Toad maps leap off shelves
Toad maps leap off shelves
0 Comments | Hull Daily Mail, Jul 27, 2010 | by BEN KURIA
TOAD-spotters are snapping up Larkin trail maps faster than expected.
More than a week since the amphibian sculptures hit city streets, almost 30,000 guides have been collected and officials say they are about to run out.
Larkin With Toads project manager Clare Huby said: “We have had to order 30,000 more reprints because we were on our last 5,000 last Thursday.
“Last week, I took 400 copies to Prospect Centre and they were gone in three hours.
“We’ve had three people giving out the maps, but we are now talking to a marketing company to help us out.”
The 40 model toads mark the 25th anniversary of the death of former University Of Hull librarian and poet Philip Larkin.
Miss Huby said the toads project is an entry point into discovering the works of Larkin.
She said: “From reading the first lines on the guide, people have gone to libraries to look at Larkin’s poems, so the toads are acting as a starting point.”
Miss Huby said the toads’ popularity had blazed a trail for other unusual arts projects in the city. She said: “The way people have taken to the Larkin trail will form a future for more off-the-wall ideas.”
The colourful fibreglass amphibians can be spotted, free of charge, at 40 different locations in the region from The Deep’s reception in Hull to Flemingate in Beverley.
The region’s tourism board, Visit Hull and East Yorkshire (VHEY), believes the figures are bringing more people to the region.
VHEY chief executive Janet Reuben said: “The Larkin With Toads trail is proving extremely popular with visitors and local people alike – and is providing interesting photo opportunities.
“This unusual and evocative art installation is a wonderful addition to East Yorkshire’s superb array of attractions.
“I urge everyone to go along and pay them a visit.”
The Larkin Trail was launched on June 17 and will stay in the city for ten weeks.
Maps are available at city shopping centres, the tourist information centre, libraries and businesses close to the sculptures. They can also be downloaded from the Larkin25 website.
Links Larkin25 www.larkin25.co.uk VHEY www.vhey.co.uk INSHORT Larkin With Toads trail maps are leaping off the shelves. Almost 30,000 guides were snapped up by tourists in a week.
