Philip Larkin - Memorials

Memorials

Memorials to Larkin in Kingston upon Hull, where he worked and wrote much of his poetry, are the Larkin Building at the University of Hull housing teaching facilities and lecture rooms and the Philip Larkin Centre for Poetry and Creative Writing which hosts a regular programme of literary events.

In 2010 the city marked the 25th anniversary of his death with the Larkin 25 Festival. A video was commissioned to illustrate Larkin's poem "Here", his hymn to Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire. Forty decorated toad sculptures entitled "Larkin with Toads" were displayed in the city in tribute to Larkin's poem "Toads" on 17 July 2010. A life-size bronze statue of Larkin by sculptor Martin Jennings was unveiled at Hull Paragon Interchange on 2 December 2010, closing the Larkin 25 events. It is inscribed, "That Whitsun I was late getting away", from the poem, The Whitsun Weddings. Funding for the £100,000 statue, designed by Martin Jennings, was raised at charity events and auctions with support from Hull City Council. The unveiling was accompanied by Nathaniel Seaman's Fanfare for Larkin, composed for the occasion.

• Sculpture of Larkin as a toad, Kingston upon Hull displayed during the Larkin 25 Festival in 2010

• Bronze Statue of Phillip Larkin, by sculptor Martin Jennings, at Hull paragon station