A NEW mural on Liverpool’s waterfront, featuring Wirral’s Paul O’Grady among other Merseyside stars, has been unveiled.

The mural at ACC Liverpool was created by artist Joseph Venning and is designed to highlight the figures from different eras who have defined the city’s cultural life.

Stretching 40m, and two metres high, the mural can be seen by visitors as they arrive at ACC Liverpool, next to the Pullman Hotel and Exhibition Centre Liverpool.

The artwork is divided into five themes; music, sport, comedy, drama, and visual art. Figures from each field are depicted in the artworks.

The first section shows Liverpool’s rich music history, celebrating the faces of well known artists like Sir Paul McCartney to The La's and Spice Girl Mel C. Famous venues like Eric’s and Nation are also included.

The comedy section is a nod to Liverpool’s famous sense of humour, with the late Birkenhead-born comedian’s iconic Lily Savage depicted alongside Sir Ken Dodd and John Bishop.

The visual art collection includes Little Girl Giant, Sir Antony Gormley’s Another Place at Crosby Beach, George Stubbs and Sir Peter Blake’s Dazzle Ferry.

The Drama section references Liverpool’s theatres and stage talent, including Stephen Graham, Jodie Comer, Kim Cattrell alongside the city’s literary greats including Frank Cottrell Boyce and Beryl Bainbridge.

Sports covers talents from Beth Tweddle to boxing legends Natasha Jonas and John Conteh. 

Joe Venning said: “The idea of this design was to create a wall that is a celebration of Liverpudlians.

“It highlights diverse achievements in various fields, to both visitors to the city and locals alike; hopefully inspiring them to think 'If they can do it, so can I.

“Highlights of the painting process include being tapped on the shoulder by Natasha Jonas to thank me for including her, and discovering, courtesy of Lady Anne Dodd, that I had placed Ken Dodd between one of his key influences, Arthur Askey, and Paul O’Grady, who always credited Ken as one of his heroes.”

The mural has been funded by Liverpool BID Company’s Art & Culture Fund and has been developed by ACC Liverpool and dot-art.