There are few opportunities, in our harried modern world, for families to sit round the table together. Dinner time has been decimated by the rise of ready-meals. Conversation has been obliterated by social media. A healthy political debate over the Sunday roast? Forget it.

I would throw board games into this sad mix. The old-fashioned family pastime has long threatened to fold. A survey last year found that less than half of children now regularly play them.

It’s why my cockles were warmed to hear that, next month, the V&A Museum of Childhood is opening an exhibition dedicated to board games. It charts their history, from 18th century examples with a strong moral message to the new breed of fantasy games that pit players against a common enemy, as well as the classics – Trivial Pursuit, Scrabble, Cluedo, Monopoly. What British household doesn’t contain at least one of these?