A statue of John Bonham has been unveiled in his home town on what would have been his seventieth birthday

A statue of John Bonham was installed overnight in his home town of Redditch to mark what would have been the drummer’s seventieth birthday.

A tweet from sculptor Mark Richards, who designed the statue, said that the statue was installed overnight.

Plans for the statue were approved in October

Redditch Borough Council’s planning committee unanimously approved a plan the statue in October. Councillor Matthew Dormer told LedZepNews on the evening of October 11 that the planning committee had unanimously approved the plans for the statue. He said he thought the statue would be be a “great thing” for Redditch.

John Bonham’s sister, Deborah Bonham, told the BBC that she was “absolutely thrilled” at the news.

She also reportedly said that all of the money for the memorial had been raised.

Here’s a photo of the planning committee during the meeting in which it decided to approve the proposal:

LedZepNews dug out the proposal documents in September and found images of what the planned statue will look like.

First of all, here’s where the statue is located:

The area highlighted with the bold red line is Mercian Square in Redditch town centre.

And here’s what the sculpture, which has been designed by artist Mark Richards, looks like:

Here’s the back of the sculpture:

The memorial is made out of bronze and covered in anti-graffiti paint. It’s estimated to weigh up to 2,500kg.

The application included images of a small-scale model of the proposed statue:

The application suggested that a group named “Friends of the John Bonham Memorial” could be set up to help maintain the statue.

Additionally, the proposal suggested that a yearly “Bonham Bash UK” event could be held in Redditch on the weekend closest to Bonham’s May 31 birthday. It sounds similar to the Bonzo Bash event that takes place in the US every year.

Intriguingly, a Warner Music executive has written a letter in support of the statue. Tim Fraser-Harding, who lists his title as “President, Global Catalogue, Recorded Music” said in his letter to Redditch Borough Council that the statue’s unveiling would be part of “a series of high-profile events” held to mark Led Zeppelin’s fiftieth anniversary in 2018.

View the full letter from Fraser-Harding below:

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3 Comments on "A statue of John Bonham has been unveiled in his home town on what would have been his seventieth birthday"

  1. Such a great tribute for such a great man.A truly talented,innovative,rock solid drummer who will always be missed.

  2. Been my favorite drummer since I was 12,I’m so glad they haven’t forgotten him..instead of “fake” Zeppelins'”running around we honor an ORIGINAL…HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR.BONHAM,best to your family!!

  3. Charles Reilly | 1st June 2018 at 4:49 am | Reply

    I saw John Bonham and Led Zeppelin twice. He was the backbone of the band and a spectacular drummer. He is missed by all fans of Rock and Roll music.

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