Call for 'respect' after man scales Lady Godiva on Broadgate

Coventry City Council has issued a warning after a man was seen on top of a decades-old statue of Lady Godiva. He was seen climbing the city-centre-based statue on Broadgate.

Resident Mick Tully said he spotted a man scaling the much-loved statue on Saturday, June 8. In an image shared with CoventryLive, the unnamed man can be seen with his hands placed on the head of Lady Godiva.

Self Sacrifice, known as Lady Godiva, was commissioned in 1936 by William Bassett-Green. Sculptor Sir William Reid Dick worked through World War II to produce a full-scale model of the statue which was completed by 1940.

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After the Second World War, the now Grade II listed statue of Lady Godiva was cast and placed on a plinth influenced by Sir Edwin Lutyens, before being unveiled by Peggy Z. Douglas in October 1949. It was adorned with the flags of the United Kingdom and the United States as Mrs Douglas was the wife of US Ambassador, Lewis Williams Douglas.

Coventry City Council has now urged people to treat decades-old statues and public art with 'respect.' Residents have been warned that they should not 'act in any way that may cause damage.'

A spokesman for Coventry City Council told CoventryLive: “We have some amazing statues and public art around the city and it is there for everyone to enjoy. We would urge people to treat it with respect and not to act in any way that may cause damage.”

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