AN ex-grammar school headmaster says a leading bookstore chain’s decision to axe the apostrophe from its name is “absolutely ridiculous”.

Andrew MacTavish, the former head of John Hampden Grammar School, believes Waterstones is setting a bad example by ditching the apostrophe.

Waterstone’s - the last remaining national chain of bookstores – said it has removed the apostrophe to make its name ‘more practical in a digital world’.

But Mr MacTavish scoffed at the reason given by the firm founded by Tim Waterstone and believes the bookstore should be fighting to protect the English language instead of diminishing it.

He said: “It is absolutely ridiculous. Schools are trying to educate children to talk and write correctly, and exam boards are saying they will take marks off if candidates make spelling mistakes.

“Yet all around us we see people and firms making spelling and grammatical mistakes on public notices and signs.

“I can understand and accept people will make errors on simple notices, but how are children supposed to learn when national firms and bookstores, of all things, are setting such a poor example? I find it very sad.”