A SCULPTURE of a Victorian opera singer will be moved to make way for metre-high letters spelling out Malvern.

The tribute to Jenny Lind was unveiled in Rosebank Gardens in October, having been delayed since 2020 because of the pandemic.

It takes the form of a statue of the singer, who was known as the Swedish Nightingale, atop a tall metal pole.

Councillors don’t want to move the statue far - just a few metres to the right so it sits alongside the Jenny Lind commemorative plaque.

READ MORE: Sculpture tribute to famous Malvern singer unveiled

This would make room for what councillors have been calling a Malvern tourism sign - a set of seven one-metre-tall letters spelling out the name of the town - to sit behind the existing bench.

It is hoped the sign will become a tourist attraction and its position behind the bench will make it easy for photos to be taken with it.

At a meeting of Malvern Town Council last night (Thursday, February 9), some councillors thought the Malvern sign would be better suited elsewhere in the park.

A vote on whether to move the Jenny Lind statue to make way for it was split, with mayor Nick Houghton using his casting vote to decide in favour of the proposal.

He told the meeting he’d be happy to explain the move to Swedish guests who attended the unveiling of the Jenny Lind sculpture, next time they visited Malvern.

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And Cllr Freya Matthews-Jones said she supported the move, saying: “The statue just doesn’t look right where it is.”

The new Malvern sign, which is to be made of galvanised steel, will cost the council £3,800. 

Jenny Lind was born in Sweden in 1820 and her career took her around the world, including a 93-show run with PT Barnum's touring group, taking in the United States, Cuba and Canada between 1850 and 1852.

In 1883 she moved to Malvern, where she lived near Wynds Point with her husband Otto Goldschmidt.

She retired from singing after one final charity concert at the Royal Malvern Spa.

She died from cancer in 1887 and she and Otto are both buried in Great Malvern Cemetery.