The controversial Fitzroy banana statue located on the busy intersection of Brunswick Street/Rose Street — may soon find a new home — at John Oliver‘s house (???).
The 1.8m statue, meant to represent hubris and climate change, was recently put into storage after intense public scrutiny. In fact, some cheeky bugger tried to behead the statue like Fitzroy’s very own Marie Antoinette. Luckily for the statue, they didn’t succeed. Not so lucky for the people of Fitzroy though, who would’ve rather seen the banana rot in hell.
However, as a former Fitzroy resident (which shouldn’t be surprising for a lefty journalist) I got nothing but joy from the Brunswick St relic. It was a fun addition to my weekly walk to the fancy Coles on Johnston St.
I for one, welcomed our new demon banana overlord.
According to The Guardian, Oliver offered to pay $10 for the statue in exchange for an alligator with a raised middle finger. He also offered to donate $10k to Melbourne Foodbank and $5k to Australia Zoo.
Unfortunately for the comedian, the City of Yarra is not ready to part with it, but did offer Oliver a private viewing.
“We are so excited to hear John Oliver loves our banana sculpture as much as we do, but I am sad to say the City of Yarra is not ready to part with it just yet,” Mayor Sophie Wade said.
“I would like to officially extend an invitation to John Oliver to come down under and visit Yarra.”
The banana ripened debate when it was revealed the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) spent a whopping $22k of a tax-payer funded $100k grant on the statue. If the money had come from anywhere else, that may have made more sense. But from an organisation meant to keep our roads safe, it seemed like an odd move.
Do you find this artwork a-peeling? 🍌
The City of Yarra has come under fire for spending $22,000 on a sculpture of a banana. #9News pic.twitter.com/z56DhkSdET
— 9News Melbourne (@9NewsMelb) November 26, 2021
The intention of the statue was to slow traffic in the area. However, an easier solution might’ve been to extend the free-tram zone to just outside the CBD and encourage people to use the tram instead of driving. But ehh, who am I to tell the government how to run themselves?
Really side-splitting stuff.
