Sheffield man changes his name to Joe Lycett after comic ditches his name to become Hugo Boss

A quick-thinking Sheffield man has changed his name to Joe Lycett – after the comedian officially switched his name by deed poll to Hugo Boss.
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Mark Rofe, 30, officially changed his name after reading how the TV comic had changed his name to Hugo Boss in a protest against the German fashion company.

Announcing the name change on Twitter, Joe (or Mark) wrote: “Joe Lycett is a great name, and since he's now surrendered it and changed it to Hugo Boss, I thought I'd change my mine to Joe's. I couldn't have a world without a Joe Lycett.”

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Earlier today, the comedian revealed he had switched his name to protest against the firm’s tactics against firms using the name Boss.

Joe Lycett (formerly Mark Rofe) left, with Hugo Boss (formerly Joe Lycett) right.Joe Lycett (formerly Mark Rofe) left, with Hugo Boss (formerly Joe Lycett) right.
Joe Lycett (formerly Mark Rofe) left, with Hugo Boss (formerly Joe Lycett) right.

The company, who often style themselves as "Boss", have been sending cease-and-desist letters to small businesses and charities who are also using the word "boss" in their names.

"It's clear that Hugo Boss hates people using their name," Lycett wrote on Twitter.

"Unfortunately for them this week I legally changed my name by deed poll and I am now officially known as Hugo Boss," Lycett added, alongside photographic evidence of his name change.

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On Monday morning, the artist formerly known as Joe Lycett told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire: "I would like them to stop doing this, because no-one is confusing these two things.

"Also I'd really like them to give them their money back really and promise to stop - and an apology would be nice," he added.

Lycett, who is 31 and from Birmingham, claimed he'll be "launching a brand new product as Hugo Boss" on his Channel 4 consumer rights show, Joe Lycett's Got Your Back.

Meanwhile, the artist formerly known as Mark Rofe is enjoying a second spell in the media spotlight.

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Earlier this year, he made headlines after he bought a billboard in Manchester in order to try and bag a date for himself for Valentine's Day.

He set up dating website called datingmark.co.uk so people could apply to go out with him and there have been over 2,000 applications.

German label Hugo Boss was founded in 1924 in Metzingen, Germany, and famously supplied uniforms for the Nazi party.