Or maybe you’re a parent now, delicately breaking the news to your child that their beloved toy is spoilt beyond repair. Or is it?
Tan Guan Poh, a “toy doctor” with a remarkable ability to repair broken toys is bringing joy to many children – and relief to their parents.
“A doctor gives life back to a patient. As a toy doctor, I give life back to toys. Whether it’s changing the batteries and putting in new parts, my role is to make sure they work again,” said the 75-year-old.
Although he primarily works his magic on battery-operated toys, he also mends soft toys and performs “surgeries” on Barbie dolls with broken body parts.
Drawing a comparison between the human body and toys with an integrated circuit (IC), he explained: “Wires are just like blood vessels. They connect to the ‘heart’, which is the integrated circuit. The connections must be good – they cannot be broken. Just like how a broken blood vessel causes a stroke!”
The toughest repairs, he added, are remote-controlled toys – but that’s not stopping the good doctor from figuring it all out.
Funnily enough, he’s popularly known as GP – short for Guan Poh, but also the abbreviation for “general practitioner”. Coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not!
GP earned the nickname of “toy doctor” after he started repairing toys for the Re:Play Project in 2023, which also marked his foray into the world of mending toys.
This initiative by social enterprise Play Unlimited collected toys from the public and manufacturers, among others, before cleaning and distributing them to marginalised communities.
A former manufacturing engineer, GP put his skills in electronics, wiring, and soldering to good use – and when a toy needed stitching, he was ready too, thanks to his mother who taught him how to sew as a kid!
His repair process, he shared, involves careful troubleshooting and when things get tricky, he turns to YouTube videos and Microsoft Copilot for help.
GP also gives certain toys “new life” by converting battery-operated ones to run on USB power. “Batteries aren’t environmentally friendly, so I use USB cables,” he explained. Plus, it means saving money on endless packs of batteries!
Indeed, GP, who is also a part-time hospital chaplain, has extended his compassion beyond patients who are unwell to toys in need of “healing” – and, just as importantly, to the children who love them.
Last year, he recalled, a woman asked him to mend a soft toy that her son had cherished since birth. He successfully performed the “procedure” and the boy’s joy made GP’s day too.
He also hopes to inspire children to rediscover the joy of playing with real toys – not just digital ones. “With a handphone, they can only see things. Of course, they can see toys, but they cannot feel these toys. When they hear the sounds from a toy and hold soft toys, it creates a sense of connection.
“With real toys, you develop a sense of ownership over something you love. Eventually, you’ll love people too – instead of just treating them like a handphone, something you just use and that’s it. You become more loving in that sense.”
More than just giving broken toys a second chance, GP shared that his repair work has given him renewed sense of purpose in his golden years.
It also keeps his mind active – and nothing beats seeing a child’s face light up when their beloved toy is saved.
GP also hopes to pass down his knowledge of toy repair, even to older individuals. “For the elderly, if you have some skills, use them to help the younger generation. It’s a way of giving back.”
Need the services of the toy doctor? Contact Tan Guan Poh at 017-492 7988.