Video: Your top 12 toys this Christmas

Yet the taste of today’s children suggests they are not so different to their parents, and even grandparents, according to this year’s countdown of Christmas morning must-haves.

Unveiling its annual DreamToys list in Yorkshire yesterday, the Toy Retailers Association showed that hi-tech gizmos have not replaced the traditional toy, with Lego sets and dolls featuring heavily in the top 12 gifts expected to dominate letters to Santa Claus in 2014.

Action figures sit side-by-side the robots and the Vtech Kidizoom Smart Watch, while a new version of Bop It!, the audio game which first appeared on shelves in 1996, is also expected to be highly sought-after.

Experts say this year’s list is ‘film-driven’ and believe Benny Spaceship from The Lego Movie will fly off shelves.

Meanwhile, merchandise from the Disney movie Frozen is set to send shoppers into a frenzy. The film has proven such a phenomenon that little girls across the globe will have their hearts set on the Snow Glow Elsa, or Sparkle Doll.

DreamToys committee chairman Gary Grant said: “It’s great to see creative and sharing toys sitting alongside more traditional toys or toys that facilitate a bit of rough and tumble.

“And with nearly half the list priced under £25, it is relevant for all consumers this Christmas.”

Linzi Walker, chief buyer at Argos, said: “It’s so difficult to predict what will take off, things can just start in the playground and become huge.

“Some things are just as popular now as when I was younger - things like board games are always popular.

“Lego has had one of the biggest years we have seen in the last few, it’s wonderful that children are still enjoying creating and building together.”

The list coincides with analysts the NDP Group predicting the biggest year for British toy sales since 2010.

Sales this year are up six per cent on the last, and it is thought Christmas spending will push the total for this year to £3 billion.

NPD Group toys analyst Frederique Tutt said: “The British toy market is leading resurgence in toy sales in Europe.

“The innovation that the industry has invested in has also started to pay back. Impulse sales of collectibles and lower-priced toys are up as well as licences from movies including Frozen, and this year’s craze, loom bands.”

While retailers do their best to predict the most sought-after toys and buy in bulk to ensure they can meet demand, there are no guarantees they will get it right.

One solution was to invite children road-tested some of the 72 items which feature on the full DreamToys list at Meadowhall shopping centre in Sheffield yesterday.

Mrs Walker said: “Frozen has been huge everywhere, it’s hard because it’s a global thing. Demand soared through the summer and is showing no signs of stopping.”

“All of the toys on this list will undoubtedly be popular, so our advice is to shop early to avoid disappointment,” added Mr Grant.

The top 12 toys every girl and boy will want this year have been revealed:

Bop It! Beats - £21.99

Disney Frozen Snow Glow Elsa - £34.99

Disney Frozen Sparkle Doll (assorted) - £16.99

Kidizoom Smart Watch Vtech - £39.99

Little Live Pets Bird Cage Character - £19.99

Minecraft Figures - £7.99

My Friend Cayla doll - £58.99

Nerf Demolisher 2-in-1 - £44.99

The Lego Movie - Benny’s Spaceship - £79.99

Toot-Toot Animals Safari Park VTech £39.99

Transformers Stomp & Chomp Grimlock - £89.99

Zoomer Dino- Boomer Spin Master - £99.99