On Saturday, The Independent newspaper had a "50 best Christmas gifts for children" list. The Playmobil circus was no. 4 and there was no sign of Lego until no. 36 with Lego Crazy Action Contraptions which is a book of new ideas for Lego constructions, e.g. a trapdoor for a man to fall through.
Earlier in the week, Lego appeared more prominently in The Independent with news of an EU court case over whether the Lego brick with it's studs could be protected by trademark. The court decided it couldn't as a brick was a functional, technical shape which could not be trademarked by any one company. This is a victory for MegaBlocks, although Lego are likely to appeal.