Blackler's rocking horse

'Blackie' the rocking horse helped to make generations of Liverpool children very happy. He was the much-loved highlight of Blackler's children's clothing department and later Alder Hey Children's Hospital. Elizabeth Hawkins has very fond memories of Blackie when she visited the store as a child with her parents and brother in the 1950s: "I loved that horse. It was like meeting up with a much loved and very dear old friend. I'd give him a huge hug and a stroke of his mane before I began to ride. I remember there was always a big queue of other children waiting their turn for a ride. Once I had ridden the horse, I would join the queue again!” Blackie was gifted to Alder Hey by the department store when they sadly closed their doors for the last time in April 1988 after 80 years. He went on to become a well-loved feature of the central admissions and cardiac clinic. He was kindly donated to the Museum of Liverpool by Alder Hey Children's Hospital League of Friends in 2004.