Boris Johnson Pledges 'Fun' Package for London Olympics

BORIS JOHNSON announces today that he wants to make London the "epicentre of fun in the universe" come the 2012 Olympics and he probably doesn't mean the predicted huge rise in prostitution.

"We've got to assume that huge numbers of people are going to come to the city and we've got to allow them to enjoy themselves, so there's all sorts of things we're preparing," is Johnson's message to the Olympic Board, before which he appears today.

What the London Mayor has in mind is: the pedestrianisation of roads between Covent Garden, Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square; big screens and concert stages in four London parks - Hyde Park, Jubilee Gardens, Potter's Gate and Victoria Park; the Cultural Olympiad arts festival and loads of posters and bunting all over the city.

South Londoners might wonder why no park or common on their side of the river is deemed worthy of a big screen, but might be consoled with thought that the prostitute invasion is likely to be confined to the north of the city.

Police and local authorities in the boroughs near the Olympic construction site say that the number of street walkers has doubled since building began and evidence from previous Games suggests that at the time of the Olympics, numbers double again, so there could be four times as many ladies of the night plying their trade by 2012 as before. They could even make an Olympic sport out of it.

Carlton, Wiley and Time Out official publishers for London Olympics

Carlton, Wiley and Time Out have been appointed as the official publishers of the London 2012 Olympic Games to develop "a full range" of books, which will be hitting the shops later this year.
Carlton is to publish practical sports, children's, reference, history, companion and celebratory books. John Wiley & Sons has been charged with responsibility for the illustrated reference, photographic, commemorative, architecture and design books. Time Out Guides is publishing the travel guides and tourist books.
Charlie Wijeratna, director of commercial negotiations for the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games, said: "Books are always a key feature of any Olympic Games or Paralympic Games and we’re thrilled to have three fantastic licensees on board to publish the official London 2012 books which we hope will educate, entertain and enchant the British public.
"We now have a great team of licensees producing London 2012 merchandise, with more to follow in the coming weeks and months."
The range, which includes The Book of Olympic Heroes and a Countdown to London 2012 children's book, is being developed alongside the LOCOG for launch "from the end of 2010".
This will be followed in 2011 by London 2012 travel guides, further London 2012 illustrated reference publications and the first architecture and design reference books. E-books will also be available