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A MUCH-MALIGNED statue of the late Sir Terry Wogan cost almost €60,000 to erect, new figures reveal.
Data released following a Freedom of Information request show it cost €58,500 to design, build and erect the bronze sculpture on Limerick’s riverside.
However, a limestone memorial of the Munster great Anthony Foley cost less than a tenth of the cost of the Wogan statue, with Limerick City and County Council shelling out just €5,675.
The figures have led to fresh calls for the Wogan sculpture to be ditched, with local Independent councillor John Gilligan saying it must be “melted and recast,” describing it in its current form as “a waste of space” and a “continuing embarrassment” to the city.
Sinn Fein member Séighin Ó Ceallaigh questioned why the statue of the broadcaster, who died aged 77 in January 2016, resulted in a bill of more than 10 times the one received for the tribute to Foley, who passed away in October the same year.
Councillor Kieran O’Hanlon, who unveiled both statues during the latter stages of his term as mayor, said decisions on the cost of both sculptures were handled by local authority management.
Upon its unveiling last year, the statue of Limerick-born Wogan – famous for his witty commentary at Eurovision Song Contests through the years – was criticised.
There were suggestions the statue bore a closer resemblance to other people, such as actor Will Ferrell, singers Nick Cave and Glen Campbell and “footballer Ronaldo’s dad”.
The statue was designed by Mayo artist Rory Breslin and initial estimates of costs for the sculpture of the BBC legend – made a Freeman of Limerick back in 2007 – rang in at around €50,000.
Councillor Gilligan said not recasting the Wogan statue would represent a “cowardly move” on the part of council bosses.”
It’s a waste of space. It’s something which continues to be an embarrassment. I think we need to recognise that when we get things wrong, we simply cannot ignore them and hope they will forget about them.
“It’s not what we are looking for. There is no point saying ‘it will do’. We are not building a city based on this. It should reflect the person who we have cast to honour,” Councillor Gilligan said.
He did, however, praise the Foley memorial for both its design and location.
Ó Ceallaigh said members of the authority should have more say over the cost and design of statues.
“I’d have no problem with memorials going up. But councillors should be involved in making these decisions. The first I heard about the Terry Wogan statue going up was when they unveiled it,” he said.
Councillor O’Hanlon defended the sculpture, and said having attended a memorial service in London in memory of the broadcaster, it was important for him to unveil it.
“I had met a lot of Terry’s ‘Togs’, his supporters. They had all booked board and travel and had other plans made.
“Certainly I did want to unveil it during my mayoralty. It meant a lot to me to be able to do this,” the Fianna Fáil man said.
Wogan’s statue isn’t the only one in Limerick to be controversial – the bronze statue of film legend Richard Harris, by artist James Connolly, was also criticised.
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Michelle O’Neill is absolutely correct in her call for this, but the North being the North; it is pretty obvious that the push from Michelle and the pushback from Arlene stems from something other than Coronavirus/public health.
@LangerDan: What about that funeral she attended not so long ago. Didn’t see much social distancing, did you? Plus did everybody there do self isolation after? Only thing she did with that statement was prove she is every bit hypocrite that she shamelessly branded to others.
@Richard Cronin: There has been more than enough hypocrisy to share around during this pandemic from many quarters. However it is important that we do not allow past hypocrisy create tunnel vision. I’d rather a hypocrite make a U-Turn than stick dogmatically to their original position. The issue here is, it makes perfect epidemiological sense to have an island wide solution to this; but the Northern parties are so entrenched in Green-Orange politics that such sound calls get proposed and opposed under a different light.
@LangerDan: so why are all the airports & harbors open? It’s not like the virus is going away anytime soon. Plus how is all this to be payed for? Most hypocrites are around for the sound bites but not for actual problem solving
@LangerDan: cash for ash foster would rather flood the place with unchecked tourists than listen to sf warning
She’s 100% right but unfortunately has undermined her own authority on Covid by attending Sinn Féin funeral that broke all common sense rules of social distancing.
@Brendan Walsh: hypocrisy in action
@Brendan Walsh: she had no choice, she was only following orders.
@John Mulligan: yaaaaawwwwwnnnn
@Richard Cronin: it is 14 days today since that funeral and as the numbers show, it was so well organised around social distancing regulations that not a single case of covid has been traced to it.
@M Bowe: actually 21 days.
@M Bowe: the west Brits are out in style
Poor Arlene. Would sooner see her people dessimated by a lethal virus than give an inch on her beloved Union.
@Toon Army: Maybe Michelle and colleagues should have thought of that before organising a mass attendance at a recent funeral.
@TL55: I don’t think they planned on a funeral??
Sinn Fein demanding internment for people entering Ireland. Detained without trial. Hilarious.
Does anyone really take this woman seriously?
@Brian Renaghan: Of course not Arlene Foster is a relic of the old era but luckily people are listening to Michelle O’Neill and taking what she says seriously.
When it came to closing and opening schools, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales took a different approach than England, so why are they insistant that they MUST now maintain the common travel area controls (or rather a lack of controls) with the rest of UK.
It really is hard to take anything from SF seriously. This type of proposal requires consensus from the executive and that is the forum for such an initiative. This solo run is just sectarian politics at its worst.
@camio55: do you even know what sectarianism is. Maybe check it out before using it!!!!!
@M Bowe: Sectarianism is a form of prejudice, discrimination, or hatred arising from attaching relations of inferiority and superiority to differences between subdivisions within a group.
Never thought I’d end up on Arlene’s side. Strange times.
Yet she went to a funeral where how many people attended? Calling for holding areas for people without due process? Congratulations you are every bit the hypocrite you shamelessly brand other politicians
@Richard Cronin: you are giving her too much credit. She doesn’t have any say in policy, she was appointed by the army council and is just a mouthpiece for them, the same as her clone in the south.
This is just an attempt by her handlers to leverage the covid crisis to suit their own agenda.
Sinner wants to stop traffic from Britain and align with Republic. Shocker
And the Republic of Ireland needs to protect itself from the spread of Covid-19 from Northern Ireland and vice-versa by limiting mass gatherings including attending IRA funerals, Michelle, Mary Lou and Pearse.
The porous border that the Unionists love could kill a lot of people !
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