An Olympic Bill

A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money.

The bill for the London Olympics could soar by five times the original estimate to more than £12 billion, MPs have warned. Ministers' failure to include "foreseeable major factors", such as tax and security, had already seen costs rise to £9.3 billion.

But this figure excludes the £2 billion cost of actually staging the 2012 Games and the £650 million to buy land for the Olympic park in East London. It also neglects to include the millions of pounds needed for transport and staff, the Commons public accounts committee said.

Petty stuff, that, Olympics minister Tessa Jowell believes:

"We could lay on the Games for the original bill but it would have left no legacy."

Ah, OK then. I'm sure the Brits wouldn't want to get in the way of Ms. Jowell's legacy.

Here's but one aspect of all that carefree spending: the logo. Notwithstanding London's well-deserved reputation as the world's graphic-design capital, it's arguably the most atrocious marque to have been doodled for anything this side of a heavy metal band, and I'm not surprised that the animated version induced vomiting and epileptic attacks in some people — seriously. The cost? A mere £400,000.

Previous not-overly-fond Tessa Jowell mention on Nobody's Business here.

Comments

[Hermes Ten]

Looks like the lightning bolts of the SS --all broken.

[mike sol]

I'm glad the London logo is so horrible, because it makes the Vancouver 2010 logo look pretty good in comparison.

[Martin Owens]

Against mediocrity the very gods struggle in vain...