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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Uke can’t call it that: the war of the ukelele orchestras | |
| (1 day later) | |
| Name: The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain | Name: The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain |
| Age: 29 years old | Age: 29 years old |
| Appearance: Middle-aged people holding miniature guitars | Appearance: Middle-aged people holding miniature guitars |
| Sounds fantastic! You bet it does. That’s why they’ve been going so long, played Carnegie Hall and the Sydney Opera House, and released more albums than I can be bothered to count. | Sounds fantastic! You bet it does. That’s why they’ve been going so long, played Carnegie Hall and the Sydney Opera House, and released more albums than I can be bothered to count. |
| What’s their secret formula? Droll cover versions of serious songs on a silly instrument. | What’s their secret formula? Droll cover versions of serious songs on a silly instrument. |
| It must be difficult to keep that a secret. Yes. And I’m not sure they’ve managed it, because there are now similar ukulele orchestras all over the world, from Lincolnshire to Colorado. Indeed, the UOGB are “often blamed for the current ukulele revival”, their website says. | It must be difficult to keep that a secret. Yes. And I’m not sure they’ve managed it, because there are now similar ukulele orchestras all over the world, from Lincolnshire to Colorado. Indeed, the UOGB are “often blamed for the current ukulele revival”, their website says. |
| And I see that they’re playing Rhyl next month. I’ll just book some ti … NOOOOO!!! | And I see that they’re playing Rhyl next month. I’ll just book some ti … NOOOOO!!! |
| OK. OK. Calm down. What’s wrong? That’s the, ugh ... that’s the United Kingdom Ukulele Orchestra. | OK. OK. Calm down. What’s wrong? That’s the, ugh ... that’s the United Kingdom Ukulele Orchestra. |
| Is that not who we’ve been talking about? No. TUKUO, as they call themselves, were formed much more recently by British musicians based in Germany. They have nothing whatsoever to do with the UOGB. | Is that not who we’ve been talking about? No. TUKUO, as they call themselves, were formed much more recently by British musicians based in Germany. They have nothing whatsoever to do with the UOGB. |
| I see. UOGB have now issued court proceedings against TUKUO, bringing to a head a quarrel that has been rumbling for years. They claim that the upstarts are infringing the UOGB trademark – perhaps even getting their bookings and damaging their reputation. They also tried to get an injunction banning TUKUO’s UK tour, but the judge decided it was too late. | I see. UOGB have now issued court proceedings against TUKUO, bringing to a head a quarrel that has been rumbling for years. They claim that the upstarts are infringing the UOGB trademark – perhaps even getting their bookings and damaging their reputation. They also tried to get an injunction banning TUKUO’s UK tour, but the judge decided it was too late. |
| Pity. Not for TUKUO. “We are very pleased with the outcome,” says Peter Moss, their musical director. “Our view has always been that we never, ever wanted to have competition with the other side.” | Pity. Not for TUKUO. “We are very pleased with the outcome,” says Peter Moss, their musical director. “Our view has always been that we never, ever wanted to have competition with the other side.” |
| But surely people are bound to get them confused? You’d think so. TUKUO’s own website rather unwisely includes quotes from German reviewers who say as much. “It becomes clear that Peter Moss’s band has been put together in order to have a share in the success of the longer-established and rival Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain,“ says the Leipziger Volkszeitung. | But surely people are bound to get them confused? You’d think so. TUKUO’s own website rather unwisely includes quotes from German reviewers who say as much. “It becomes clear that Peter Moss’s band has been put together in order to have a share in the success of the longer-established and rival Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain,“ says the Leipziger Volkszeitung. |
| Oops. And the Ruhr Nachrichten mentions “the somewhat better known Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, with whom the octet is often confused. The more so as the orientation of the programme of entertainment is the same.” | Oops. And the Ruhr Nachrichten mentions “the somewhat better known Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, with whom the octet is often confused. The more so as the orientation of the programme of entertainment is the same.” |
| Double oops. It should be an interesting court case. | Double oops. It should be an interesting court case. |
| Do say: “Loved your version of I Fought the Law.” | Do say: “Loved your version of I Fought the Law.” |
| Don’t say: “Are you the People’s Ukulele Front of Judea?” | Don’t say: “Are you the People’s Ukulele Front of Judea?” |