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He said he was upset Royal Mail had announced it would only paint a postbox gold in Cornwall, where Ainslie grew up. Rob Smith, 51, said he painted the postbox in Lymington, where the gold medallist lives, in the early hours.
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Bugger.īen Ainslie: Lymington gold postbox painter arrestedĪ man has been arrested after painting a Hampshire Royal Mail postbox gold in honour of Olympic sailor Ben Ainslie. We picked Restronguet in Cornwall as the place Ben Ainslie grew up and where he first learned to sail, as such there are no plans to paint any boxes in Lymington. This could be where they were born, where they grew up or where they presently live and we look at all these factors before reaching a considered choice. Each of these gold medal winners will have a post-box painted gold in the community they are, or have been closely associated with. Royal Mail is delighted to mark the achievement of Team GB athletes winning gold medals at London 2012 – either individually or as part of a team. When approached about this strange decision, Royal Mail’s response was this: And waited, and… hang on… One evening the news showed a tiny letterbox in a small Cornish hamlet attributed to Ben Ainslie. And (naturally) Gold for a Lymington letterbox. Fate undoubtably played a part though, and somehow Ben won the gold by the thinnest of margins, making him the most decorated Olympic sailor in history.
#GOLD LETTERBOX SERIES#
After a very difficult (and not hugely successful) Finn Class series of races, Ainslie’s podium position was entirely dependent on the last race – and towards the finish it wasn’t looking good, with both a Dane and a Dutchman trying to mess it all up for him. Or is it Ben Ainslie of Restronguet? This question was at the centre of a potential PR fiasco for Royal Mail.įirst a little background on Ben Ainslie’s gold medal for sailing, hard won in Weymouth. And then, in this country of a transient and fluid population, how does one define a ‘home town’? Is it the place where you were born? The place where you live now? Or the place where most of your Olympic training has taken place?īen Ainslie signing an autograph, gold medal in handĮnter Ben Ainslie of Lymington. This was pure genius.Ĭracks started to appear in the plan. There was the occasional letterbox painted in the wrong village. No planning permission required, and extremely low cost. Here was an instant, prominent and gloriously over-the-top celebration of sporting excellence and achievement in the most amazing year for Britain in decades. No longer did a town have to wait for crusty councillors to endlessly debate the merit of commissioning a permanent monument to local heroes, which may or may not appear in a year or so’s time. The boxes were painted sometimes within hours of the medal being won, and it caused an unprecedented outpouring of civic pride. Every British recipient of an Olympic gold medal would have their achievement recognised by the transformation of a letterbox in their ‘home town’ from red to gold. They are, of course, the (admittedly inspired) idea of the Royal Mail. Now they’re the absolute must-have accessory of the urban and rural landscape. Before, no one had given them a second thought. What the hell happened? Now the existence of an (officially sanctioned) gold letterbox in your city, town, village or hamlet is the ultimate badge of honour. In fact, if any had been painted any other colour, there probably would have been letters of complaint.įast forward three weeks. Size was accurate, easy installation.Prior to the start of the London 2012 Olympic Games, no one in the UK had the slightest interest in whether or not Royal Mail letterboxes were anything other than fire engine red. Great price compared to other places online trying to charge twice as much for the same product. Very smart,very easy to fit.great value,great price,quick delivery.