An Apostrophe Too Far

Last night I was watching Sky News (again): "All the news and sport in 15 minutes, every 15 minutes" gives you an idea of the depth of their coverage. I presume that in the UK, they have adverts between their 15 minute slots, because, in France, they show headlines with a few words about each story (usually what David Beckham or Robbie Williams are up to, that sort of thing).

The people who write these "stories" are often either stuck for inspiration (I know that feeling) or have trouble spelling (I know that problem too). Last night one of the headlines intrigued me:

"Red Hot Chilli Peppers Bassist Flea's House Destroyed by Malibu Fire".

I had 2 interpretations of this headline:

1. A mis-spelling of "flees" with an unnecessary apostrophe which probably should have appeared earlier in the headline, or,
   
2. An unfortunate victim of the recent fires at the Malibu house where the bass player kept his collection of fleas.

I like the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, but can't claim to know the names of any of the band members. However, on further reading, it became apparent that their bass player is actually called "Flea". Reading on, all became apparent.

It just goes to show that you shouldn't judge before reading to the end. My apologies to the Sky News headline writers. Laziness and pre-judgement on my part rather than yours in this case.