'A pile of rocks?' BBC questions Arizona's London Bridge

The uproar over Senate Bill 1142, which would have made riot activities subject to racketeering penalties, reached all the way to London, where the BBC was curious about this very Arizonan proposal prior to opposition from House Speaker J.D. Mesnard and Gov. Doug Ducey this week effectively killed it.

In an interview with the BBC, a Republic reporter mentioned in passing that the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Sonny Borrelli, is from Lake Havasu City, home to the relocated London Bridge.

But the interviewer corrected her, calling the bridge in western Arizona “a pile of rocks” that is not the original structure.

Her internal fact-check alarm went off, but out of caution — and deference to a British audience — she refrained from further comment on the matter.

But off air, a quick search verified that London Bridge indeed did move from its span across the Thames to straddle the Colorado River in Lake Havasu City. It happened in the 1960s when developer Robert McCullough successfully bid on the bridge, which the Brits were putting up for sale.

Perhaps the broadcaster was confusing the London Bridge with the more ornamental Tower Bridge — a mistake Americans commonly make.

Reach the reporter at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com and follow her on Twitter @maryjpitzl.