But here at TNT we reckon it’s the two sets of bickering parents who need their heads banging together for throwing their toys out of the pram in spectacular fashion.
Organising a children’s party is notoriously stressful for parents, but the aftermath of this one has seemingly hit new heights of absurdity.
Alex Nash, from Cornwall, was invited to his pal’s bash at the Plymouth Ski and Snowboard Centre just before Christmas. His parents accepted the invite, but when they realised their son was double booked he went to visit his grandparents instead, as scheduled.
However, when Alex came home from school last week his parents were understandably staggered to discover a brown envelope in his schoolbag. It contained a formal invoice for a £15.95 ‘no show fee’ sent by the birthday boy’s mother, Julie Lawrence, who said Alex’s unexpected non-attendance had left her out of pocket.
Now indignant dad Derek Nash says he’s been threatened with small claims court action because he’s refusing to pay.
“It was a proper invoice with full official details and even her bank details on it,” whined Mr Nash to the BBC. “I can understand that she’s upset about losing money. The money isn’t the issue, it’s the way she went about trying to get the money from me. She didn’t treat me like a human being, she treated me like a child and that I should do what she says.”
Ms Lawrence replied in a statement: “All details were on the party invite. They had every detail needed to contact me.”
For what it’s worth, we think the parents are more childish than their offspring. Wouldn’t it have been a whole lot easier if the Nashes had been considerate enough to explain that Alex couldn’t attend his friend’s party? Or if Ms Lawrence had opted merely to have a quiet word about the incident? Or if the Nashes had then been big enough to acknowledge their error and pay up?
Just a load of big kids, the lot of ’em. So there.
