THE WORKING GIRL DILEMMA

Just what is Barbie's tax situation? I mean, she's holding down all those jobs - she's a vet, a rock star, an air hostess, a catwalk model, a nurse and a doctor. Sometimes, Barbie's work takes her even further afield - you turn around and she's a racing car engineer or a show jumper or one of the Scooby-Doo gang.

It's no wonder she needs all those clothes.

It's Ken I feel sorry for. When does Barbie ever find time for him? "Sorry, dear, I can’t make it this week - I'm doing some substitute teaching work at Harry Potter's school tomorrow, and then it's off to Middle Earth to fight dragons on Wednesday and, well, the dental surgery doesn't just run itself, you know."

What we really need is an Accountant Barbie. That's the doll they never release to the toy market. Thrill as Barbie completes her tax returns.

I guess Accountant Barbie would come equipped with a copy of her resume for potential employers. This has to be, what, 300 pages? And that's just for the last year.

By contrast, Action Man has it pretty easy. He's a soldier - all he ever worries about is if he'll need that rubber diving gear that's so hard to get over his splayed hands or whether his tracker dog needs a drink from that funny little canteen he carries. The fact he carries around the little canteen in the first place is probably the reason Action Man isn't as career minded as Barbie. If Barbie carried around a little canteen she'd be spending a lot more time in her caravan home, probably playing Connie Francis records and eating ravioli straight from the tin.