A new study by the Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Association has revealed the top licensed toy brands among British children.

According to the study, global brands such as LEGO and Barbie dominate both in the U.K. and abroad, as the brands celebrate their 65th and 55th birthdays respectively.

For the top 10 girls’ toy licenses, 80 percent revolve around a character. This drops to 60 percent among boys.  

LEGO, the top brand for boys, only managed third place for girls, but when combined with the character-based LEGO Friends it could actually also be considered as the lead license for girls.

Favorite characters differed by age group. Most markedly, creations from Disney fared universally well among children aged 2 and under, taking 40 percent of the top licenses in this age group.

"The dominance of strong licensing programs has clearly won the hearts and minds of British families,” says Kelvyn Gardner, managing director, LIMA U.K. “Despite the strength of global iconic brands and franchises, it's also good to see home grown talent such as 'Thomas & Friends' and 'Peppa Pig' feature in the top 10 list."

The global study, conducted by Kidz Global on behalf of LIMA, surveyed more 30,000 children and their parents who were polled online around the world, with over 1,250 respondents based in the U.K. The study measures the relative awareness, popularity and merchandise appeal of the most important brands to children across age four age categories (0-2, 3-6, 7-9, 10-14).

Top 10 Boy Toy Brands

1. LEGO

2. Cars The Movie

3. “Thomas & Friends”

4. Toy Story

5. Hot Wheels

6. NERF

7. Spider-Man

8. Star Wars

9. Mickey Mouse

10. Playmobil

Top 10 Girl Toy Brands

1. Barbie

2. Hello Kitty

3. LEGO

4. “Peppa Pig”

5. Minnie Mouse

6. LEGO Friends

7. Disney Princess

8. “Monster High”

9. My Little Pony

10. Mickey Mouse