New street art featuring Wimbledon native ecowarriors, The Wombles, has been unveiled at Wimbledon station today.
The mural depicts stars of the 1973 TV show The Wombles, with a new-look Great Uncle Bulgaria, Orinoco, Tobermory, Alderney and Madame Cholet, painting over unpleasant graffiti.
The mural, commissioned by the Wimbledon Business Improvement District (BID), was even attended by Orinoco, the troublesome star of the children’s TV show.
The work intends to promote environmentalism within the local area using The Wombles’ eco-conscious message which has featured since Elisabeth Beresford’s first Wombles book in 1968.
Head Womble Great Uncle Bulgaria said: “If we all do our bit, we can make the town the greenest in the country.
“We hope everyone likes our #WomblesLoveWimbledon message around the town.
“You’ll spot Tobermory, Alderney, Madame Cholet and Orinoco doing their bit to remove graffiti.
“I will be drinking a nice cup of tea whilst they are hard at work.”
The project was part-funded by South West Railway, which manages Wimbledon station and the mural was created by Graffiti Kings, a London-based street art team.
Mark Youngman, Customer and Communities Improvement Manager at South Western Railway said: “It’s good to see The Wombles back in Wimbledon and we are sure the commuters passing to and from Waterloo will love it!”
Wimbledon’s BID aims to promote business in the local area and is funded by a levy on business rates to invest in local projects.
This is the second collaboration between Wimbledon BID, SWR and the Wombles after Wimbledon BID also installed eco-conscious messages on signage at Wimbledon station yesterday.
The BID was extended for a second five-year term in 2017 after a successful first-term in which they received BID accreditation.
