London's one-eyed mascots creeping some people out ...
Source: Agencies |
July 24, 2012, Tuesday
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Print Edition
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SINISTER. Disturbing. Creepy. Frightening.
The official mascots of London's Olympic and Paralympic Games - Wenlock and Mandeville - have been called all of those things.
The futuristic-looking pair have popped up all over London, casting their one-eyed gaze at tourists and locals alike from posters, statues and a slew of Olympic merchandise ranging from key chains to cutlery.
Commentators, however, have been skewering the duo for scaring children and projecting a creepy surveillance-state image of the Olympic Games.
Wenlock - named after the English town where Dr William Penny Brookes, who inspired the modern Olympics, lived - and Mandeville - whose name pays tribute to the hospital considered the birthplace of the Paralympic Games - look more like surveillance robots than humans or animals.
In place of a face, each have one large, staring eye - a camera, according to Olympic organizers, to let them "record everything."
They have legs, but no feet, and arms bearing "friendship bands" in the colors of Olympic rings, but no fingers.
They peer out of official London Olympics snow globes, adorn backpacks and towels, decorate magnets and mugs.
Olympic mascots over the years have raised the question: What were they thinking?
But even Sydney's spiky echidna managed to look cute and cuddly, while critics say Wenlock and Mandeville are anything but.
"It's not so friendly," said Jenny Zhang, looking at a Wenlock while in London from China on business. "We don't see a smiling face, it's not a friendly eye. It's just watching you."
Since they were selected as the official mascots back in 2009, detractors have had a field day with the pair, questioning how faceless monsters fashioned out of "drops of steel" - the duo's creation story - won out over 100 other designs by artists and agencies.
Their watchful eyes, often described as toy versions of London's CCTV cameras, seem to have caused the most discomfort, drawing Orwellian comparisons and references to surveillance states.
Wenlock figurines in police gear have come under fire as "fascist playthings" and "totalitarian toys."
Actor Ewan McGregor tweeted his disappointment after seeing plastic mascot statutes in Regent's Park: "With this country's artistic heritage this one-eyed joke made me sad."
Despite the backlash, mascots are proving to be an important part of the London 2012 product range, according to the city's Olympic organizing committee. It said that Wenlock and Mandeville soft toys were a "consistent best seller."
Sales breakdown
Organizers would not provide a breakdown of sales so far, but said Wenlock and Mandeville items made up around 20 percent of London 2012 licensed merchandise, which is expected to generate more than 1 billion pounds (US$1.6 billion) in sales.
On a recent afternoon in the park, some tourists gawked at the life-size statues while others hung off them for photos.
Six-year-old Nimaran Sandhu's face lit up when she saw Wenlock. "It hasn't got a face and I think it's funny," she said.
Alessia Goldthorpe, 5, rattled off facts about Wenlock and Mandeville to her father before declaring: "He's happy!"
The official mascots of London's Olympic and Paralympic Games - Wenlock and Mandeville - have been called all of those things.
The futuristic-looking pair have popped up all over London, casting their one-eyed gaze at tourists and locals alike from posters, statues and a slew of Olympic merchandise ranging from key chains to cutlery.
Commentators, however, have been skewering the duo for scaring children and projecting a creepy surveillance-state image of the Olympic Games.
Wenlock - named after the English town where Dr William Penny Brookes, who inspired the modern Olympics, lived - and Mandeville - whose name pays tribute to the hospital considered the birthplace of the Paralympic Games - look more like surveillance robots than humans or animals.
In place of a face, each have one large, staring eye - a camera, according to Olympic organizers, to let them "record everything."
They have legs, but no feet, and arms bearing "friendship bands" in the colors of Olympic rings, but no fingers.
They peer out of official London Olympics snow globes, adorn backpacks and towels, decorate magnets and mugs.
Olympic mascots over the years have raised the question: What were they thinking?
But even Sydney's spiky echidna managed to look cute and cuddly, while critics say Wenlock and Mandeville are anything but.
"It's not so friendly," said Jenny Zhang, looking at a Wenlock while in London from China on business. "We don't see a smiling face, it's not a friendly eye. It's just watching you."
Since they were selected as the official mascots back in 2009, detractors have had a field day with the pair, questioning how faceless monsters fashioned out of "drops of steel" - the duo's creation story - won out over 100 other designs by artists and agencies.
Their watchful eyes, often described as toy versions of London's CCTV cameras, seem to have caused the most discomfort, drawing Orwellian comparisons and references to surveillance states.
Wenlock figurines in police gear have come under fire as "fascist playthings" and "totalitarian toys."
Actor Ewan McGregor tweeted his disappointment after seeing plastic mascot statutes in Regent's Park: "With this country's artistic heritage this one-eyed joke made me sad."
Despite the backlash, mascots are proving to be an important part of the London 2012 product range, according to the city's Olympic organizing committee. It said that Wenlock and Mandeville soft toys were a "consistent best seller."
Sales breakdown
Organizers would not provide a breakdown of sales so far, but said Wenlock and Mandeville items made up around 20 percent of London 2012 licensed merchandise, which is expected to generate more than 1 billion pounds (US$1.6 billion) in sales.
On a recent afternoon in the park, some tourists gawked at the life-size statues while others hung off them for photos.
Six-year-old Nimaran Sandhu's face lit up when she saw Wenlock. "It hasn't got a face and I think it's funny," she said.
Alessia Goldthorpe, 5, rattled off facts about Wenlock and Mandeville to her father before declaring: "He's happy!"
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