(14 Nov 2018) LEADIN:
Laser guns, Harry Potter wands and a poopin' puppy are just some of the must-have toys for children this Christmas.
Despite an impending Brexit, the UK toy industry says it's expecting a bumper 2018, buoyed by movie and gaming inspired gifts.
STORYLINE:
You better watch out, Santa Claus is coming to town and he's carrying a laser.
Father Christmas was on hand to try some of this year's top 12 toys for 2018, announced by the UK Toy Retailers' Association at its DreamToys exhibit.
Laser guns make the list and are proving popular with people of all ages.
Santa Claus says: "One of my favourite toys, I do like lots of them and there's 12 of them here, of the favourites. We've got everything from Harry Potter and Lego, we've got Harry Potter's wands and there's the L.O.Ls which is the unwrapping games as well. We've got lots of Nerf as well, Monopoly."
The top toys are selected by a panel of retailers and experts and it's a predictive list of what's expected to be popular.
There's everything from collectible L.O.L Surprise dolls to a slime studio and a Fortnite edition of Monopoly.
But with a new Harry Potter film due out, anything related to the boy wizard is expected to dominate, according to the chairman of the DreamToys committee, Gary Grant.
"Children's oriented films are really good for toys. So we have Harry Potter this year, we've got Toy Story next year. We've got the Lego movie which brings the Lego bricks to life. So when we get a good movie coming out it does have an ongoing benefit for the toy industry," he says.
The Harry Potter Wizard Wand has cast a spell on ten-year-old Isabella Bonnell who's trying it out.
"It's so fun because you get to learn all these different spells and it's fun practicing them. It makes funny noises when you do a spell," she says.
There are also new Lego options available for Potter fans, including various figurines, the Hogwarts Express and a model of the Great Hall.
"There's a relevancy. Harry Potter is now back with Lego so we're very very proud that a lot of kids will hopefully find Lego undreneath the Christmas tress and have the chance, together with their parents, to be creative and imaginative," says Marius Lang from Lego.
But it's not just film franchises that are helping to sell toys.
This girl is 'flossing' - a dance move that players of ever-popular video game Fortnite will be familiar with.
Hasbro has teamed up with Epic Games to release a Fortnite edition of Monopoly.
Twelve-year-old Ashton Eiman says it's just as exciting as the video version: "It's very good. It's got all the characters. These are all in Fortnite at the moment and I really like it."
Grant says keeping up with film, TV and other trends is needed to appeal to young consumers.
"It's key. The industry looks at what's going on within a child's life. What are they playing with, what are they watching. But also the other part of the industry which has been thriving this year are the collectible items."
These dinosaur collectibles are from the Fingerlings Untamed Jailbreak T-Rex playset and are on the top 12 list.
So too are the L.O.L Surprise Under Wraps dolls.
Toy analyst Frederique Tutt says: "Collectibles is really driving the market in the UK. Sales are 30 percent (higher) compared to last year. So they will want to have the whole collection. So this is series 1 and then you get series 2, series 3and there's no end of fun."
The UK is the fourth largest toy market in the world after the US, China and Japan and has annual sales of 3.5 billion pounds.
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