IT'S not often you get the chance to blow your nose on a £50 note - but the Bank of England failed to see the funny side of novelty banknote tissues sold by a Melton gift store.

Bright Ideas in Burton Street had been selling the pocket tissues via its online eBay shop but the store was recently informed by eBay that they had to be removed from sale on instruction from the Bank of England.

Joint business owner Sarah Neale said: "It's just ridiculous. We said in the title that they were novelty bank note tissues and stated they were not real currency.

"It's obvious that they're novelty tissues. It's just so stupid.

"I was told our listing wasn't against eBay's policy but they told us they had been instructed by the Bank of England to remove them.

"Surely the Bank of England has better things to do than this."

She added: "Quite a few of our customers have commented on it. We've even had one regular customer who sent us an email asking if he could pay for a little figurine with the paper tissue money!"

The tissues, featuring the designs of £50, £20 and £10 notes on a much smaller scale in size, had also been sold in store costing 99p per pack.

A Bank of England spokesman said: "Under section 18(1) of the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 it is a criminal offence for any person, without the prior consent in writing of the Bank of England, to reproduce on any substance whatsoever, and whether or not on the correct scale, any Bank of England banknote or any part of a Bank of England banknote.

To read the complete article, see:Here's a story not to be sneezed at...(www.meltontimes.co.uk/news/local/here-s-a-story-not-to
-be-sneezed-at-1-3623984)