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A six-year-old girl will miss her dream holiday as she was refused a passport after being told that her name was copyrighted by Warner Brothers because it was a Game of Thrones character.
Khaleesi Holloway, who is named after Khaleesi, Queen of the Dragons, and her mother Lucy Holloway were “devastated” when the passport office turned down their application.
They had been due to take a dream holiday to Disneyland Paris for which the family had saved up £2,000, and being refused a passport meant that they were forced to put their trip on hold.
As prices have now gone up since the dates they originally wanted to travel, Lucy said the family may need to cancel the trip altogether. She told The Independent: “We may not be able to go to Disney now because of the delay, the prices have gone up by £800. I have been working for six days a week to pay for the holiday and now it looks like we won’t be able to go.”
The Passport Office claimed that the reason they were unable to issue the passport was because “Khaleesi,” a name made famous by Emilia Clarke’s character in the hit HBO series, was protected under trademark law.
Officials told Lucy to contact the American film and entertainment studio to get permission to use it.
Determined not to give up, Lucy sought legal advice. Her solicitors lodged an appeal to say that while there is a trademark for Game of Thrones, it is for goods and services – not for a person’s name.
“That information was sent to the Passport Office who said I would need a letter from Warner Brothers to confirm my daughter is able to use that name,” Lucy added.
“I didn’t understand and felt frustrated. If she could get a birth certificate, would something not have been flagged up then?
“I never thought you could trademark a name.”
In 2017, when Lucy’s daughter was born, 76 girls were given the name Khaleesi, inspired by the hit HBO show.
It had been steadily growing in popularity since 2014 when 53 babies were named Khaleesi.
It’s even more popular across the Atlantic: the United States’ Social Security Administration said 560 children had been given the name Khaleesi up until 2019.
After posting about the experience on Facebook, and contacting the Home Office again, the initial decision was revoked and a passport will be granted for Khaleesi.
Lucy has recieved an apology and told that the passport will now be processed.
Officials told her that there was a misunderstanding, and that staff were following guidance that applies to people changing their names.
“He advised me that they should be able to process my daughter’s passport now, “ Lucy said.
However, it comes too late for the original date they wanted to travel and Lucy now faces the difficult task of finding different dates that are within budget. She has also set up a set up a GoFundMe page to ask for donations to keep her daughter’s dreams of going to Disneyland alive.
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