Arts and Culture, Published 5 June 2026
We spotted one of these in a shop window the other day - instant 80s flashback!
Amazing how something so simple became one of the biggest crazes of the decade.
The world’s most famous puzzle was invented in 1974 by Hungarian architect and professor Ernő Rubik. Originally called the Magic Cube, it was designed to help students understand 3D movement and geometry - but it didn’t take long before it became a global obsession.
When the cube officially hit toy shelves in 1980, it exploded in popularity, including here in Australia . Schools, shopping centres, and living rooms everywhere were filled with people twisting, turning, and occasionally swearing at the colourful little cube. And yes… plenty of Aussies resorted to peeling the stickers off in frustration
More than 500 million Rubik’s Cubes have been sold worldwide, making it one of the best‑selling toys in history.
Today, “speedcubing” is a full‑blown competitive sport, with solvers achieving times that barely seem human. The current official world record for a standard 3×3 cube is an unbelievable 3.08 seconds, set by Chinese speedcuber Yiheng Wang in 2025.
Did you ever own a Rubik’s Cube?
And be honest - did you solve it properly, or did the stickers mysteriously fall off?
Image by Engin Akyurt @ Pixabay
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