Every Christmas toy manufacturers seem to take great joy in not producing enough of the year's must have objects.

They seem to take a perverse pleasure in making parents tear their hair out as they race around from store to story trying to fulfil little Johnny's dream of having a Playstation Two or a Tracey Island.

The problem for parents of small children is that they encourage them to believe in Father Christmas.

They spend weeks beforehand warning that if their offspring are not good they won't get any presents and then realise that many of the presents are impossible to get for love nor money.

Parents find themselves ringing around stores in a mad frenzy to get their names on waiting lists, queuing at ridiculous time of a Sunday morning to get one of only a handful of toys that have been delivered in the dead of night under guard, or even bidding on radio auctions or via the internet.

The most galling aspect of all is that after Christmas the must have toy is in huge supply and often at a knockdown price.