Wenlock & Mandeville
The official Olympic mascots are dotted all over central London, each custom-decorated to relate to the area they have been sited in.
I've been passing these two on the way to the garden museum now for a few weeks....... one has been "themed", complete with spiral topiary from the knot garden, for the Garden Museum, the other is placed at the main entrance to Lambeth Palace (the Archbishop of Canterbury's official London residence) and is painted appropriately. A visitor last week told us that she just positioned herself to take a photograph of the bishop's one when the man himself appeared in the doorway behind, so she got a snap of them both.... no such luck for me ! LOL
a great position with the Houses of Parliament across the river.....
Both these models are "Wenlock"....... named after the small Shropshire town of Much Wenlock where in 1850 the Wenlock Olympian Society held its first Olympian Games. He wears five friendship bracelets one each of the colours of the Olympic Rings.
Mandeville who is a slightly different shape is named after the Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Aylesbury where a "Games" was held in 1948 for injured soldiers to take part in.... this inspired to creation of today's Paralympics.
Apparently children, who they were really designed for, like them but most adults are a little baffled ! ....They are purported to be based shape-wise on two drops of steel from the British steelworks that made the girders for the London Olympic Stadium.
Well, the Olympics are nearly over, and they appear to have been quite a success ! .....I, for one, have watched probably more sport in two weeks than I have in almost sixty years !! Team-GB (I dislike the name) has done well too !
I've been passing these two on the way to the garden museum now for a few weeks....... one has been "themed", complete with spiral topiary from the knot garden, for the Garden Museum, the other is placed at the main entrance to Lambeth Palace (the Archbishop of Canterbury's official London residence) and is painted appropriately. A visitor last week told us that she just positioned herself to take a photograph of the bishop's one when the man himself appeared in the doorway behind, so she got a snap of them both.... no such luck for me ! LOL
a great position with the Houses of Parliament across the river.....
Both these models are "Wenlock"....... named after the small Shropshire town of Much Wenlock where in 1850 the Wenlock Olympian Society held its first Olympian Games. He wears five friendship bracelets one each of the colours of the Olympic Rings.
Mandeville who is a slightly different shape is named after the Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Aylesbury where a "Games" was held in 1948 for injured soldiers to take part in.... this inspired to creation of today's Paralympics.
Apparently children, who they were really designed for, like them but most adults are a little baffled ! ....They are purported to be based shape-wise on two drops of steel from the British steelworks that made the girders for the London Olympic Stadium.
Well, the Olympics are nearly over, and they appear to have been quite a success ! .....I, for one, have watched probably more sport in two weeks than I have in almost sixty years !! Team-GB (I dislike the name) has done well too !