Mad hatters in London

Hat-making has now become an Olympic event and the first fashion victim is Lord Nelson himself, that iconic symbol of Empire that dominates Trafalgar Square.

The admiral who made sure Britain ruled the waves is wearing a new chapeau, courtesy of London's oldest hatter Locke & Co., which is old enough to have made the hero of Trafalgar's original bicorn hat. The Olympic model is covered in the Union Jack with what's apparently an Olympic torch sticking feather-like from the front.

His transformation is one of several as part of Hatwalk, an Olympic cultural event to showcase Britain's milliners. That includes, of course celebrated social hatter Phillip Treacey, known for his fanciful fascinators at last year's wedding of Wills and Kate.

Treacey's creation for Hatwalk is described by the Daily Telegraph an an irridescent satellite creation astride the brow of Sir Henry Havelock's statue.