Spellbound, The fascinating new word game - for all ages. A Pepys Game
First Published: circa 1964, A Pepys Game, Castell Brothers, London
Illustrator or Designer: Not Credited
Contents: 160 cardboard Letter Tiles, 20 blank cardboard Letter Tiles, 4 Racks for the letters, 4 Playing Boards, 1 Bag for Letters.
Spellbound - Box Lid
Spellbound - Cardboard Letter Tiles
Spellbound - Boards
Spellbound - Rules Sheet Front
Spellbound - Rules Sheet Front
Spellbound - Letter Tile Racks
The publication date of Spellbound is often given as c. 1954. From the logo, the typography and components I think the game must date from around a decade later so have temporarily settled for c. 1964 in the absence of firm evidence.
A "reissue" of Spellbound was released by Lagoon in 2011 as "A Pepys Game".
However this game has little in common with the Pepys original. It seems instead to be partly based upon two other games:
Kan-U-Go, a popular card game first published by Jarvis Porter Ltd in the 1930s and later by Waddington's Games Ltd..
&
"Spellbound - A Playing Card Scramble Word Game" by the Exclusive Card Company of Chicago. This game was first published in 1954 and might have led to the incorrect dating of the Pepys game in many sources.
Spellbound by Lagoon 2011
Game & Version Details
 | Spellbound - Box & Contents |
 | Spellbound - Blue Plastic Letter Bag The bag is of poor quality and when I saw my first copy of the game I thought it must be a later replacement. Since then I have seen a few other examples of the game where the bag survives and can confirm that this bag is original. |
 | Spellbound - Box Lid Long Side |
 | Spellbound - Box Lid Short Side |