IT’S been “orange madness” at a St Albans director’s home recently when he hosted Dutch rowing fans during London 2012.

Ian Salkey, director of St Albans Language School, Market Place, and his wife Ria opened their Abbots Langley home to five self-confessed Dutch “fanatics” who promptly turned it a shade of orange.

Ian said: “It was orange madness. You wouldn’t have known there were any Brits living in the house. We even had a Dutch flag in the window.”

The group, friends of the Salkeys, stayed six days in Herts while in the UK to support rowers Mechiel Versluis in the men’s four and Roel Braas in the men’s eight.

Competing at Eton Dorney, both of the men’s teams came fifth in their respective finals.

Erik Landman, a keen rower from Amsterdam, admitted that while he “likes to follow sports in general, I follow rowing in particular. We are all from the same club, Okeanos Stercus-Tauri.”

He described seeing the men compete in the Olympics as “a great experience”.

Erik joked: “Ian is becoming a fanatic as well. He enjoys every sport.”