Council tells dad to take down makeshift grave
Spider-Man headstone removed amid continuing Disney row
A grieving family have been told to remove a temporary headstone marking a little boy’s grave. Last month Disney refused Ollie Jones’ relatives permission to put a Spider-Man themed marker at the four-year-old’s resting place in Maidstone Cemetery. The comic-mad youngster, from Barming, died in December after battling leukodystrophy, a rare genetic disease.
Since then his family have gained worldwide support as they fight to preserve his memory. Ollie’s dad, Lloyd Jones, said: “We put up a temporary plastic grave last week. I loved it and I’m sure Ollie does too. “The council told us to take it down as soon as they found out.” The father-of-six was speaking days after being released from hospital after suffering severe chest pains brought on by stress. Mr Jones added: “I threw myself into work after Ollie died, now I’m slowing down a bit.” In the past month the family have been contacted by media from the US, Europe and Asia, all wanting to hear about Disney’s refusal. The media giant turned down the Jones’ request, saying it wanted to “preserve the innocence” of its characters.
That’s despite Marvel, which was bought out by Disney in 2009, giving its blessing for a drawing of Iron Man to appear on a child’s headstone last year.
A US copyright lawyer has now contacted the family offering to take Disney on, pro-bono, to get Ollie’s gravestone approved. Mr Jones said: “He says he has taken on Disney before and won. “I don’t know how it all works, but the support is amazing.” A Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) spokeswoman said: “Sadly, all types of headstones have to adhere to copyright and whilst we understand that this is a very emotional time for the family, we have asked them to remove it. MBC’s bereavement services team will do everything they can to help the family.”