LOCALS and tourists in Derry, Northern Ireland, have been left disappointed after a new awning built on a pub blocks part of the city’s Derry Girls mural.
One outraged local took to social media yesterday to share a picture of the artwork, which is painted on the side of Badgers Bar in Orchard Street.
Although planning permission for the awning was granted in 2022, Derry and Strabane District Council has said it did not extend to the area containing the mural.
The structure blocks almost half of the mural from being visible leaving fans of the show disappointed.
The five main characters from the hit Channel 4 show, Erin, Michelle, Clare, Orla and James, have featured on the side wall of the pub since 2019.
Tourists and fans from across the world have flocked to the city to get a picture with the mural.
The awning consists of a black raised platform with wooden flooring and metal fencing around it.
Metal bars extend from the fence to the wall, with a horizontal bar across the entire wall partially obscuring the characters’ school uniforms.
The snap was shared to social media yesterday with the caption: “Lovely to see Derry shoot itself square in the foot again by building a glorified smoking hut to cover half the Derry Girls mural.
“Scunnered is not the word for it. I despair.”
It has since received over 1,500 likes and more than 150 comments, mostly from disgruntled locals hitting out at the pub.
One said: “What is that? A Covid eating area? Covering the beloved Derry Girls?
Another wrote: “Very short sighted, the mural is the biggest advertisement there is for Badgers.”
A third commented: “S**t, that’s an eyesore and should not have been approved.”
Another said: “Move the mural [and] see how that works out for their business.”
A fifth added: “The Discover Northern Ireland listing for the bar ironically calls it ‘the home of the mural’ – perhaps that needs updated to ‘the place that ruined the mural’.”
Another wrote: “Oh for goodness sake. I’m glad I got to see it before they ruined it.
Both times I was there this year there were a steady stream of people coming to take photos of it. I bet future visitors will be rather disappointed.”
