There are just over 50 days remaining until the Christmas season hits the UK as Santa Claus and his elves continue their preparations for sorting people’s gifts this year. As a way to help them out, ITV’s This Morning pointed them in the right direction on Thursday’s (November 3) episode. Hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield were joined by the daytime show’s gadget expert Steve Wilson. Together the trio helped to deliver This Morning’s annual top toys list for 2022. After conducting extensive research and testing all of the best children’s toys on the market, Steve whittled down a list into the best options to sit underneath the Christmas tree this year. It includes a range of products from a £50 robot that draws pictures to Nintendo Switch video games. Explaining why This Morning continues to create top toy lists each year, Phillip Schofield said: “The reason we do this is because the closer you get towards Christmas, there is less around.” Gadget extraordinaire Steve, followed by warning gift givers that they best be quick, responding: “It is very true, you do have to get in early, you really, really do!”. This Morning’s top toys list for 2022 consists of 12 of the best presents to get children this year. One lucky viewer could win the whole dozen too by downloading the This Morning app. Here is the list in full: Describing the gift, Steve said: “’FurFluffs are an adorable ball of fluffy cuddliness, but that’s not all. This interactive toy will need loving and playing with to eventually ‘open up’ to you and reveal its facial features. You can then interact in many ways with games and music, but if your FurFluff feels scared at any point, you may need to coax them out of their shell again.” Steve said: “A timeless classic, miniature kitchens have always been so popular, and you don’t need a full mini-kitchen to play with miniature kitchen tools. They are just as popular for making mud pies in the outdoors, or for playing with at bath time.” Steve said: “A more traditional take on the push along/walker toy idea; there’s no sounds or lights, just classic shape-sorting, puzzle pieces and colour matching games to play, and made from wood. Wonderful for little ones to play and learn with.” Steve Wilson said: “JotBot is such a good way to make drawing even more fun. Insert one of the drawing data chips and this fun robot will draw that picture for you to copy, trace or colour in. You can even code JotBot to follow a sequence of turns to create your very own masterpiece.” Steve said: “My Fairy Garden playsets transport you to a magical world of make believe and fun, with the added bonus of being able to grow actual plants at the same time.The Hedgehog Haven features all the things you’d hope for in a playset; swings, roundabout, cute characters and multiple play zones. But you can also grow red cabbage in its garden to eat, plus there are educational outdoor activities in a Fairy Field Guide to take part in. Not just hours, but days and weeks of fun.” Steve said: “The magic of having a pet who in turn has babies, all in interactive toy-form.Simply care for your mama guinea pig, and in time she will produce not one, not two, but three little babies, all with their own birth certificates and accessories. And unlike nature, you can go through the whole process more than once.” Steve said: “A self-propelled train for your Brio train track. This will quickly become the favourite train in any young person’s Brio line up, as it has a battery powered motor, working lights AND uses water vapour to make a safe steam effect from the funnel. Brio train sets are the kind of toy you hang onto as you grow up for your own children and grandchildren to play with. A timeless classic.” Steve said: “Mega’s line of building block kits aimed at children four and up will also appeal to grown-up collectors too, and their Pokemon collection is bound to be very popular. This set allows you to build a cool Pikachu model with working gears and a handle to create motion, bringing a family favourite to life.” Steve said: “Toys that go ‘squish’ in your hand have been popular for quite some time now, but the world of Squishmallows gained huge popularity during the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic when fans would post their collections online. Now these cute, soft squishable toys are more popular than ever, are very collectible and often become rare and valuable. No wonder the hashtag #squishmallows has millions of followers!”. Steve said: “Play-Doh continues to delight and inspire creativity every year, and this ice-cream-truck is no exception. Dispense and serve your Play-Doh like soft whipped ice cream, scoop it into cones, or even dish out as sprinkles! Don’t forget to take payment using the till provided.” Steve said: “Those who remember Wii Sports will be keen to have a go at this. Nintendo brings us Volleyball, Football, Bowling, Tennis and Badminton to the Switch, which you can use in multiplayer, online, or against the computer. The newest sport added to the lineup is Chambara, a sword fighting game, and will be the outstanding hit of this release. You won’t even realise you’re exercising.” Steve said: “This is a mystical cauldron in which you can stir your very own magic potion to create slime like you’ve never made before.The cauldron bubbles, makes sounds and creates mist, all you need to do is decide which you will create first; Love, Friendship, Success or one of the other potions.”
