All ten of the Oor Wullie statues placed around Inverness have been given a final pampering ahead of their farewell event to be hosted in the city’s Falcon Square.
The statues, which have held post at locations such as Inverness Castle, the Caledonian Stadium and Cavell Gardens, were taken to Eastgate Shopping Centre to allow artist Suzanne Scott to touch up any marks of wear and tear ahead of their auction and removal to their forever homes.
Miss Scott, art director of The Archie Foundation, said: “It has been a great chance to see them all together.
“All we have really been doing is giving them a wee bath, pamper and paint ahead of the farewell event.
“There are bits of wear and tear but they have done really well. There are a couple of marks but Inverness has looked after them so well and I am very impressed.”
She added: “The whole trail from start to now has been a massive success. We have had various stats come in throughout and one that leapt at me was that in July, the app had hit a million hits which is just amazing. I am glad it has attracted so much attention.
“There has been a bit of a rush over the last week from people desperate to catch them all before they are no longer there.
“They really have captured the imagination and introduced Wullie to a new generation.
“The trail has really brought the artists, communities and business together all for one cause.
“For the artists, it has been a delight to see something bring so many smiles whilst at the same time raising a lot of money for a great cause. It really is something to be quite proud of.”
The Oor Wullie’s BIG Bucket Trail farewell event takes place in Inverness on September 13 and marks an end of the three-month-long celebration of one of Scotland’s most famous comic book characters.