New Irn Bru can

Nicked the photo from @jaanhenadpr (one of my students) timeline on Twitter. It's a new one on me, so we'll call it a bit of an exclusive. Barr's Irn Bru is something of a phenomenon (inter-textual ad reference). Number one soft drink, or fizzy drink, in Scotland, it's made from a secret family recipe (Barr, not mine) and I've known people think it tastes of bubble-gum (as close as we're going to get - it's kinda hard to describe). The new can commemorates their official-sponsor status for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

I pass the major site of the Games most days and it's been wonderful for the area. Bit of controversy in the eviction of council house tenants, and the road disruptions were pretty horrendous, but now that it's coming together there's a bit of excitement with 15,000 volunteers soon to be enlisted and the athletes' village on schedule. The meaning of what the Commonwealth was (more empire than self-determination) is clearly at odds with a 21st century definition of nationhood, but we'll leave that aside and celebrate the Irn Bru can design as another step on the road to the Games. I'm firmly in the 'anything that's good for Glasgow' camp, and the Games certainly should be.