Not everyone happy about grumpy-looking 'terrorist mermaid' mural

A large mural depicting a grumpy-looking mermaid in Sheerness, Kent, hasn't pleased everyone. Dean Tweedy painted the artwork next to the amusements in Beachfields Park. It was produced for the Promenade arts festival to fit in with its “Monsters, myths and mermaids” theme.



The fishy figure has her hand on a detonator and the mast of the SS Richard Montgomery wreck can be seen in the background, together with the slogan: “Welcome to Sheerness. You’ll have a blast.” But not everyone has seen the funny side. Matt Brown, secretary of Sheerness Enhancement Association for Leisure, said: “I don’t think many people are keen on it. I get the impression it’s been done to make a point, but if you look at the standard, it’s not that good.

“A few people have said it’s colourful. To me, it’s not a very constructive image when you are trying to improve the town.” Mr Brown, who admitted to not being a fan of murals, added: “If I was a family visiting, whether I knew about the Montgomery or not, I wouldn’t want to be sitting at the leisure park with the kids being reminded you have those explosives out there. It looks more like a terrorist mermaid.”



Mr Tweedy, of Milton Regis-based Marvellous Murals, said people were entitled to their opinion. “You cannot please everyone all the time,” he added. “It was painted for the festival. I said if they could find me a wall, that’s what I would like to paint. It was a labour of love. It’s an idea I had for a while. I wanted to make people aware of the Montgomery as it’s part of Sheerness. Some people would like to deny its existence.”