TikTok’s new cod on the block sensation sparks witty card range
If you’ve been herring about Mega Chippy, the new cod on the block, online greetings and gift specialist Moonpig has got in on the act by o-fish-ially giving the nation’s most famous chip shop a range of cards in its honour.
Featuring Mega Chippy’s signature dish – fish and chips, of course – and the Binley, West Midlands, store’s red and gold exterior that’s become famous thanks to video platform TikTok, the up-to-the-minute range also has witty one-liners.
The unassuming chippy hit the headlines a couple of weeks ago after featuring in a TikTok slide-show of multiple UK fish and chip outlets, then since 18 May the binleymegachippyfan53 account has been posting mini-videos about the Coventry joint, starting an ironic internet trend, which went viral with its 10-second clip accompanied by a cheerful jungle.
Having hit around two million views over Saturday and Sunday, 11-12 June, the song – “Binley Me-ga Chiiiipyyy, Binley Me-ga Chiiiipyyy, Binley Me-ga Chiiiipyyyyyyyyyyy… Binley Mega Chippy” to the tune of For He’s A Jolly Good Fellow – has spawned various spinoffs and remixes.
And owner Kamal Gandhi has been inundated with people travelling to visit his chippy – with queues around the block and reports of folk coming from France, Portugal and even America and Australia.
Kamal has had to take on and train four new staff members with queue times hitting two hours at their peak, and he told The Guardian: “We’re really grateful, it’s a gift from God really,” while West Midlands Police has deployed officer to the area to ensure people are parking safely, keeping noise down, and using litter bins.
As well as Moonpig – ever one to take inspiration from current affairs with its designs in standard, large and giant sizes in case you’re floundering about what card to buy for that special salmon in your life – other big brands have got in on the act, with Iceland creating a mock bag of Binley Mega Chippy Chips and Avanti West Coast trains adding the shop’s sign to its route map.
