Taxi driver creates Tower Bridge board game

The game – Bridge Up – is a three-dimensional recreation of Tower Bridge with players moving around the board and answering trivia questions about the River Thames and the history of Tower Bridge and the surrounding area.

"I lived by Tower Bridge for over 33 years and I used to play amongst the barges by Tower Bridge," says taxi driver Jim Walker.

"I always thought it was a magnificent bridge.  I regularly drive across it, seeing tourists from all over the world day after day visiting this iconic landmark and I thought it would be great to keep that image at home so I set about with the idea of a board game."

Mr Walker, who has also created a character called Maxi the London Taxi along with a series of other London-themed characters, said he spent many hours working up a prototype for Bridge Up.

"I tested it with my youngest daughter who at the age of eight found it really exciting and she kept asking me to play it," he said.

He then took it to games licensing specialists GamesplayUK.com and their team of designers and testers created a prototype which will be taken to trade shows in New York, London and Nuremberg during 2012.

The bridge will form one of the centrepieces of London's 2012 Olympic festivities, with a daily light show focused on the Olympic Rings which will be raised and lowered from the upper walkway of the structure.

Mr Walker added: "Tower Bridge is in its 125th year in 2012 and will be celebrated alongside the Olympics. It is one of  the most visited tourist attractions in the world and i believe tourists will want to take a piece of their memory home in the form of a board game.

"GamesplayUK  have designed a superb game with graphics and  visuals that when you play you  really look feel you are floating in the River Thames. With their expert knowledge in the games market i think there can be many adaptations of this unique game."

• In 2010 Lego announced the launch of a 4,287-piece model kit to build your own recreation of Tower Bridge.