"The name's Bond. Jamal Bond"

Product promotion in Hollywood films is nothing new. But some cunning minds in the sandlands have taken it one step further, and are apparently investing millions of dollars to get movie scriptwriters to namedrop Dubai in various blockbusters.

So for example instead of George Clooney randomly getting a call from his contact in Tokyo, London or Paris, it will come from Dubai. Instead of an airport announcement being heard in the background making a last call for British Airways to Sydney, it will be EK to Dubai. Rather than US agents referring to "intelligence from Geneva" they'll mention sources in Dubai. And so forth, leading to a whole new hot'n'sandy look for Hollywood:

1. Sleepless in Satwa
2. From Rashidiya With Love
2. Nightmare on Elmuraqqabat Street
3. Desperately Seeking Sharjah
4. Debbie Does Dubai
6. Beavis and Butthead Do Arabia
7. Last Tango in Mirdiff
8. The ODeira File
9. Seven Years in Traffic
10. The RAKi Horror Show

All very impressive, but so much more amusing if certain other countries were doing this. How about a whip-round to help Burkina Faso fund a similar promotion? Hearing Hollywood luminaries namedrop Ouagadougou every third line would be an incalculable delight.