IF residents don't start voting soon, Worcester will lose out on a place on the world's most famous board game.

For the first time in history, members of the public can vote for their own town, city or village to become one of the 22 locations on the Monopoly board.

The top spot, usually held by Mayfair, could well be Worcester on the new Here And Now UK Edition of the board game, set for UK-wide release in October.

Since the makers of the game, Parker, opened the online floodgates in March, they have been inundated with votes but not enough from Worcester to even get a place on the leader board.

At the moment Cambridge is at the top, followed by Oxford. A total of 236 people have voted for Worcester, placing it at number 86 while Hereford is sitting comfortably at number 38.

By the time voting closes on Friday, May 25, everything could have changed.

To cast a vote, people must go online and select their favourite location, either from a list of the UK's 66 major cities or through the wildcard option. One wildcard that recently caused a stir was the small town of Baronville - a French town near Paris.

The website is also giving residents the opportunity to run their own campaigns and print their own Vote For... signs to help generate support for their city.

The limited edition Worcester version of the game went on sale in November last year. A total of 33 local landmarks and businesses, including the cathedral, racecourse, the Elgar Birthplace Museum, the Worcester News, and Worcestershire Sauce Factory, appeared on the board.

To cast a vote for Worcester, or any Worcestershire town, go to www. monopoly.co.uk.