THREE unemployed men hope to hit the jackpot this Christmas - with a board game about life on the dole in the North-East.

Social Insecurity, described by its inventors as "Monopoly in reverse", is set in the fictional town of Stonybroke, in Workshyre.

Each contestant starts with a £50 benefit cheque and has to avoid various pitfalls like going down the pub, the bookies and the bingo, and have to find a job, hang on to it and bank £1,000.

The game is going head-to- head with a North-East rival, the Newcastle and Gateshead edition of Monopoly, to win the hearts and minds of the region's present-hunters and top the Christmas toy charts.

Monopoly features well-known upmarket Tyneside landmarks like the Angel of the North, Tyne Bridge and St James' Park, with squares sponsored by local companies - but its home-grown rival is much more down to earth.

Social Insecurity was devised by Pete Dixon, Kevin Patterson and Mike Harris "over a pint or three" in a North Shields pub.

It all started three years ago when the old friends had a chance meeting in the Magnesia Bank pub. Kevin and Mike were both unemployed at the time and Pete was a struggling artist, who had spent time on the dole.

Kevin casually mentioned his idea for a daft board game set in a fictional town.

Mike said: "We all loved the idea, so we went for it. Then followed loads and loads of pub meetings, lots of beer swilling and a lot of different ideas coming out.

"We made umpteen prototypes and had all these bits of paper stuck on boards and finally came up with a working model."

He added: "The game is drawn from real-life experiences which we've all been through. It's about being on the dole, getting a job, losing the job, spending all your Giro on drink - all that daft carry on.

"Even the characters are stereotypes. We've got people like Sally Nugent, the eternal student, Oprah Mossop, the village gossip, and Jenny Struther, the single mother - North Shields is full of them."

The lads received good feedback for the idea at the London Toy Fair and the capital for the venture was put up by Peter Duncan, of Toys in the Attic Productions, following another chance meeting.

Comedian and Century radio presenter Mike "The Mouth" Elliott became involved and one of the characters in the game, pot-bellied Stan Blink, is modelled on him.

The game has now been launched in the North-East, as a test bed ahead of a national and international release, with associated merchandise and more games in the pipeline.

Social Insecurity, suitable for over-16s, is available in selected North-East stores, including Fenwicks and W H Smith, priced £24.99, or on the Internet on www.socialinsecurity.co.uk