View of Plymouth hoe from the sea
View of Plymouth hoe from the sea

Plymouth is a city with incredible history and culture, and one of the ways we like to celebrate and demonstrate that is through public art, which can be appreciated free of charge by visitors and residents alike.

Luke will be talking to local historian Chris Robinsonthe Giants’ artist Charles Newington and local artist Zoe Reilly on 9 June at 7.30pm live on his Facebook page about the plans for this exciting project and would love as many people to join as possible to share their views and thoughts on it. Just visit Luke’s Facebook page here.

This recent exciting proposal is for a chalk art installation of the mythical giants Gog and Magog on the hill in front of the Royal Citadel. Most Plymothians will be very familiar with the Gog and Magog pub on the Barbican, but not everyone will know the history of the names and the fact that the chalk giants are about to make a comeback.

Gog and Magog, also sometimes known as Gogmagog and Corineus, are mythical pagan giants who also make appearances in the Hebrew Bible, Christian Bible, and Quran. You can read their fascinating story here. This makes reference to our very own Giant’s Leap, where one of the giants was “thrown to his death in the raging seas off Plymouth, right at the very beginnings of Albion, the land of the Britons”, as described by another storyteller here.

This endeavour, supported by the Lord Mayor of London in 2019 who recognised and appreciated the links the stories of Gog and Magog make between Plymouth and London, is an exciting way to put Plymouth on the map.

Those in support of the project are hoping to get it underway imminently, with the right permissions, as there is sufficient backing from local organisations. This is an artwork truly embedded in the back story of Plymouth, and an installation on a giant scale could garner some excellent exposure for the city.

Luke said:

Plymouth has an incredible history and I am really excited about the potential of bringing the chalk giants back to the Hoe. I’m a fan of public art and these chalk giants could be a real landmark true to our history. I want to invite people in Plymouth to join my Facebook live to hear from the organisers of the project.


Like Luke’s page for a notification when he goes live by visiting
www.facebook.com/lukepollard.

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