Duracell’s World Cup bunny goes on and… off

With the World Cup fast approaching, the Diary is looking forward to the glittering array of promotions that accompany the event – and, of course, the football.

Not only that but there should be a bouncy, catchy, singalong song that will at first delight, then irritate and finally infuriate to the point of distraction all who hear it.

It will probably also feature Keith Allen who, by the Diary’s reckoning, has been involved with at least three football-related musical projects involving New Order, Black Grape and Fat Les.

Another tubby character with World Cup connections is the Duracell bunny.

Owned by Gillette, Duracell is a sponsor of the tournament, so the cuddly rabbit has taken up football.

To mark this wondrous event, it has produced a promotional toy similar to those dancing sunflowers that were so popular a few years back. This one is a bright pink bunny, clad in what appears to be Wolverhampton Wanderers kit (a rabbit supporting Wolves?) which shows off its keepy-uppy skills.

The only problem was that the box containing the battery maker’s mascot bore the age old warning – “batteries not included”.

The irony of this was not lost on the Diary, but after some half-used batteries were scavenged from an old Walkman and correctly inserted into its plinth, the rabbit managed two or three volleys before very decisively failing to keep going⦠much to the disappointment of all the spectators.

Hopefully the same thing will happen to Keith Allen this time round.