We are back in the year 50 B.C. in the outer reaches of Gaul, where, against all odds, the population is holding out against the Roman conquest. It is in this region of indomitable Gauls where the legend of Asterix is forged, a work of art that has transcended years, centuries and newsstands, and that has made readers from all walks of life laugh at the Romans’ expense.

Those responsible? The cartoonist Albert Uderzo and storyteller René Goscinny, Asterix’s creators. Together, in 1959, they crafted the adventures of Asterix the Gaul, combining ingenuity with political satire, and endowing their main character and his friends, Obelix and Getafix, with an enduring spark distinguished by sharp wit and hilarious dialogues. Through these characters, they succeeded in speaking about the human psyche, in all its madness and eccentricity – “These Romans are crazy”, and so are their creators. Their brainchild quickly became a cultural phenomenon that outstripped its comic book origins. Not only was the tale received enthusiastically by the public, but it had the critics waxing lyrical too, cementing its place in the collective imagination. The sensation continued to expand and with it the proliferation of merchandise which signalled the beginnings of the Asterix collection. And that is how the Asterix plush toy came to the Barrado family, breaking down cultural and generational barriers, and embracing the magical nostalgia of this immortal comic.