Plan to immortalise Wire legend Paul Cullen with giant mural on side of King’s Head pub approved

A PLAN to immortalise Warrington Wolves’ legend Paul Cullen with a giant mural on the side of King’s Head pub has been approved by town planners.

The proposal by Warrington Arts Council working alongside local artist Anthony Turk, who painted the famous Warrington Pink Eye, also features former player and assistant coach Paul Darbyshire who tragically died from motor neurone disease aged just 41.

Warrington Borough Council planners say the proposed scheme to create a mural showcasing Paul Cullen’s success at Warrington Wolves is not a traditional feature of The Grade II Listed building on Winwick Street, but it is reversible and will enhance awareness of the town’s sporting heritage at this key gateway. The proposal will cause a level of less than substantial harm to designated heritage assets (The Kings Head and Winwick Street Conservation Area) by being a modern addition, but on balance the public benefits arising from local engagement with sporting heritage of the borough to be gained from the proposal outweigh this low level of less than substantial harm.

They say the proposed works to create a mural on this Grade II listed building are on balance acceptable and comply with Policy DC2 (Historic Environment) of the Warrington Local Plan 2023.

Paul Taylor, Chair of Warrington Arts Council, who submitted the planning application said, “Anthony is itching to get started on it and we’re extremely proud and excited that this mural will kick off our Art and About in Warrington Initiative that we launched recently.
“This will be the first of many fantastic art projects in town that will brighten the place up and remind us of our amazing heritage and ambition that we have here in Warrington. It is just the first step in a long, winding, walking tour of the town that people will travel to come and experience one day.”

The main image chosen by Anthony is that of Paul Cullen saluting fans after the final match of the season when he saved Warrington from relegation in 2003. Not only was it the last league game the Warrington Wolves’ first team would play at the Wilderspool Stadium before it was demolished but it was especially crucial that Warrington weren’t relegated at that particular time as they needed to have the Super League status to ensure that their occupation of the new Halliwell Jones Stadium was sustainable.
The Kings Head, a pub that is well known for attracting rugby fans and has done so for many, many years exists right between the old location of the Wilderspool stadium and the new Halliwell Jones.
Paul added, “We all know rugby is a huge part of the town’s heritage and that’s why we should be loud and proud of what we have and this will further enhance the heritage value of the King’s Head, which is already a Grade II listed building thanks to its ornate frontage, by placing this inspiring mural on a wall that is just bare plaster at the moment (since the neighbouring buildings were demolished). This wall was never really meant to be seen at all, and now it’s a bland, brown slab devoid of any character or colour which really lets down the beauty of the architectural designs on the other faces of the building. This will certainly remedy that, and who better than Anthony Turk to get the ball rolling on this great project?”