to life through destinations and experiences that make the world brighter. The Joke Shop at Selfridges draws inspiration from local joke shops across the country, as well as the tongue-in-cheek aesthetics we’ve seen and loved this season. We’re transforming our Corner Shop into a shoppable comedy store, with windows celebrating the best British jokes and larger-than-life art commissions. We want to raise a smile and make mischief in a way that can be enjoyed by everyone who visits us.”
Selfridge’s Joke Shop has taken inspiration from the unique creativity of the British Joke Shop. It will platform independent joke shops Dinsdale’s Famous Joke and Trick Shop (Hull), The Scarborough Joke and Magic Shop, Joke Shop (Cardiff), Tam Shepherds Trick Shop (Glasgow) and Joke Shop (Southport), sharing their stories across Selfridges social channels.
The Joke Shop can be found on the Ground floor of Selfridges at 400 Oxford Street, W1A 1AB and is open until March 30. Find out more here.
