Today

The board game based on the hit TV show, Deal or No Deal, was the hottest-selling board game in 2006, figures show.

Deal or No Deal, which was developed by Edinburgh-based Drummond Park, was also the most popular toy for Christmas last year, according to market analysts NDP Group.

"It has been cleverly designed to capture all the fun, excitement and heart-pounding tension of the TV show," NDP Group said in their report.

The game comes complete with the 22 red boxes, the scoreboard displaying the prize money and the electronic Deal or No Deal telephone.

Claire McCool, marketing director of Drummond Park, said: "The performance of our Deal or No Deal board game this Christmas has been outstanding.

Noel Edmonds, the show's UK host: "It's the most brilliant game for all the family to play, faithfully replicating the suspense and excitement of our blockbusting show."

"What is interesting is that a result like this highlights the fact that families and friends do still like to get together in the traditional manner and interrelate - by playing games around a table.

"They don't all want to sit slumped in front of the television or shut in their bedrooms playing computer games. It's so important to communicate with one another, enjoy one another's company - and have fun together!"

The show's UK host, Noel Edmonds, added: "It's the most brilliant game for all the family to play, faithfully replicating the suspense and excitement of our blockbusting show - including the red boxes, of course… and the electronic telephone with bids from the Banker. The only thing that's missing is me!"

Character Options' Roboreptile was the second biggest-selling toy last Christmas, followed by Zapf Creation's Baby Annabell in third place.

Monopoly Here & Now, Tamagotchi Connexion and Bob It Extreme 2 also made the top 10.

The NDP Group report also found that the UK toy and games market grew by a healthy 5 per cent in 2006.