I’m pretty sure I had a nightmare about this once.
Hat tip Stageleft.
Then again, maybe these guys will make an appearance on Doctor Who sometime soon. Or, maybe they already have. Don’t believe me?
Seriously, these “mascots” are nightmare inducing creatures. Who the heck thought they’d be a good idea to act as representatives of the London games? The orange purple-people-eater on the left is glaring. Glaring! Can you seriously imagine kids standing still and not screaming or peeing themselves when approached by these two things? Say what you will about the Vancouver Olympic mascots, but they at least looked cute.
Bizarre.
Mind you, not everything about the London 2012 Olympics looks like an assault on the eyes. This post on the Architects Newspaper Blog talks about the unveiling of a new double decker bus that London has commissioned to replace its beloved 1950s’ style Routemasters. Although London Transport had recently retired its double deckers and experimented with articulated “bendy buses”, Londoners and non Londoners bemoaned the loss of these iconic vehicles. The debate continues to rage on whether it’s better to build higher, or build long.
So the firm of Thomas Heatherwick and Wrightbus was commissioned to build a new vehicle that recalled the design of the classic Routemasters, but which updated it to the 21st century, in time for the eyes of the world to focus on London during the Olympic games. Their design? Have a look below:
I think you’ll agree with me that the new design is pretty darn sweet. It looks classic and futuristic, and I’d love to see a few of these buses plying Toronto or Kitchener’s streets. GO Transit, are you watching? Imagine these vehicles in green.
There’s more photographs and a virtual tour here and here.
Updates
- Best… Headline… Ever: London 2012 mascots unite world in laughter, face palming
- Official Mascot Web Site
- Although, maybe I shouldn’t be one to talk about nightmare-inducing mascots. After all, Toronto still has Blinky.