Harrodsville and The Olympics

Otorohanga is in News Zealand and wouldn't be a globally noteworthy place if it wasn't for the fact that Henry Harrod lives there and owns a Restaurant.  Well what would you call it if your name was Harrod?!  In the 80s Harrods (London) took exception to this and filed a lawsuit against Henry.  Clearly, they felt threatened!  In a mass protest of support every business in Otorohanga changed it's name to Harrods.  And finally the town (for a while) changed it's name to Harrodsville.  Harrods (London) threw in the towel and everything returned to normal.

I'm sharing this (thanks to Radio 4s the Now show) because LOCOG (London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games) and trading standards officials have started to enforce rules in a display of no common sense whatsoever madness.

A butcher has been in trouble for displaying an Olympic sausage sign, and a pensioner was told she wasn't allowed to sell a £1 doll at a charity fundraiser because it said GB 2012 and had the rings on it.  Seriously go check it out, it is not a threat or likely to fool anyone into thinking they'd bought something official! 

I can understand them wanting to stop imports of fake flags, this affects businesses already contracted to make them and ready to sell.  But a single doll and a butcher wanting to drum up a bit of trade in Dorset...oh get real.

So to check out the stupidity of the average UK resident, let's do an 'is it official' test.

Is this Harrods (London) or Harrods (Otorohanga)? Take care to note the tomato sauce bottle on the table and the fries sign on the wall. If I mention they sell a burger that costs £80 would that help?!

The correct answer also has the nicest fire escape stairs of any store I know and no one ever seems to use them.

It's time to say 'no more'.  If a butcher wants to push an olympig sausage let him, if grandma wants to make a one off dolls toy, why not and if I want to paint Olympic rings on my forehead and charge people to shoot foam darts at them I jolly well will.  If you want a go, just pop round.