Athlone Mans Cemetery Memorial Weighs 37 Tonnes

goldenmick · 23-03-2022 02:20PM #1

You couldn't make it up... or could you?

Four Irish flags and 37 tonnes of Italian marble celebrate the life of Athlone man William Collins at a Sheffield cemetery in England. He died in Spain in 2020.

Do you think this is well over the top, or do you think it's fine to have an extravagant "Elvis" style tribute in a public cemetery? More to the point would you have something like this... always assuming you could afford it that is.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-60838880

BorneTobyWilde · 23-03-2022 02:25PM

Never heard of him, was he famous, or just a .......

eh.. regular man in the street. Must be rich family to afford it

ohnonotgmail · 23-03-2022 02:27PM

Money can't buy taste.

glenfieldman · 23-03-2022 02:28PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118823479#Comment_118823479

Ill gotten gained money

goldenmick · 23-03-2022 02:28PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118823474#Comment_118823474

Apparently he was a well known bare-knuckle boxer...

https://showbizcast.com/william-oliver-collins-ireland-sheffield-boxer-age-death-net-worth

josip · 23-03-2022 02:32PM

9 kids, died at the age of 49. And they know that he went to heaven, not the hot place.

I've searched and my suspicions were confirmed about 'Big Willy', the King.

Atlantic Dawn · 23-03-2022 02:35PM

Built without permission, wonder will the council do anything or does his family get an exemption over everyone else?

For Forks Sake · 23-03-2022 03:51PM

Both havens of criminality

For Forks Sake · 23-03-2022 03:52PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118823534#Comment_118823534

Stick a Ukrainian flag on it, Russians will have it levelled in five minutes.

T-Maxx · 23-03-2022 04:00PM

Culture

Feisar · 23-03-2022 04:15PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118823534#Comment_118823534

Are our neighbors as culturally sensitive as our good selves?

Captain Barnacles · 23-03-2022 05:02PM

Pure class

BattleCorp1 · 23-03-2022 05:04PM

They certainly think big. It has a solar powered jukebox built into it. Pure class.

silliussoddius · 23-03-2022 05:05PM

I expect a future History Channel show on this marvel of modern engineering.

Gregor Samsa · 23-03-2022 05:20PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118824316#Comment_118824316

Bizarrely, this Italian dude did it in 2017

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-41940005

donegal_man · 23-03-2022 05:27PM

Maybe trying to establish an English version of Romania's "Merry Cemetery"

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ly2Jq25WU3o

Ubbquittious · 23-03-2022 06:28PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118824815#Comment_118824815

He was about 5 years ahead of his time with that colour scheme.

fryup · 23-03-2022 06:45PM

they want to call in the army for back up if they intend on dismantling that 😐️ it'll cause ruptions

23-03-2022 06:51PM

I hate to see the tricolor on these monstrosities.

Dr Turk Turkelton · 23-03-2022 07:22PM

One good thing about the Brits is they don't really appreciate "culture".

They won't be long tearing that sh1t down.

touts · 23-03-2022 07:42PM

Just bulldoze the **** thing.

And repeat every time they stick up another one.

buried · 23-03-2022 07:44PM

You can't let them break the regulations, if they do, then the next headstone put up will be ten times bigger than this one. This happens all the time over here, Cemetery regulations are broken and nobody dares say a word to them. It's all for show, it's all to out-do the other crowd, and all that money is sent over to India, China, SA, Italy etc for the materials. It's an absolute disgrace and serious questions need to be asked where is this money coming from. If I went in to a local car dealership in the morning and bought a fleet of vans for 240,000 euros, in the afternoon I'd have Revenue breathing down my neck demanding to know where I got the money from.

This has to be put to a stop over here. Their memorials are getting more outlandish and crazier by the year because the rules are not being implemented.

Authorities also have to ask what kind of foundations are being erected underneath the structures, because if the foundation isn't engineered to load the 37 tonne, which this one almost certainly does not, then the next burial that the council digs out could set off a good section of the monument to come crashing down, into the open grave and ergo straight on top of anybody below who is digging out the grave. Mark my words, that scenario will one day happen, really soon in this country, I've seen the foundations for some of these things and they wouldn't hold up a small wooden garden shed. The current regulation implementations in Irish Cemeteries are an absolute joke.

BingCrosbee · 23-03-2022 07:50PM

He’s not from Athlone. He’s a member of the Limerick ethnic minority group. He’s gone to the Traveller heaven.

Andrea B. · 23-03-2022 09:20PM

Peter'll be without gates.

laoisgem · 23-03-2022 09:42PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118825928#Comment_118825928

This made me snigger, kudos

fryup · 24-03-2022 12:12AM

Traveller Heaven?? you mean Rathkeale?

Juran · 25-03-2022 05:51PM

Daily Mail's latest story is the wife/family are employing around the clock security to prevent the council from touching it. His wife said that council are being Racist as they are traveller, and she would resort to "using violence" is anyone tries to remove the WC monument. I think I,ll book a flight over to watch this show 😁

Hope Sheffield council has more b*lls than the do-gooder council crimbins we have over here.

Yeah, agree with previous poster, its a shame Irish flags are flying over the grave, insult to the Irish living in the UK and the rest of us in Ireland.

Imagine if say an Albanian family built something like that in an Irish cemetary, and flew Albanian flags over it, how quick would local council be in removing it ?? I'd say very quick, compared with a similar structure erected by a 'cultured' Irish clan.