Installed in 1999 at a cost around £270,000 Shoulder To Shoulder consisted of 52 concrete figures that were designed to act as a safety barrier to protect pedestrians from heavy traffic around the Haymarket Metro station.
The statues also had a water feature which did'nt work too well, often soaking unaware passers-by when it was windy, and it was turned off permanently some time later. The statues quickly became known as the Lego Men and you would have been hard pushed to find someone that did'nt have an opinion on them.
31st May 2005
21st August 2005
They were removed in 2008 when the Haymarket Metro Station underwent a facelift. This was to be a temporary measure according to a council spokesman A few of the statues are being taken out to allow access to the Metro station for the rebuilding, but will be put back. They never made it back to the Haymarket.
Ideas for the relocation of the statues have included Exhibition Park, Great Park housing estate near Gosforth and Hadrian’s Way coast-to-coast trail. Meanwhile, they lie on an unsecured bit of wasteland near the Central Motorway.
20th February 2011
In September 2011 Newcastle City Council said the Lego Men sculptures would be sold on eBay and one was given away in a competition by the Evening Chronicle.
The Lost Lego Men of Newcastle.
More Information:
- Sitelines - Newcastle, Haymarket, 'Shoulder to Shoulder'
- Chronicle Live - Controversial Lego Men stored in wasteland
- BBC - Newcastle Lego Men sculptures for sale on eBay
- Chronicle Live - Lego Men prize for Chester-le-Street woman
- BBC - Newcastle 'Lego Man' sells for more than £1,000 in online auction
- Chronicle Live - Newcastle's 'Legomen' are springing up in suburban gardens across the city
See my other photos around The Haymarket:
- Barras Bridge - Armstrong Statue
- Barras Bridge - Civic Centre
- Barras Bridge - The Great North Museum
- Barras Bridge - The Hancock Museum
- Barras Bridge - The Response (War Memorial)
- Barras Bridge - Royal Tank Regiment War Memorial
- Haymarket
- Haymarket - Metro Station Redevelopment
- Newcastle University
- Northumberland Street
- Northumbria University
- Percy Street
They were pretty unloved weren't they? those poor old lego men.
ReplyDeleteI think, like you, they were in the wrong place, a war memorial is a place which should be dignified.
The lego men shouldn't go to waste though, they would look fine somewhere a bit more appropriate, as you suggest.