London 2012 Olympic Games organizers have unveiled two alien-like creatures, Mandeville and Wenlock, as the mascots for the 2012 Games.
Looking for something that would engage kids, London 2012 organizers created a cartoon and teamed with children’s writer Michael Morpurgo to create a background story for the characters. According to the story, Out of the Rainbow, Wenlock and Mandeville were crafted by Grandpa George from the last drops of steels used to build the Olympic Stadium.
The characters will be featured on products such as toys and mugs when the mascots go on sale. The mascots are seen as key revenue for the Olympics, which must raise £2billion from the private sector to host the event.
Wenlock is named after the Shropshire village of Much Wenlock, the site of the Wenlock Games, which was one of the inspirations for Baron Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympic movement. Mandeville’s name is inspired by Stoke Mandeville in Buckinghamshire.
