Malcolm Flynn, 72, was killed in Northumberland in 2020 when he was attacked by a herd of cows and bulls.
His widow Wendy Pleasant, 73, who lived with him in their detached home near Wreay for just a year, says she is appalled Cumberland Council has not heeded her plea to put the metal artwork on another roundabout.
Created from weathered steel and weighing around four tons, the statue (above) aims to immortalise Cumbria’s proud agricultural heritage.
The Limousin Bull sculpture is due to be installed at the Brisco Roundabout on the new Southern Link Road, about 50 yards from Wendy’s home and it will be directly in her eyeline whenever she leaves her property.
It aims to symbolise strength, resilience, and the link between the county’s past and future, but Wendy says it will be daily reminder of the tragedy which led to Malcolm’s death.
“It’s so uncaring of them,” said Wendy, a retired professional.
“All I am asking for is some understanding but when I asked them to not put this statue right outside my home the response was: ‘You’re just one person.’”
Wendy (above) said that dealing with the tragedy, which was investigated at an inquest earlier this year, has been “hell on earth.”
She made Cumberland Council aware of her objection to the statue’s planned location and the underlying reason several months ago, so the decision to locate the sculpture outside her home is insensitive, she said.
“They seem to be saying that how I feel doesn’t count. But I pay my rate like everybody else. I should feature somewhere in somebody’s thoughts. It’s not as though I’m asking them not to do it.
“I just don’t want them to put it on that roundabout.”
She said that council officials invited her to view the statue last week in an attempt to allay her fears, but the experience did not change her mind.
She now wonders whether she will be able to bear living so near to a constant reminder of how Malcolm died. “It’s an enormous statue,” she said.
“Whenever I leave my home, it will be right there in front of me. Even if I turn left towards Wreay, I’ll see it when I am checking the road to my right.
“There’ll be no way to avoid seeing it – and being reminded of what happened.”
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Wendy has already lived through months of disruption while the roundabout was being constructed. “It’s been a very difficult time,” she said.
“I was diagnosed with cancer after my husband died, and I’ve had to get out to hospital and had all these road works going on around me. At one stage, I was totally fenced in because you couldn’t get along that road.
“I had to keep my car in their compound and the only way I could get out was for one of their workmen to take me in a vehicle to my car to go out. For them to put this cow on that roundabout will be the crowning glory to it.
“Nobody has asked us locally if we wanted this statue, and goodness knows what it has cost. It was just presented as a fait accompli. But I do not want to just sit back and let them do it.
“My feelings should count for something, surely.”
In March, an inquest concluded that Malcolm (above), who was a retired science teacher, died as the result of an accident.
The metal artwork aims to immortalise the Limousin bull Graiggoch Rambo, which sold for 180,000 guineas at a special breed sale in Carlisle.
Sculptor Ellie Barden, 35, spotted the bull as he grazed the fields at Whinfellpark, near Penrith, on her daily drive to work near Penrith.
When she was commissioned to craft two new sculptures for Cumberland Council she choose the world price beating bull as one of her inspirations.
The animal’s owners’ AW Jenkinson Farms’ Whinfell Park, have visited Ellie at Grace to see the bull sculpture. They described Graiggoch Rambo as an ‘exceptional’ bull who smashed the world record for his breed when he was bought in 2022.
A Cumberland Council spokesperson said: “Cumberland Council understands that this situation is deeply personal for Mrs Pleasant, and we appreciate the sensitivity of her concerns.
“We have been engaged with her throughout the construction phase of the project, making several adjustments to the design and our build programme to support her and some specific needs.
“We have also undertaken work around her property, including replacement fencing and access improvements.
“Additionally, we arranged and hosted a personal visit to Grace Forge, where the sculpture is being created, to provide a deeper understanding of the project and its purpose.
“The decision to commission a Limousin bull sculpture was made following consultation and widespread support for a piece that celebrates the agricultural heritage of the Brisco area.
“The installation is designed to honour both the history of the area and its future.
“The decision regarding its placement and subject matter was based entirely on community heritage, independent of any individual circumstances, and was never intended to cause personal distress.
“The artwork is designed to sit harmoniously within this existing landscape, reflecting the livestock that are already a familiar feature of the area.
“The Limousin breed is closely associated with the region – highlighted by the Borderway Auction Mart’s sale of ‘Rambo,’ a world-record Limousin Bull, in 2022 – and the sculpture reflects the strength and pride of our farming community.
“We value all feedback, and we recognise that the installation coincides with a very difficult personal association for Mrs Pleasant.
“We remain committed to engaging with her directly to explore any further reasonable steps that could help reduce the impact, as well as continuing to update the wider community about the project.”
Wendy reverted to using her maiden name after her husband died.
The issue has come to light just days after the owner of a B&B who lives near to the new roundabout complained that the Council had erected a huge road sign directly outside her property.
Julie Musgrave, who runs Crossroads House B&B on the Brisco Crossroads, said the road sign, on the opposite side of the roundabout to where Wendy Pleasant lives, is “the size of a motorway sign” and will have a negative effect on her business.
A Cumberland Council spokesman said: “The size of the sign is a fixed size to ensure drivers have adequate time to read and react safely.”
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