Caravan season

Here comes summer! The other day the sound of the first strimmer was heard around here, and it won’t be long before three lanes of caravans will regularly be seen on routes to the westcountry. (Are they really allowed in the outside lane?)

Thinking of caravans prompts the question: is there any better example (even including politics) of the attempt, by choice of name, to attribute to something characteristics which it simply does not possess?

This is what makes being a caravan spotter fun. It’s good to look out for the most ludicrous name. They’re called things like Viscount, Eagle and Invader.

In a world without marketing – ie a world where things had names which reflected their characteristics or function – they would probably have names like Retarder or Shed.

The sort of name native Americans might assign to the caravan (assuming I've got the hang of it from the cowboy films) would be White Box That Weaves In Potentially Disastrous Manner.

PS: Do you know what Pavarotti used to go on his holidays in? A Nissan Dormobile.