Tuesday, September 14, 2004

Batman Returns

Holy publicity stunts! The scaling of Buckingham Palace by a man dressed as Batman yesterday was apparently done to bring awareness to fathers who demand access rights to their children (presumably after losing a custody battle). Thirty-two-year-old Jason Hatch, a decorator, climbed the ledge of a first-floor balcony at the palace, hung a banner, and kept police at bay for six hours before agreeing to step aboard a cherry-picker truck and face questioning. Of greater concern was Hatch's ability to evade security and pose a potential threat to the royal family, who was not present at that time. His sidekick, David Pyke, dressed as Robin, did not fare as well and was apprehended after a short time. "It was unbelievably easy," Pyke told the Daily Telegraph. "We used a ladder to get on to the roof of a palace building which was just [10m] from the road. The only security was [120cm] fence. I had a bag with me, there could have been anything in there, explosives or anything." Too bad he didn't have a utility belt.

No comments: