'No complaints' from Jimmy Carr after New Plymouth visit

Thu, Jan 12

British comedian Jimmy Carr says he has "no complaints" after his visit to New Plymouth, after this week's dig at the Taranaki city that he claimed was "no improvement on the original".

"It's another day in New Plymouth and I saw the sight (singular), it's a ball on a stick," Carr tweeted late last night.

He included a picture of a knitted version of himself in front of the Wind Wand, a 48-metre-tall kinetic sculpture by Len Lye.

The fibreglass art work was first installed in December 1999 at a cost of $300,000, with two-thirds of the funding coming from the Lottery Grants Board - and locals believe touching the Wind Wand brings good Lotto luck, according to Hello Taranaki.

One Kiwi commenter was quick to jump to the sculpture's defence: "Shhh, don't tell everyone, they'll all want one."

And ultimately, despite his fault-finding, Carr reserved from judging the city too harshly.

"Still, a couple of great restaurants, friendly people and great crowds, so no complaints," he said.

It's not the first time a British comedian has taken a dig at a New Zealand city.

John Cleese called Palmerston North "grotty" after visiting in 2005.

In retaliation, local authorities named the city's dump site after the comedian, creating what many know as Mt Cleese.

Carr is in New Zealand for his Terribly Funny tour with shows to come in Wellington, Dunedin and Auckland.

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