Two embarrassing computer glitches are making the organisers of London's Olympic games look like a really unprofessional bunch.

Just hours after the tickets went on sale the fault appeared, leaving anyone trying to book with a Visa credit card due to expire before the end of June discovering that the London 2012 website could not process their orders. At the same time, the official Olympic countdown clock, sponsored by official timekeeper Omega, stopped only a day after it was unveiled in Trafalgar Square. Sheepish technicians were trying to restore the service last night.

Part of the problem for the London Olympics is that buying tickets is a bit of a lottery, and to win tickets you need a valid credit card. However if people try to enter the lottery, and their card expires before the lottery is drawn, it will be invalid.

Still it all looks pretty bad for the London Olympics. After the country has spent billions on them, most of the country expects it to be a catalogue of disasters. It is the British way of doing things.