Ernie's Bronze Sculpture:
"Yarn With Ernie"
This page is under construction but the links work if you'd like to visit them.
Hope you enjoy. Thanks, Roy.
Mark Goldsworthy - Artist and Sculptor
Karen and the family are excited to announce that Mark Goldsworthy, Artist and Sculptor based in Bungay, Suffolk, has been commissioned to design and create a bronze sculpture commemorating Ernie to be erected as part of the Sculpture Trail mentioned in the articles below.
Here is a snip from Mark's website. Please click the link above to visit his website.
Mark's work is already known in Great Yarmouth.
Here is his sculpture, carved in wood, located on the eastern perimeter of St George's Park.
For those who don't know, the park is located a few minutes walk from the seafront,
a couple of blocks to the south of Regent Road,
and Nelson Road Central runs along its eastern side.
The sculpture was commissioned in 2008.
It depicts St George silencing the dragon by stuffing a gag into its mouth.
A scroll with the name of the park carved upon it is draped around the pair
Here is a snip from a Great Yarmouth Borough Council website article. Please click here to read the full article.
From 6th February 2025, below is a snip from Great Yarmouth Borough Council's website. Click here to see the article.
Here is a snip from a BBC News website article. Please click here to read the full article.
Below is a snip from a further press release from BBC News website dated 8th February 2025. Click here to read it all.
Another snip from a BBC News article. Please click here to read the full article.
Images from Mark's Studio during the many stages of the sculpture process.
Ernie and Karen's eldest son, Marc visits Mark at his studio
where he is measured up in connection with his dad's sculpture.
Here, for you to scan through,
is an image slider
of steps in the process of the
creation of the moulds
which will be used to turn Mark's sculpture into a bronze casting.
Hover over the image to reveal the forwards and backwards browsing arrows.
... a photograph and a short video shot at the foundry during the casting of the bronze elements of the sculpture.
Latest images of the castings sent by Mark, 23rd - 31st Jan 2025.
Looking marvellous!
... and mid-February ...
The North and South end of the Marketplace have been undergoing a massive refurbishment programme and here we can see that the south end is nearing completion.
The bronze casting of Mark Goldsworthy's marvellous sculpture of Ernie was delivered to site yesterday (18th March 2025).
It just so happened that Ernie and Karen's eldest son, Marc, was in the marketplace when it arrived, so he was able to get photo's on the spot. A regular ear-to-the-ground journalist, eh Marc?
Hopefully he will get some of his photo's to me so that I can share them with you. But he's a busy lad, so I won't hassle him. Just keep your eyes peeled here for updates.
The official dedication of the bronze, along with the other pieces on the Sculpture Trail is reckoned to be sometime in June. Further news will appear here, of course.
Today, Friday 21st March 2025. I think they must be expecting a storm at sea.
They've battened down the hatches on the Marketplace and Ernie has got his oversized sou'wester on.
The only part that could get waterlogged is his "brahn booits".
(That's brown boots to a non-Yorkshire-speaking person hehe.)
Today, Thursday 3rd April 2025.
The weather today is better, so they've removed Ernie's sou'wester
and reinstated the paving round his feet.
The wooden benches have been installed for his audience
and the official unveiling is pencilled in for June.
Watch this space for confirmation.
If you would like to be notified personally of the date of the event,
maybe because you would like to attend,
Karen is planning to ask Mary Anne, the new proprietor of the Old Smokehouse Buildings
(Great Yarmouth Potteries former premises) if she will open for refreshments
for those of you who would be interested in seeing how
the transformation of the buildings has progressed under her stewardship.
If you would like to be contacted by phone message or email,
please use the contact form on the website, or message Karen to indicate your interest.
Today (Thursday, 10th April 2025)
Ernie is open to the public
and just happened to be
entertaining a guest
as I passed through the
marketplace this afternoon.
Brilliant! It was so nice to
see the bench in use.
... and looking back towards the installation from further north down the marketplace.
Today, Sunday 11th April 2025, I just happened to be passing through the marketplace when I spied this family enjoying taking each other's photo's with Ernie. He would have loved that. He was a family man through and through.
I thought of approaching the family to get some shots from the front, but I thought better of it.
Better that I take some candid shots so as not to inhibit their enjoyment. Then I approached the adults and asked their permission to share my photo's of them with you. They agreed enthusiastically and so, here they are!
