Dave the Funky Shoulder Monkey a must for Christmas

Toy shops around the world are going bananas for a cuddly robot monkey invented by a team of boffins in Wolverhampton.

Dave the Funky Shoulder Monkey is on track to become the big must-have toy on sale this Christmas, which should mean a multi-million pound seasonal windfall for Richard North and his team of inventors and designers at Wow!Stuff, based on the city's science park.

They have come up with a string of toy ideas in recent years but Dave could be their biggest seller yet, with company sales set to double to £160 million this year. Mr North said: "This really puts us on the radar for the big stores, both here in the UK and internationally."