A neon windmill once built to light up the set of Sky’s BAFTA-winning entertainment series, A League of Their Own, now has a very different audience: new adopters and their dogs at Manchester & Cheshire Dogs’ Home.
It’s one of thousands of items from A League of Their Own that have found new homes in some unexpected places after the show hung up its boots for the final time in December 2025, after an incredible 15 years and 20 seasons on air. Over its run, the show built up an extraordinary collection of props from its iconic games and physical challenges, from top-of-the-range sports equipment to eccentric costumes and oversized set pieces. Sky and CPL Productions were left with a familiar question once the final episode aired: what happens next?
Instead of being scrapped or stored, Sky and CPL Productions worked with sustainable production experts PropUp Project to donate over 5,600 items from A League of Their Own to local youth services, community centres, schools, sports clubs, charities, foodbanks, homelessness support groups, theatres and animal rescue centres across the UK. Among the donations were over 1,700 pieces of sports equipment including 100 tennis balls, 180 pairs of (clean!) socks, 280 pairs of shorts, boxing gloves, ice hockey helmets and much more, all of which have found new homes with 38 different beneficiaries.
But it was some of the show’s more unusual items that found the most unexpected second lives. A neon windmill, once part of the show’s set, became an exciting feature for fundraising events and new adopters and their dogs to pose in front of at Manchester & Cheshire Dogs’ Home, while carpet and set materials were used to build a children's theatre installation as part of the Bradford City of Culture programme. From Christmas decorations to maracas, bean bags to banana boats, and even a full-body red dragon costume, items once used for television are now being reused by local communities across the UK.
Fiona Ball, Group Director Bigger Picture & Sustainability at Sky, said: “A League of Their Own has always been about big characters, big moments and not taking itself too seriously – so it feels fitting that some of its most memorable props are now bringing joy in completely different ways. Seeing items that once lit up the studio go on to support local communities, charities and even a dogs’ rescue centre is a brilliant example of how the legacy of a show doesn’t have to end when the final episode airs."
Kate Allan, Co-Founder & Director at PropUp Project said: “We’re proud to have worked with Sky and CPL Productions to show how the screen industry can lead by example. This collaboration demonstrates that sustainability and community impact can go hand in hand, turning production materials into lasting local benefit. The props we see on screen every day can become vital resources for people and truly have the power to change lives, so we’re incredibly grateful to Sky and CPL Productions for helping make that possible.”
The donation represents an estimated value of over £50,000, showing how what appears on-screen can still create real-world impact off-screen after the cameras stop rolling. It forms part of Sky’s wider ambition to build a more sustainable television and film industry, where items and materials from productions are reused to reduce waste.
