“DAENERYS! Daenerys! Get down from there.”

I looked behind me to see if indeed the Queen of Dragons was about to alight from one of her winged creatures.

But since I was walking past a playground there was little chance of that and in this particular case I would say Daenerys was possibly aged three.

“I don’t want you on the swings anymore,” said her mum. And this is definitely the nearest this Daenerys was getting to the Iron Throne.

The popularity of Game of Thrones has meant more parents naming their offspring after the leading characters. Although, surely you wouldn’t want to call your child Reek?

And by the way Khaleesi isn’t a name, it’s a title.

Whereas it has been much publicised, certain traditional names appear to be on the wane.

There are some bemoaning the fact that Nigel is struggling. I’ve always had a problem with this name and want to call it Niggle, but that’s a nigel I have with it.

Sometimes it’s good to have an infusion of new names. Although I would steer clear of Light Bulb, even if you think it’s a good idea.

There’s Recycle Centre if you want to pass it down through the generations and Reality if you want them to have a ‘career’ in certain TV shows.

And what about Brexit? Although the gestation period would be several years, rather than nine months. (Who says heavyweight political satire is dead?)

Naming your child after where it was conceived can lead to some romantic names like Paris. Although Cleethorpes and Ford Fiesta don’t have the same ring to it.

Thinking back to when I was young, there was a lack of imagination with most first names. If I had been named after a popular TV series of the era, I would now be stuck with Arkansas Chuggabug.

Although looking at the size of me now, perhaps Nationwide would have been more appropriate.

As it is I’m called Andrew, which means strong and manly. And if you don’t like it, I’ll cry.

It was a popular name at the time. Indeed, everyone in my class was called Andrew, even the girls.

Mispronouncing or mishearing names can also be an issue. For instance, who didn’t think a popular singer was called Napkin Cole (obviously did a bit of waiting in his spare time)? Ok, just me then.

For those who lament the demise of traditional names, just think that surnames were named after your occupation.

So we have Fletcher, Cartwright, Smith etc, etc.

I’m not too sure if that would work so well nowadays. For instance Sue IT, may refer to her computing skills or possibly she’s working for a law firm or indeed becoming a cook.

And who would want to be called Steve politician, Peter tax collector or Andy journalist? (See, I’ve done it for you).

If you think an unusual name might make your child stand out at school for the wrong reasons, then think again.

Because I was a child once, so they tell me, and with children, their imagination runs riot and they can come up with any combination even if you play safe.

For instance, quite often parents give their child a middle name. Kids can find that out. So Philip, (yes, that’s safe), but the middle name of Middlemarch or Accrington Stanley (I don’t think so).

And then there’s initials. Don’t fall into the elementary trap of giving your child initials that make a word, especially anything resembling a rude one.

And if you still don’t believe that parents have always had fun with their children’s names, then how do you account for Robin Banks, Theresa Green, Will Power, Ron Seal and Phil Potts?