A member of the military at passport control at Manchester airport as they cover for striking Border Force officers. Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) members working as Border Force officers at Gatwick, Heathrow, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and Glasgow airports and the port of Newhaven resumed strikes on Wednesday for four days over pay, jobs and conditions. Picture date: Thursday December 29, 2022.
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A six-year-old girl has had her passport application rejected after the Home Office claimed her name breached trademark rules.
Officials initially told Khaleesi’s mother Lucy to contact the American film and entertainment studio, which owns Game of Thrones producers HBO, to get permission.
However, the Home Office has since confirmed that a mistake had been made and that the application is now being processed.
Lucy, 39, from Swindon, said: “I didn’t understand and felt frustrated. If she could get a birth certificate, would something not have been flagged up then? I never thought you could trademark a name.”
The 39-year-old told the BBC she was “devastated” by the news – adding: “It was the first I’ve heard of such a thing – I was astonished”.
Holloway sought legal advice to try and get to the bottom of the Home Office mixup, and was informed by her solicitors that names couldn’t be trademarked in the first place – and while there are copyrighted aspects of the Game of Thrones series, these only related to goods and services.
Additional reporting by Jack Walters
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