The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is set to get a personalised version of Monopoly in October.
Board game company Winning Moves UK announced the plan to launch the new board earlier this month, and appealed to Richmond residents to suggest sites to be featured.
Popular suggestions among the 1,500 received so far include Kew Palace, Ham House and Garden, Richmond Bridge, Hampton Court Palace and Twickenham Stadium.
Winning Moves spokesperson Graham Barnes said these top landmarks were likely to be included.
He said: “It would be like Blackpool without the tower or Edinburgh without the castle if the Richmond themed Monopoly did not include these landmarks.”
He said the company had received lot of unexpected suggestions, including calls for the Poppy Factory, which makes remembrance poppies, to feature on the board.
Other popular suggestions included ideas for the eight playable tokens to be swapped for local icons, such as deer.
Several Facebook users voted for customised Community Chest and Chance cards such as: ‘Get too close to the deer in Richmond Park and get gored. Go back three spaces.’
Richmond resident Lynda Hance said: “I hope the board reflects the quirky things that happen here in Richmond and injects a bit of humour into the scenarios.”
Much consternation has surrounded ideas to replace the Old Kent Road property, the cheapest site on the classic board.
Hance said: “I don’t want to offend anyone, but there are some real areas of poverty and deprivation in Richmond, and I think they are often overlooked.
“The Edgar Road estate on the boundary of Richmond and Hounslow would fit the bill for a ‘poor’ area and maybe its inclusion might spur the borough to inject some resources there.”
However, Barnes said Winning Moves were more likely to replace the brown coloured Monopoly property with a “top landmark” due to its prominent position on the board next to Go.
The board will also include five local charities on the Community Chest places and two of the cards.
Richmond resident Claire Webster nominated SPEAR, a charity tackling homelessness.
Explaining why, she said: “SPEAR do wonderful work not only helping people get off the street, but also providing well-being checks and getting them into employment, sometimes as SPEAR workers.”
The Vineyard Community Centre, Skylarks, and the Shooting Star Children’s Hospice were among other nominees.
Winning Moves UK are producing the Richmond themed Monopoly board under licensing from Hasbro.
The company produces two personalised versions each year and has recently produced speciality boards for Dublin, Southampton, Dubai, and Sydney.
Suggestions for landmarks and charities to feature on the board can be submitted via email to [email protected], on the official Richmond-upon-Thames Monopoly Facebook page, or by post to Richmond-upon-Thames MONOPOLY, Winning Moves, 7 Praed Street, London, W2 1NJ.
Polls close on Wednesday 24th March.
