Philip Larkin was the Librarian at the University of Hull and while I was a student there, I think I actually saw him once, striding imperiously through the Brynmor Jones Library. He was also a famous poet who died in 1985 and the City of Hull is celebrating the 25th anniversary of his death with a number of special events.
One of the more bizarre events is Larkin with Toads, the temporary invasion of 40 giant fibre-glass toads, a public art installation which celebrates Larkin’s poems of working life ‘Toads’ and ‘Toads Revisited’ (See Wikipedia article).
During the August Bank Holiday weekend, my wife and I took two days to wander around Hull to to try and see and photograph as many of the toads as we could. Usefully you can get a map for this from the City Tourist Information Office and online.
We also took the opportunity to try some real ale in Ye Olde White Hart, The Old English Gentleman, The Minerva Hotel and Ye Olde Black Boy.
I’ve put my photos on Flickr and here is a Slideshow of the toads. You can also view the toads on a map. If you want to see them for yourself, you’ll have to hurry, the installation ends at the end of September.