New site proposal for Shakespeare statue

Published: 10:45, 24 February 2017

Last year there was a proposal to put the statue of Shakespeare at the top of Bridge Street but now Henley Street could be its likely destination.

A BRONZE sculpture of Shakespeare could be erected on a stone plinth at the junction of High Street and Sheep Street, Stratford-upon-Avon.

This latest proposal by Stratford businessman Tony Bird to erect the statue comes after previous plans to site it on Bridge Street traffic island in the town were withdrawn last March.

The £100,000 statue which has been created by one of the art world’s most prominent sculptors James Butler of the Royal Academy, is considered to be a generous gift to the town but thus far the Bard has yet to find a permanent home within his home town.

The exact location of the statue is an open space area formerly known as the Corn Exchange opposite the town hall. While this is a conservation area, a heritage statement accompanying the application, states the statue’s inclusion would not impact existing historic buildings such as the town hall and Harvard House.

Stratford-upon-Avon Simon Woodings