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She had one of the most celebrated – and most missed – voices in pop, bagging six Grammy Awards and many hits.

But now the late Whitney Houston is to receive one of her biggest tributes yet – in the form of her very own Barbie doll.

Mattel unveiled the figure to mark what would have been the star's 63rd birthday yesterday.

The £45 doll is inspired by her look in her 1987 video for I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

It sports a purple tank dress, colourful drop earrings and sparkly eye make-up – and was created in collaboration with her sister-in-law, Pat Houston, president of the Whitney E. Houston Legacy Foundation.

She said the doll's release was 'making one of Whitney's dreams come true'.

Meanwhile, Mattel said the doll celebrated Ms Houston's 'record-breaking career, legacy and timeless music'.

The late Whitney Houston is to receive one of her biggest tributes yet – in the form of her very own Barbie doll

The £45 doll is inspired by her look in her 1987 video for I Wanna Dance With Somebody (above)

Ms Houston, who was born in Newark, New Jersey, died at 48 in 2012, after being found unconscious in a bath at the Beverly Hilton hotel, Beverly Hills.

While the star had four UK number ones, she had a difficult personal life, including drug issues.

Tragically, her daughter Bobbi, whose father was Whitney's ex-husband, US singer Bobby Brown, died in 2015 at just 22, after she was also found unresponsive in a bath in Georgia.