IT was an April Fool's Day with a difference for town council works staff in Tavistock this week, as they downed tools in the depot in order to carry out a hasty operation at one of the town's most prominent landmarks. Following a flurry of calls and emails to the Times, the council was alerted to the fact that Sir Francis Drake, who surveys Tavistock from his vantage point in Plymouth Road, was nonchalantly sporting a large appendage. Wayne Southall, the works superintendent, said: 'It looked very real — it was bronze in colour and looked like part of the statue — it's quite impressive — I think Sir Francis would've been proud!' Mr Southall said the offending object had been attached to the statue with a sucker and wire. It took about ten minutes for staff to remove the addition to the salty sea dog's ballooned pants, much to the amusement of passers-by. The matter was brought to the attention of the council during their meeting on Tuesday, when Tavistock resident Iain Andrews asked for an opinion on the 'embellishment' to the town's famous statue. Deputy mayor Cllr Robin Pike assured the public gallery that 'a surgical operation' had been carried out to restore Sir Francis' dignity.
