Fact Check

Was a Giant Penis 'Drawn' Into Lawn Where a King Charles Coronation Party Was Planned?

Some hard-hitting news coverage ahead of the coronation.

Published May 5, 2023

Updated May 8, 2023
 (Screenshot via Twitter/DailyLoud)
Image Via Screenshot via Twitter/DailyLoud
Claim:
In May 2023, the outline of a giant penis was created in a lawn in Bath, England, where residents' parties and gatherings were scheduled to be held to mark the coronation of King Charles.
Context

While the giant penis appeared in the grass of a historic lawn in Bath, England, it was unclear who did it or whether it was related to the planned coronation parties for King Charles on May 6, 2023.

In what some may describe as a major dick move ahead of the May 6, 2023, coronation of King Charles, someone created a large outline of a giant phallus at a park in Bath, England. According to reports, the erect penis outline was 30-feet-long and seemingly appeared overnight, noticed by local residents on May 4.

This was indeed a real outline of a giant penis cut into the lawn of the historic Royal Crescent row of houses, considered to be an important example of Georgian-era architecture. However, officials apparently don't know who did it, or why, though a number of parties and picnics had been planned in the area to mark the coronation of King Charles.

Aerial visuals of the penis appeared on SomersetLive, a local news outlet. The giant penis caused quite a stir, leaving residents "shocked," according to SomersetLive. Other residents shared photographs of it from different angles, some describing it as "very funny."

Historian and resident Kirsten Elliott Swift said in her tweets, "@Bathlive thinks [the phallus is] mown but it looks more like carefully applied herbicide." She shared photographs from the scene, largely taken from the tip of the phallus.

Speaking to us via Twitter messages, Elliott Swift wrote, "The odd thing was how symmetrical it was and how straight the lines were." She also pointed out that the grass in the shape was "browning," leading some to believe that weedkiller had been used to create the shape.

Another Twitter user, "PDouble0k," shared the following photographs from the site, tweeting, "Royal Crescent at its finest."

"PDouble0k" even posted a follow-up taken from the bottom of the phallic image:

Speaking to us via direct message, she sent another photograph with her shadow included.


(Twitter/PDouble0k)

She confirmed to us that the shape was still present in the grass when she went there around midday on May 5. However, according to a Bath-area Facebook group Born & Bred or Live in the City of Bath, the Bath & North East Somerset Council (B&NES Council) sent teams to remove it.

Facebook user Mark Foster wrote, "[B&NES] had their top team working on it this morning. The joke doesn't really work at ground level, it's a prank for the drone generation."

Somerset Live reached out to the Crescent Lawn Company, which is responsible for maintaining the grass in a section above the lawn where the penis was visible. A spokesperson said, "The Crescent Lawn Company owns and maintains only the semi-elliptical area above the ha-ha on behalf of the residents of the street; the area below (i.e. south of) the ha-ha is part of the Royal Victoria Park, which is owned and maintained by B&NES Council."

We reached out to the B&NES Council to learn more about the penis — how it was done, who could be responsible, and whether it had been removed. We will update this story if we get more information.

Sources

Adam, Bertie. "Giant Phallus Mown into Bath's Royal Crescent Days before Coronation." SomersetLive, 4 May 2023, https://www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/local-news/mystery-surrounds-30-foot-phallus-8410901.

Coronation Garden Party. https://www.totalguidetobath.com/entertainment/coronation-garden-party/?generate=cache. Accessed 6 May 2023.

Ibrahim, Nur. "Direct Messages with Kirsten Elliott Swift." 5 May 2023.

Ibrahim, Nur. "Direct Messages with PDouble0k". 5 May 2023.

"Massive Penis Is Mowed Into Lawn At King Charles Coronation Party Venue." HuffPost, 5 May 2023, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/penis-lawn-royal-crescent-king-charles-coronation_n_6454cd39e4b007e3d7d7f837.
 

Updates

May 8, 2023: We corrected the spelling of the name, Kirsten Elliott Swift.

Nur Nasreen Ibrahim is a reporter with experience working in television, international news coverage, fact checking, and creative writing.