Tennent’s and the bars owner, Pub Enterprises Ltd, were thrilled to commission renowned street artist SMUG to paint the iconic murals earlier in the summer, but Edinburgh City Council have now highlighted that as the buildings are listed, council permission is needed for any artwork and the murals now need to be covered up.
Picture: Tennent's
Currently staring out from the gable end walls of the Shoogly Peg and Rose & Crown in the heart of Edinburgh’s New Town, the murals are a nod to a Tennent’s Lager TV ad campaign of the early 2000s. The original commercials featured the famous ‘pintlings’ and followed a Taggart-style police hunt for the cold-blooded murderers of pints in city streets.
Tennent’s are naturally disappointed but fully accept the verdict. George Kyle, Head of Sponsorship and PR at the Glasgow-based brewery said: “Looks like we’ve been caught red-handed. It turns out we should have asked for permission from the council to paint the murals on the pub walls, so sadly they will meet an untimely end next week. It’s a real shame, the murals were really eye-catching and the punters loved them, but according to the council we’re guilty as charged and plan to cover them up next week.”
The “Pintlings” artwork can also be seen on the wall outside Tennent’s Wellpark brewery in Glasgow’s East End.
