Christmas tree decoration seen in Canary Wharf shopping centre reads: CCTV in operation here.

This has to be a prank, right? There’s no way, even in the Orwellian Albtraum of Canary Wharf, that someone would have decided this an appropriate Christmas decoration for the shopping centre’s christmas trees.

Alas, I fear it’s real and intentional: what you see here is the red version of the sign on the red-lit trees. Similar colour-coordinated signs were on the blue trees too. In fact, this sign was on every damned Christmas tree in the whole of the damned centre.

It’s possibly the most obnoxious, awful thing I’ve ever seen come out of this obnoxious, awful managerial surveillance culture of ours. This defies parody. If it’s a prank, it’s an excellent one. But…

You know, I hate the polythene-thin sentiment of Christmas, in so many ways. But even I think we’re worse off if Christmas means goodwill to all men, and remember, we’re watching you people.