..to be disappointed that there's a grammatical error on the box of an M&S educational toy?

[earthpixie]

"Build the British Isles and all it's famous places"

sigh

OMG - can't believe M & S did that.

You should tell them.

See I must be thick because I don't know whats wrong with that

That's awful - I'd definitely tell them.

I emailed Tesco recently about an apostrophe error on one of their signs and had a very nice reply back apologising and saying they would check better in the future.

oh, should it be "and all their famous places"

Hopefully I'm not wrong, but is it the it's that is wrong? Should be its? It's is usually when you are saying a shortcut for it is ... happy to be corrected though.

Yes, the 'it's' should be 'its'. I would say that's wrong too.

Yes, it should be 'its', not 'their' - that refers to a person.

I'd email them and complain, you might get a voucher or something! :o

DottyDolittle

When it's means it is, there is an apostrophe.

Its is the possessive form. So M&S box should say, "Britain and its famous places"

It's easy to remember - possessive forms of pronouns never have apostrophes:

Mine
Yours
His
Hers
Its
Ours
Yours
Theirs

No, 'it's' is right!

I'm sure it should be 'their'

'Their' because the 'famous palces' belong to them???

I don't know really

I always wonder how silly errors like this are overlooked, when you consider how many people must have looked at the packaging before it was sold.

I would email them too, letting them know about the distress it has caused .

Oh lOrd. I'm wrong and I'm going to have to name change rather than show my face round here again!

Well, that's it. English is going down the crapper. Thanks M&S

I'd email them! I've had several long and apologetic letters back from quite a high-up bod in Tesco after contacting them about glaring errors and I got some free animal bibs from Next when I emailed them to point out that one of them allegedly depicted a 'kangeroo'.

I'll email them. I am THAT pedantic. I'm a teacher!

My aunt wrote to Tesco once about a box of "Four Pavlova's".

And it's definitely wrong to write "it's places". "It's" is a contraction of "it is". The possessive is "its".

Sorry memoo, didn't see your third post there.

Yes, email them, definitely. It's so depressing

Nooooo, I don't believe it, you are all wrong and I am right!!!!!!!

Things like this piss me off no end - I don't mond mere mortals making the odd spelling/grammar mistake, but when professional sign-writers/printers/EDUCATORS do it......

I also saw one of those christmas promo packs of wine and chocs in Tesco this week labelled: Girl's Night In.

You could give them the benefit of the doubt - I would be prefectly happy sitting on my own working through a bottle of wine and chocs - but I think they probably meant Girls' Night In.

A new pub opened up on the street near us recently and went to the trouble of new signs painted on the outside:

Ales, Lager's and Spirits.

I just want to know the logic at work. For the signwriter or publican, why Ales doesn't need an apostrophe but Lagers does.

RoxieP - I make typos occasionally and I'm a teacher, but they're typos, not born of ignorance and I proof read things that are going in front of the kids very very carefully.

I muttered dark things at the checkouts for weeks when Tesco were selling alarm clock's.

The its/it's difference is very poorly understood though - even worse than the apostrophes in every word ending in s just in case it needs one which drives me crazy, I'm more tolerant of its/it's.

My surname ends in s and I have sometimes seen it written with an apostrophe. A surname.

SIGH

By the way, this is the write-up for the product from the M&S website. I've copied and pasted it:

Fun and stimulting, this puzzle will keep them entertained and help develop hand-eye coordination. Build and explore the british isles and it's famous places.