Long Boi: Designs unveiled for sculpture in memory of university's beloved duck

A life-sized bronze statue of Long Boi, who lived on the University of York's campus, is currently being designed after he was declared missing presumed dead by officials.

The 2ft 4in bird had celebrity fans such as radio DJ Greg James so students set up a fundraising page last year to get a sculpture of the duck, which reached £5,347.

It is currently being created by award-winning sculptor Neil R Mason who says he was 'quite inspired' by Long Boi's story.

He said: "I looked into the backstory of Long Boi and there was a number of things that appealed to me and I was really taken back by the story and the fun of it. It also spoke to my commitment of mental health and student wellbeing was a big key part of Long Boi. The university also seemed to be quite pro-physiological wellbeing so that was quite appealing.

"It's obviously wildlife so that got me quite inspired and energised and that really got me interested. I think they might have struggled to get the bronze statue with their budget but it's such a good story so I said I would get it done."

The clay mould for the statue was hand-carved by Neil and has now been shipped to Greece so it can be cast in bronze. He said he looked 'extensively' at pictures of Long Boi from his Instagram account, which has nearly 60,000 followers, to work out what he looked like in person.

Neil, of West Wales, said: "I've not been able to see Long Boi because he's not at the campus anymore. There was an Instagram account for him so I used that quite extensively to work out what he would look like."

Before the sculpture was sent to Greece, Neil took it to the university but it will hopefully be unveiled at the student union sometime this year.

He said: "I've sent images to the student union and took the sculpture up, which was terrifying because I had to drive a lot slower so he didn't get damaged. It should be unveiled at the student union but they are working on the time frame, because the planning permission has gone to consultation.

"I will probably have the sculpture shipped back to me and then I'll take it up there for the grand unveiling."