A statue has been created to honour a missing duck with an unusually long neck after he became a famous face at a university campus - before hitting stardom across the globe.
Long Boi, a cross between an Indian Runner duck and a mallard, stole the hearts of thousands of people worldwide with his "majestic" looks. The sweet duck was a popular resident at the University of York's campus near Derwent College and he had an Instagram account capturing his every move.
The animal, who was dubbed a "legend" by some of his 57.6k social media followers, became famous after he appeared on James Corden's The Late Late Show in April 2021. But two years later, students feared the worst after the waterfowl, who stood at over 70cm tall, had not been spotted for more than a week.
The statue is set to be fully unveiled in the coming weeks (Neil R Mason / SWNS)
Long Boi is a popular resident on campus (University of York / SWNS)After students raised their concerns in May last year, the university sadly concluded that he had died weeks later. Admirers of the tall waterfowl crowdfunded more than £5,500 to erect a lifesize statue of the campus icon. Welsh sculptor Neil Mason has now completed the mould of the statue and unveiled the visage of the duck ahead of its journey to Greece to be cast in bronze, reports The Press.
He said: "I looked into the backstory of Long Boi and there were a number of things that appealed to me and I was really taken aback by the story and the fun of it. It also spoke to my commitment of mental health and student wellbeing was a big key part of Long Boi. The university also seemed to be quite pro-physiological wellbeing so that was quite appealing. It's obviously wildlife so that got me quite inspired and energised and that really got me interested. I think they might have struggled to get the bronze statue with their budget but it's such a good story so I said I would get it done."
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The statue will be placed by the campus lake (Neil R Mason / SWNS)
Neil said he was determined to help the university (Courtesy of Neil R Mason / SWNS)University of York Students' Union (YUSU) president Pierrick Roger said: "It's been a journey of duck-termination to reach this stage, as we waddled through scoping work, planning applications, and general memorial design. Our sculptor, Neil, has been hard at work hand-carving our quack-star to life in the most magnificent way. His dedication and talent shine through in every feather, capturing Long Boi's spirit and essence with incredible precision." The finished work will be unveiled in the coming weeks and is expected to be placed next to the lake where he had once lived.
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