Spitfire memorial plans go on display (From Daily Echo)
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Southampton's Spitfire memorial plans go on display
1:54pm Monday 10th October 2011 in Campaign News
FORMING a dramatic, gleaming landmark that is set to become Southampton’s answer to the Statue of Liberty, this is the first look at the final design for a tribute to RJ Mitchell’s iconic Spitfire.
A public showcase of plans for the elegant £2m monument, rising into the skies at the entrance to the city’s waterfront, will go on display at the Solent Sky Museum this week.
A giant curved steel mast will raise a 1.5 times fullscale replica Spitfire 40m into the air from a circular viewing platform inspired by The Royal Air Force roundel, with a pool of remembrance in its centre.
Greeting visitors from land, sea and air on a site beside the historic Trafalgar dry dock, it will rival Nelson’s Column in height and dwarf the Angel of the North in Gateshead.
Plans for the Spitfire tribute were unveiled three years ago after a long-running campaign by the Daily Echo to finally honour the men and women who built and flew the Second World War fighter plane.
Councillor John Hannides, chairman of the city’s Spitfire Tribute Foundation, said: “This is a great opportunity for the people of Southampton to get a hands on experience of a monument that we want them to be really proud of.
“Not only do we want it to reflect the great pride that this country has for its airborne war hero, but we also want it to symbolise the achievement of the city and its people in producing this great machine.”
The design by Australian architect Nick Hancock, a specialist in complex geometry and lightweight steel structures formerly with the world renowned Richard Rogers Partnership, was selected following a national competition last summer that attracted 300 entries.
He has worked up the scheme for a planning application to be lodged with the council today.
The two-week exhibition of the plans will include both the designs and computer generated images of the monument as well as samples of some of the materials that will be used.
A fundraising drive is under way to pay for the Spitfire monument, involving corporate sponsors, individual donors and grant making bodies. It will be sited next to a proposed new £15m Aeronautica museum and maritime attraction, two miles from the Supermarine Aviation site where RJ Mitchell developed the aircraft.
Plans will go on display at the Solent Sky Museum in Albert Road South from Wednesday. The exhibition will be open daily between 10am and 5pm, except Sundays when it will be open from noon until 5pm.It will closed on Mondays.
Comments(35)
Portswoodfoke
says...
2:17pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Bassett-Mikey
says...
2:19pm Mon 10 Oct 11
phil maccavity
says...
2:24pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Question is, what happens if the Aeronautica Museum doesnt get the required funding
The Spitfire monument would then be rather isloated at the back of the Ocean Terminal.
Presume it could be made transportable so an option could be to incorporate it into the proposed Royal Pier redevelopment as and when this happens.
Best of luck with the fund raising.
Shame no grants are available to ease the money raising challenges
acid drop
says...
2:27pm Mon 10 Oct 11
St Retford
says...
2:35pm Mon 10 Oct 11
acid drop wrote:Spending money on construction projects is exactly the way to get ourselves out of recession.
In these so called hard times how can anyone justify wasting money
andreww
says...
2:50pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Let's just hope they get the wings and rotor in proportion with the rest of the Spitfire unlike the original Ted Bates statue outside St Marys with the big hands and feet.
jammyswine
says...
2:53pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Maine Lobster
says...
3:22pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Something smell fishy,anybody?
Shoong
says...
3:30pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Bassett-Mikey wrote:Yes!
We ahve a lovely Spitfire monument at the Airport, near where it all hppened. Why another one? Whay all that money? which could be better spent on social housing or a new proson for footballers and hooligans....
Or spelling lessons for you!
I love SFC - but I can spell.
No_Fuss
says...
3:39pm Mon 10 Oct 11
OSPREYSAINT
says...
3:41pm Mon 10 Oct 11
fuzzyfelt
says...
3:48pm Mon 10 Oct 11
loosehead
says...
4:03pm Mon 10 Oct 11
OSPREYSAINT wrote:Pity the old factories gone as with that & this statue at the original site would have been a great way to say thank you to those people.I think this will show visitors we are proud of our past & our part in beating fascism.IT's about time this was built
Instant misery from the usual wind up merchants who have no respect for history. The Spitfire at the airport is good, although looking a bit shabby again, and was financed by a German company, how ironic was that. Let us have more of the wow factor, far too much doom and gloom from the haves these days. Let us see more investment in our Heritage, create a few jobs and give people something to be happy about.
Lord Swood
says...
4:25pm Mon 10 Oct 11
p.s. Put him in the cockpit of the Spitfire perhaps?, he'd love that. He'd call me a sirry irriot!
StEmmosfire
says...
5:04pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Rob444
says...
5:51pm Mon 10 Oct 11
J.K.
says...
6:21pm Mon 10 Oct 11
peenut81
says...
7:52pm Mon 10 Oct 11
Shoong wrote:Shoong, why the petty complaints about what are quite clearly typos, perhaps on a handheld device which is easy to do.
Bassett-Mikey wrote:Yes!
We ahve a lovely Spitfire monument at the Airport, near where it all hppened. Why another one? Whay all that money? which could be better spent on social housing or a new proson for footballers and hooligans....
Or spelling lessons for you!
I love SFC - but I can spell.
I bet you're an obnoxious and rather lonely person in real life.
mr.southampton
says...
8:20pm Mon 10 Oct 11
It's also certainly not Southampton's answer to the statue of liberty. Liberty is an enduring concept which is timeless, the Spitfire on the other hand is a symbol of a particular period of time.
I'm not saying the city shouldn't be proud of it's links to the Spitfire, but it needs to refrain from the project of using it as a centre-piece of it's identity. Southampton needs to look to it's future, not just it's past.
SOULJACKER
says...
8:20pm Mon 10 Oct 11
loosehead
says...
9:22pm Mon 10 Oct 11
StEmmosfire wrote:Actually said that to a councillor so I totally agree with you.
Needs to be much bigger, with a viewing platform and nice cafe at the top.
loosehead
says...
9:30pm Mon 10 Oct 11
mr.southampton wrote:What you have to consider is what will bring visitors to this city? go to Portsmouth & take away all the history from there & how many tourists/visitors would they get? this city has a lot of history to be proud of under previous Labour administrations thing were let go I remember going up & looking out over the battlements of the Bargate then I saw you couldn't do that I was shocked. If Liverpool or Portsmouth could boast about the spitfire ,Mayflower or say that the Titanic started it's voyage from their cit's they would we have much more to boast about but we don't we moan about money being spent but to accumulate money you have to spend it.The more attractions the more visitors the more jobs so bring it on
I'm sure this will be unpopular, but Southampton really needs to stop with the Spitfire obsession that has been growing over the past decade. I was in St. James's park only the other week and noticed the tea kiosk is adorned with a spitfire montage. It's all going too far.
It's also certainly not Southampton's answer to the statue of liberty. Liberty is an enduring concept which is timeless, the Spitfire on the other hand is a symbol of a particular period of time.
I'm not saying the city shouldn't be proud of it's links to the Spitfire, but it needs to refrain from the project of using it as a centre-piece of it's identity. Southampton needs to look to it's future, not just it's past.
loosehead
says...
9:35pm Mon 10 Oct 11
phil maccavity wrote:phil the council struggled to formulate a plan that ABP would accept.the Town Quay plan was rejected by them but a revised plan with more housing ( more money) was accepted & ABP gave this land by the terminal for the statue so it could still be seen by the cruise ships.maybe on the edge of the Woolston developement where it could be seen from the water ( both ways) would have been more apt as wasn't that where they were built?
I thought the Spitfire monument was to go on the end of Town Quay.
Question is, what happens if the Aeronautica Museum doesnt get the required funding
The Spitfire monument would then be rather isloated at the back of the Ocean Terminal.
Presume it could be made transportable so an option could be to incorporate it into the proposed Royal Pier redevelopment as and when this happens.
Best of luck with the fund raising.
Shame no grants are available to ease the money raising challenges
Voice of Concern
says...
10:50pm Mon 10 Oct 11
mr.southampton wrote:The past is what builds/shapes the future, our city centre was built because of the past, the Spitfire is timeless, without the Spitfire and Hurricane and exploits and heroics of the pilots of the day, our future would have been a lot different, we should celebrate great moments in history and this statue is not just for the people of Southampton, for me it is for the whole country to remember.
I'm sure this will be unpopular, but Southampton really needs to stop with the Spitfire obsession that has been growing over the past decade. I was in St. James's park only the other week and noticed the tea kiosk is adorned with a spitfire montage. It's all going too far.
It's also certainly not Southampton's answer to the statue of liberty. Liberty is an enduring concept which is timeless, the Spitfire on the other hand is a symbol of a particular period of time.
I'm not saying the city shouldn't be proud of it's links to the Spitfire, but it needs to refrain from the project of using it as a centre-piece of it's identity. Southampton needs to look to it's future, not just it's past.
Le We Forget
sass
says...
11:36pm Mon 10 Oct 11
arizonan
says...
3:57am Tue 11 Oct 11
freemantlegirl2
says...
7:47am Tue 11 Oct 11
Maine Lobster wrote:Yes you're right, it wasn't. That was all glossed over!
This will be the design that was not submitted in time for the deadline then? However, this additional design was miraculaously chosen above all the other legitimately submitted entrants!
Something smell fishy,anybody?
However, this is a magnificent design there's no getting away from it BUT I agree it should include a viewing platform or something, a missed opportunity :(
loosehead
says...
8:07am Tue 11 Oct 11
Voice of Concern wrote:For once I totally agree with you
mr.southampton wrote:The past is what builds/shapes the future, our city centre was built because of the past, the Spitfire is timeless, without the Spitfire and Hurricane and exploits and heroics of the pilots of the day, our future would have been a lot different, we should celebrate great moments in history and this statue is not just for the people of Southampton, for me it is for the whole country to remember.
I'm sure this will be unpopular, but Southampton really needs to stop with the Spitfire obsession that has been growing over the past decade. I was in St. James's park only the other week and noticed the tea kiosk is adorned with a spitfire montage. It's all going too far.
It's also certainly not Southampton's answer to the statue of liberty. Liberty is an enduring concept which is timeless, the Spitfire on the other hand is a symbol of a particular period of time.
I'm not saying the city shouldn't be proud of it's links to the Spitfire, but it needs to refrain from the project of using it as a centre-piece of it's identity. Southampton needs to look to it's future, not just it's past.
Le We Forget
thesaint
says...
8:56am Tue 11 Oct 11
Shoong
says...
10:54am Tue 11 Oct 11
peenut81 wrote:No, I was trying to articulate that not all football fans are stupid.
Shoong wrote:Shoong, why the petty complaints about what are quite clearly typos, perhaps on a handheld device which is easy to do.
Bassett-Mikey wrote:Yes!
We ahve a lovely Spitfire monument at the Airport, near where it all hppened. Why another one? Whay all that money? which could be better spent on social housing or a new proson for footballers and hooligans....
Or spelling lessons for you!
I love SFC - but I can spell.
I bet you're an obnoxious and rather lonely person in real life.
Not sure what you mean by 'real life', I tend to only have the one with no history of split personalities.
You sound like you need to work your 'hand held' perhaps, remember not to chaff it, be gentle.
AndyAndrews
says...
10:59am Tue 11 Oct 11
Scrutinizer
says...
11:18am Tue 11 Oct 11
mr.southampton
says...
3:56pm Tue 11 Oct 11
loosehead wrote:But is this a memorial, or as someone earlier mentioned some kind of tourist trap designed to bring in a bit of money?
Voice of Concern wrote:For once I totally agree with you
mr.southampton wrote:The past is what builds/shapes the future, our city centre was built because of the past, the Spitfire is timeless, without the Spitfire and Hurricane and exploits and heroics of the pilots of the day, our future would have been a lot different, we should celebrate great moments in history and this statue is not just for the people of Southampton, for me it is for the whole country to remember.
I'm sure this will be unpopular, but Southampton really needs to stop with the Spitfire obsession that has been growing over the past decade. I was in St. James's park only the other week and noticed the tea kiosk is adorned with a spitfire montage. It's all going too far.
It's also certainly not Southampton's answer to the statue of liberty. Liberty is an enduring concept which is timeless, the Spitfire on the other hand is a symbol of a particular period of time.
I'm not saying the city shouldn't be proud of it's links to the Spitfire, but it needs to refrain from the project of using it as a centre-piece of it's identity. Southampton needs to look to it's future, not just it's past.
Le We Forget
In my opinion the spitfire obsession is more about the latter. The people who lived through it felt no real need for this kind of memorial, it is only now with the craze to 'brand' cities with some kind of landmark that there have been moves to create a spitfire memorial.
loosehead
says...
4:13pm Tue 11 Oct 11
mr.southampton wrote:sorry have to disagree with you.Many older people I've talked to said we should have something to remember the people who worked in the factory & flew the spitfire as it was a Southampton plane & something we should show are pride in.to many people knock are city about time we stood up & held our heads up with pride & when people see this & ask why it's there we can say we built it this is it's birthplace it's home
loosehead wrote:But is this a memorial, or as someone earlier mentioned some kind of tourist trap designed to bring in a bit of money?
Voice of Concern wrote:For once I totally agree with you
mr.southampton wrote:The past is what builds/shapes the future, our city centre was built because of the past, the Spitfire is timeless, without the Spitfire and Hurricane and exploits and heroics of the pilots of the day, our future would have been a lot different, we should celebrate great moments in history and this statue is not just for the people of Southampton, for me it is for the whole country to remember.
I'm sure this will be unpopular, but Southampton really needs to stop with the Spitfire obsession that has been growing over the past decade. I was in St. James's park only the other week and noticed the tea kiosk is adorned with a spitfire montage. It's all going too far.
It's also certainly not Southampton's answer to the statue of liberty. Liberty is an enduring concept which is timeless, the Spitfire on the other hand is a symbol of a particular period of time.
I'm not saying the city shouldn't be proud of it's links to the Spitfire, but it needs to refrain from the project of using it as a centre-piece of it's identity. Southampton needs to look to it's future, not just it's past.
Le We Forget
In my opinion the spitfire obsession is more about the latter. The people who lived through it felt no real need for this kind of memorial, it is only now with the craze to 'brand' cities with some kind of landmark that there have been moves to create a spitfire memorial.
St Retford says...
2:12pm Mon 10 Oct 11