TAUNTON is the hot favourite to land its very own Monopoly game.

And Taunton Castle is the frontrunner for the sought-after Mayfair' slot.

Taunton, Bridgwater, Yeovil and Wells are battling to have the game made with their own streets and landmarks replacing traditional London ones.

The Taunton vote has shot up to 39% (from 32%) - well ahead of the others in the race, which started earlier this month.

Wells, which was level pegging, has dropped to 26%, while Bridgwater is up to 22% (from 21%) and Yeovil is down 2% at 13%.

Monopoly chiefs have earmarked several Taunton locations for the £400 Mayfair slot.

Promoter Graham Barnes said: "Taunton Castle is the early front-runner.

"Mayfair is the crown jewel of a particular location.

"The other leading contender is the cricket ground - both have fared well in polling from public comments.

"However it's early days as the voting runs until the end of April."

Mr Barnes added: "We'd like to thank Gazette readers for all their terrific suggestions so far - please keep them coming.

"The Gazette will be offered a Community Chest square - as it reflects the community - in the posh part of the board between the green squares.

"The paper's website is likely to be offered the Fleet Street slot too, the traditional home of the UK newspaper industry before the onset of modern technology."

The winning boards will be in the shops for Christmas after the winner is announced in May.

To keep Taunton top, cast your vote at taunton@winningmoves.co.uk