New Brighton Mural Honors Martin Parr

By Rebecca McGrath - Source: Liverpool Echo

A permanent tribute to the photographer who captured New Brighton in all its colourful, chaotic glory is to take pride of place on the town’s seafront. A major new mural is being planned in memory of Martin Parr, whose iconic series The Last Resort, which was shot between 1983 and 1985, transformed the way New Brighton was seen and helped cement its place in the history of British documentary photography.

Parr died in December 2025, aged 73, but his connection with the Wirral resort remains as strong as ever. Now New Brighton Creative Futures CIC is hoping to create a lasting tribute to the acclaimed photographer, with the project being developed in collaboration with the Martin Parr Foundation.

John McCall, membership manager at the Martin Parr Foundation, said Parr was immensely proud of The Last Resort and regarded it as his most important body of work.

The 44-year-old from Falkirk, Scotland, told the ECHO: “When he was asked about it, he always said that was his most important body of work.

“He’s quoted as saying, when he gets to the pearly gates, that’s the body of work he would present first. He was very proud of it.”

The photographs, taken on New Brighton’s seafront in the 1980s, proved controversial in some quarters, with critics accusing Parr of presenting a working-class community in an unsympathetic light. But for John, the pictures were simply an honest record of the time.

He said: “It had a critical reception at the time and was quite a controversial body of work, both in the subject matter and the way that he shot in colour with flash. It made a big splash and helped make Martin’s name in photography.

“To some audiences, they thought here’s a working-class community portrayed in not a very sympathetic light, but to me, I grew up working-class, I went on holiday to places like that, that’s just how it was.

“It was a faithful record of a time. Everyone looks like they’re having a great time.”

While The Last Resort attracted controversy when it was later exhibited in London, its reception closer to home was very different.

John said: “When Martin talked about the controversy around it, he said when it was shown in Liverpool, no one batted an eyelid, and everyone loved it. It was only when it went down to London that there was a kind of outcry from the establishment that they thought it was punching down.”

He added that two men from New Brighton recently travelled to an event at the Martin Parr Foundation and spoke about their pride in the town and the collection of photographs.

He said: “They spoke really movingly about how proud they were of the town and how proud they were that this collection of photographs has become so famous. They were completely in support of it. It’s for the people of New Brighton to decide.”

For Parr himself, New Brighton was much more than simply the setting for a photographic project.

John said he understood that Parr and his wife Susie had loved living in Wirral, with New Brighton becoming part of their everyday lives.

John said: “I know that both he and Susie loved living there. Susie’s quoted as saying that they’d come out the house, he’d turn left and go along New Brighton to shoot for the day and she’d turn right and roller skate along to get the ferry across the Mersey for her work. It sounded really idyllic.”

The series has continued to resonate with the people who live in, or have connections to, New Brighton. John said the foundation still receives regular messages from people recognising relatives in Parr’s photographs.

He said: “We’ve had so many requests here in the foundation from people who are photographed in it. Martin always said he’d send a print to anyone who was in the pictures.

“We get an email every couple of months from people saying, ‘That’s my aunt’, or ‘That’s my grandma. Can we get a copy of a print?’”

Now, decades after Parr first turned his camera towards the town, a new generation is hoping to ensure his connection with it is never forgotten.

The mural was proposed by New Brighton Creative Futures CIC, which has been developing a collection of large-scale artworks along the seafront as part of the town’s OpenAir Gallery.

The Martin Parr Foundation was approached by the organisation and has given its blessing to the project, as well as agreeing to help promote it. John said the mural is expected to feature a realistic depiction of Parr himself, created by local artist Liam Bononi.

He said: “It’s the perfect time for a tribute to Martin. The CIC knew Martin’s work and the importance to the area, so they reached out to make sure we were happy with it.

“I know they’re working closely with Liam, who is known for quite realistic, true-to-life depictions of people. So we believe it’ll be a true-to-life depiction of Martin.”

The final design has been left to Bononi, with the artist given the freedom to decide whether and how elements of Parr’s work might feature. The mural will be located on the seafront in New Brighton, placing the tribute close to the landscape that became synonymous with Parr’s most celebrated photographs.

John said: “The people who already know of Martin will be chuffed that he’s now remembered permanently there.

“And for the people that don’t know of it, they’ll go and find out and find his work afresh.”

The project is now seeking public donations, with supporters able to contribute towards the mural and the public programme planned around it. Local and regional businesses are also being invited to get involved as sponsors.

Rory Wilmer, Creative Director Founder, New Brighton Creative Futures CIC said: “Martin Parr saw something in New Brighton that the rest of the world had overlooked, and he turned it into some of the most important photographs Britain has ever produced.

“When he passed away, we felt that loss as a town.

“This mural is our thank you, a way to keep him here, on the seafront he loved, for generations to come. We’d be honoured if the people of New Brighton would help us build it.”