The official mascots for the London 2012 summer Olympics were unveiled today, and boy are they WEIRD!
The futuristic Gumby-like creatures, Wenlock the Olympic mascot, and Mandeville, his Paralympic counterpart will grace official Olympic merchandise from stuffed toys, to mugs, to clothing.
According to children’s author, Michael Morpurgo, who wrote the story of the mascots, the pair are molded from steel left over from the last girder on the Olympic stadium. When asked to describe his creations, designer Grant Hunter of London-based firm Iris said they were “magical beings” that would become “multi-dimensional” and capture the imagination of children across the world.
Ok! Thanks for clearing that up for us.
While Mandeville and Wenlock are neither cuddly nor cute (being made of metal and all), organizers say the metal cyclops duo will be popular with children. In fact, the strange one-eyed pair are expected to generate over 70 million pounds (over 100 million US dollars) for the games.
While you might assume that a London-based mascot would incorporate some sort of recognizable landmark, cultural entity or nod to the history of the city, the only semi-recognizable feature on Wenlock and Mandeville are the orange lights on their heads, which are inspired by the signs on top of the city’s iconic black cabs.
And what about those weird names? Wenlock’s name comes from the village of Much Wenlock in Shropshire, where a multi-sport event inspired the founder of the Olympic movement, Baron Pierre de Coubertin. Mandeville’s name is inspired by Stoke Mandeville, a pioneering hospital established to help former soldiers suffering from spinal injuries.
While Vancouver’s winter Olympic mascots Miga the Sea Bear, Quatchi the Sasquatch and Sumi, the Thunderbird at least incorporated animals and elements of Native American culture, we don’t see ANY signs that Mandeville and Wenlock are connected to anything — except perhaps, to the wallets of parents everywhere.
What do you think of these distinctive mascots? Will you be opening your wallet to get your kids one of these strange mascots come summer 2012?
