A pub landlord has been told to take down a giant mural of a bull painted on the side of his 400-year-old inn.
Martin Peel commissioned a local artist to paint the 8ft artwork on the side of The Bull’s Head in the village of Wootton Wawen, Warwickshire in April.
However, last week he received a letter from Stratford District Council saying that because the building is listed, the mural breaches planning rules.
He has four weeks to paint over the Hereford bull or face legal action, the letter stated.
Martin said he hadn’t realised he was breaking any rules, but plans to fight to keep the painting, which he added has been a hit with visitors.
The dad-of-two, who has run the 16th century pub with his partner Omm for three years, said: ‘It’s a beautiful pub and the painting just communicates what we do.
‘It was meant to be eye-catching and a bit of fun while respecting the heritage of the building.’
He said many people had assumed the pub was ‘a big house’ so they wanted something that let people know it’s not a residential property.
But he added: ‘We feel it’s a mural that works in line with the era of the heritage. We take the heritage very seriously.
‘We’ve put a new bar and period fireplace and chimney in a room that’s been ignored which was all done at our own personal cost.
‘That has been done through planning but we just didn’t realise this was a crime.
‘The council just said “it’s not acceptable”’.
Before the mural, the couple had a large vinyl banner at the front of the Grade II listed building to let visitors know it was a pub, but Martin said ‘it looked awful’ and did not fit with the heritage of the property.
So the former mechanic asked artist Phil Taylor, who has been signwriting for 40 years using traditional methods, to paint a giant bull and paid him £1,200 for the work.
Martin said the public response to the mural has been very positive.
‘We get a lot of positive comments from people in the pub, you get people stopping and taking pictures with it.’
He believes a complaint was made by ‘someone in the village who has lived in an old house for years, checked in with the council maybe and didn’t like it’.
The 52-year-old and his partner plan to approach the council formally, as they ‘need to do things properly’.
They have already consulted a local planner who told them they can’t get planning retrospectively, so are now instructing lawyers to investigate appealing the decision.
Martin said they are ‘determined’ to keep the bull painting.
He added: ‘We’d be obliterating three days of work by an artist using skills which are dying out.
‘Everything we do is with an eye on heritage. We see ourselves as a temporary custodians of this wonderful pub.’
Many residents have rallied around Martin, saying the painting has helped ‘put the village on the map’.
One local, called Jim, said: ‘It’s a real shame someone living here has moaned to the council for no reason.
‘This person has probably never even set foot inside the Bull. If they had they’d see what an amazing job Martin and Omm are doing.”
Another said: ‘Typical bully council throwing their bloody weight around. Why punish someone like Martin for doing something positive?
‘The bull mural looks amazing and has put this place on the map.’
Stratford District Council said they would not be commenting on the case.
‘Unfortunately we don’t comment on live enforcement cases,’ a spokesperson added.
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