Long Boi
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Image Courtesy Wikimedia Commons
An item on BBC Radio 4 caught my attention on Thursday evening. The University of York had held a ceremony in the morning to unveil a bronze statue of a much-loved duck.
Long Boi was a very tall duck, initially incorrectly identified as the tallest mallard, though he was actually a cross between a mallard and an Indian runner duck. He had the height of an Indian runner duck and the colouring of a male mallard. He was first seen in 2018 in the grounds of the University of York, near the lake at Derwent College, where his statue will be sited. He was named Long Boi by the students.
When he had not been seen for two months in May 2023, it was assumed that he had died. He had been brought to public notice through the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show, hosted by Greg James, and was regularly featured on the programme. He became an unofficial mascot for the University and amassed an Instagram following of more than 59,000 fans.
The unveiling ceremony was broadcast live on BBC Radio 1.
After the unveiling there was a minute’s quacking.
The Vice-Chancellor of York University, Professor Charlie Jeffery, said that Long Boi had become ‘a symbol of community, channelling the great spirit that we have at the university.’ The Students’ Union raised more than £5,300 to pay for the statue.
Addressing the audience at the ceremony, the art curator of the University, Helena Cox, said, ‘It is believed by myself and by this mighty institution that if you rub the beak of Long Boi, your essays will sparkle with genius, your exams shall be a breeze and luck will follow you wherever you go . . . whenever life gets difficult, go and rub that beak for good luck. You have the curator’s blessing.’
Greg James said, ‘Some people might not get why we are doing this . . . but silly things are important, silly things get us through the day and, look, silliness brings us together.’
The statue is life-sized, standing at 70 centimetres, and was carved in clay by Neil Mason, the award-winning wildlife sculptor. It was cast in bronze in Greece.
You find the most interesting information to share. Fascinating about the duck and the artist who carved it.
ReplyDeleteIt was quite by chance that I heard about Long Boi.
DeleteWhere did you read about this? Another unique and interesting post. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteApparently, thanks to James Corden, Long Boi became well known in parts of the States, too.
DeleteYes its true silliness does get us through life, it could be pretty grim otherwise, I loved Wogan and his silliness in the mornings, kept me company on my drive to work every day.. and his Senior moments still survive!
ReplyDeleteLife can become too serious and dreary. A bit of silliness does us all good.
DeleteI agree silliness is important, too many are unable to embrace a little of it and laugh at things, life wasn't meant to be this serious. I'd rub that duck's beak.
ReplyDeleteSome people seem to think it a virtue to be deadly serious all the time. There has to be a balance.
DeleteYes, silliness is important. My mother retained her sense of silliness until she died. That was a nice duck story. So now there are two ducks to visit, the other being Gresley's duck. Oh, there isn't a Gresley's duck.
ReplyDeletei had to look up Gresley's duck - what a shame that some starchy individuals decided not to include one on the statue. Someone put a yellow duck on a stick behind the statue. I wonder how long it will remain there? (That would have made a good blog post!)
DeleteThis is just so much fun. You got me looking up Long Boi and found a photo of the statue of Long Boi that was just recovered. Yay!
ReplyDeleteIt's great, isn't it? 🦆
DeleteI thought Long Boi was an Indian Runner duck at first glance . We kept a few ducks back in the day ( why do we say ' back in the day'?) amusing creatures but oh so messy 😀
ReplyDeleteAlison in Wales x
My daughter's friend has a couple of Indian runner ducks.
DeleteDid you keep your ducks for fun or food . . . or both? 🦆
For the eggs - but we did name one of them Patty ( Pate ) just for the fun of it 😉
DeleteAlison x
😂🤣
DeleteBritish humour at its best. Why not honour a popular duck especially when its beak has such magical qualities.
ReplyDeleteLong Boi was quite a character and the students thought he should be memorialised. I think it's splendid.
DeleteGreg James if totally correct - well said. xx
ReplyDeleteA sense of humour and silliness can keep us all sane.
DeleteHe has been on our local Yorkshire television screens for the past week, chief mourner dressed (male) in widows lace.
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen television news for a while, and only just caught the news on the radio.
DeleteSuch a fun story.
ReplyDeleteIt's good to see that small things can be celebrated.
DeleteThis is one of those stories that makes you think humanity might not be quite so bad after all.
ReplyDelete. . . and we all need to be reminded of that from time to time. 😀
DeleteWhat a cross of ducks. But I think the statue did sound like a fun idea. Gives people a chuckle when they are in the area to see it.
ReplyDeleteThat's how traditions are engendered.
DeleteAs often happens with you and Aril's posts, I wandered off to read more. I laughed when it said that the statue was unveiled on BBC radio. But what a wonderful bit of ridiculousness! Thanks for posting this.
ReplyDeleteThe duck will become part of the university's folklore.
DeleteLong Boi reminds me of the egg laying ducks I owned years ago when I lived in the rural countryside. They were a breed called Campbell, and Campbells, as I recall, were developed from crosses between mallards and Indian runners with some other duck breeds involved. I had thought at first that Long Boi was a Dark Campbell but now I'm thinking it may be more Indian runner. (The eggs, by the way, are excellent in baking). No matter what he was, I like the thought of the statue and rubbing the beak for academic achievement. We need silliness in our lives!
ReplyDeleteI've never kept birds of any type, so am always interested to hear from those who have. I'm sure they all have their own personalities.
ReplyDeleteI just looked up Campbell ducks. They were originally bred in Gloucester, England, in the late 19th century from Mallard and Pencilled Runner ducks to create a Khaki coloured duck.
Thank you for pointing them out to me.
Thank you so much for sharing this super story. I loved it! Mr. James' comment is very true. If it's okay with you I would like to borrow this, "....silly things are important, silly things get us through the day and, look, silliness brings us together.’ I would like to put that on my blog one day. It fits in with my feeling that we should all keep in touch with our inner child!
ReplyDeleteWhat a heartwarming tribute to such a beloved and unique figure!
ReplyDeleteIt's so sweet, isn't it?
DeleteWhat a heartwarming story! I particularly love that there was a minute’s quacking! xxx
ReplyDeleteI loved that bit, too, though it brought me to tears.
DeleteHow lovely. I love the comment about silly things getting us through.
ReplyDeleteIt's so true. Silliness carries us through.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was just brilliant :)
ReplyDeleteWe need a certain amount of silliness in our day and how wonderful that after the unveiling there was a minute’s quacking.
All the best Jan
I loved that bit, too, and can just imagine the chorus of quacks.
ReplyDeleteI love this. Long Boi was noticed and appreciated and in a way brought humans together.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure the students and staff who had the pleasure of meeting Long Boi will never forget him.
DeleteWhat a lovely way to remember Long Boi. Long live a little simple silliness and sense of fun.
ReplyDelete