Meanwhile, Royal Mail has painted itself into something of a corner with another pledge - to paint a postbox gold in each of the medallists' home towns.

BBC: Heptathlete Jess Ennis

Much of that is business mail that never plops through a traditional postbox.

BBC: Letter boxes: The red heart of the British streetscape

Great Britain's youngest gold medallist of the Paralympic Games has been honoured with a gold postbox in his home town.

BBC: Josef Craig celebrated with gold Jarrow postbox

The Paralympian's golden performance was cheered on by hundreds of people at Belton's Railway Tavern pub - and a nearby postbox was painted gold on Monday to mark the achievement.

BBC: Jessica-Jane Applegate: Paralympic gold comes to Belton

"The golden postbox is a lovely reminder of an unforgettable year and I'm thrilled it's in my home town of Aldridge as the support I've had from all over the borough has been amazing, " she said.

BBC: Ellie Simmonds's gold postbox put under night spotlight