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Over 90,000 people sign petition for Paul O’Grady statue in his hometown
‘It only feels right to honour the life of such a great human being by immortalising him in statue form, in his hometown of Birkenhead’
Over 90,000 people have signed a petition for a Paul O’Grady statue to be erected in his hometown.
The campaign to erect a statue of the national treasure in his hometown of Birkenhead, Merseyside, is gathering momentum in the wake of his death last week. The TV presenter and comedian, who passed away aged 67 on March 28th, touched the hearts of millions as the sudden news sparked a wave of mourning across the UK.
A Change.org petition has been launched online and it already passed a staggering 87,000 signatures last week. At time of writing, it has already reached a whopping 94k.
Kieran Gabriel, who set-up the campaign, wrote: “It only feels right to honour the life of such a great human being by immortalising him in statue form, in his hometown of Birkenhead.
“Paul has left a huge legacy with his trailblazing work as a drag artist, social and political causes, LGBT rights and of course, his love of animals. This is a petition to the Wirral Council, who must surely take stock of the huge outpouring of love in the wake of Paul’s passing. Liverpool has Cilla, Birkenhead deserves Paul.”
O’Grady’s ‘unexpected’ but ‘peaceful’ death was confirmed by his husband Andre Portasio. In a statement released last week, Portasio said: “It is with great sadness that I inform you that Paul has passed away unexpectedly but peacefully yesterday evening.
“He will be greatly missed by his loved ones, friends, family, animals and all those who enjoyed his humour, wit and compassion. I know that he would want me to thank you for all the love you have shown him over the years.”
Some who have signed the Change.org petition have suggested there be a few dogs around Paul’s statue to honour his other work with Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, which has received over £100,000 in donations since his death.
O’Grady was an ambassador for Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, which paid tribute to the ‘devoted animal lover’, saying he was a ‘champion for the underdog’.
Last year, the showbiz star helped celebrate 160 years of the organisation when he was joined by the Queen Consort in a special one-off episode of For The Love Of Dogs.
The organisation’s chief executive, Peter Laurie, said: “Battersea will forever remember Paul as a devoted animal lover with the biggest heart, who fell head over heels in love with every dog he met at our centres.
“Paul will always be associated with Battersea and we are truly saddened to have lost such a true friend and huge part of our charity.”
It comes after a mural in south Manchester paying tribute to O’Grady was defaced with graffiti just days after it was created.