The American trend of surname blending is gaining traction in
Britain, producing some interesting results. Just ask Mr and
Mrs Puffin.
When Michael Pugh and Rebecca Griffin married in 2011, they
settled on a last name taking a portion from each family
moniker to produce Puffin.
Some 800 couples in the UK have used the "meshing" method to
date in 2012.
"Meshing has changed from being a rare novelty to one of the
main reasons couples use a deed poll to change names," UK
Deed Poll Service spokeswoman Claudia Duncan told British
newspaper The Daily Telegraph.
"Many people feel meshing is more romantic than
double-barrelling, while we did have one honest couple who
said they simply could not decide whose name should come
first, so meshing seemed the obvious solution."
Recent examples include Miss Clifton and Mr Mole becoming the
Moltons, Miss Price and Mr Nightingale who became the
Prightingales, and Miss Harley and Mr Gatts who became the
Hatts.
The new name practice, most popular with couples aged in
their 20s and 30s, has also spread to celebrity circles, with
British TV presenter Dawn Porter becoming Mrs Dawn O'Porter
after marrying The Sapphires actor Chris O'Dowd.
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