Lego classic bricks, the Barbie doll and the Rubik's Cube have been crowned among the greatest toys of all time by renowned retailer Hamleys.
The toy store said it compiled its "hero" 100 list with the help of top buyers to mark its 265th birthday, and included toys that had cultural impact, enduring popularity and historical significance.
The boardgame Monopoly, the Tamagotchi virtual pet, which Hamleys described as a "symbol of 90s tech toy obsession", and the Action Man doll also make the top 10, as does the Teletubby doll, the Furby, the Frozen singing doll and Nintendo Game Boy.
Timeless toys
Hamleys praised Lego as "timeless, creative, and a global phenomenon", noting it had gone on to span toys, films and theme parks.
It said more than one billion Barbie dolls had been sold across the world since its first release in 1959, making it a "pop culture icon" across the decades.
More than 500 million Rubik's Cubes had been sold since 1974, making it the world's best-selling puzzle toy.
Hamleys noted that "eternal classics" such as the hula hoop, spinning tops and marbles remain popular purchases today, despite them being among the first toys sold by the store when William Hamley opened its doors in 1760.
Victoria Kay, head buyer at Hamleys, said: "Once you start looking at this, it turns rapidly into a nostalgia-fest - even for toys from four or five years ago."
“My personal favourites are Sindy doll – I was always a Sindy girl as she was a cool British icon. I also adored Glo Worm, even though I was maybe a bit old for it and Simon felt like properly, cutting edge, advanced technology when it came out – it was literally the soundtrack of Christmas in the 80s.”
Senior Hamleys buyer Karen Dennett said she particularly remembered toys where stocks were under severe pressure due to unforeseen demand and unusually had to be restricted to one per customer.
She said: “It was mayhem at times with toys like the Frozen Singing ‘Let it Go’ Doll – we were getting them rush air freighted in to try to satisfy demand.
“I remember me and my brother both getting a Rubik’s Cube for Christmas. He solved it super quick, but I was nowhere near solving it, so I remember peeling the coloured stickers off to allow me to look like I had managed it.”
(PA) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
