In CGP Grey's video about "Sharks!", he said "apparently shark art has a history in England". Consider this an unofficial prequel!

@JackP16

Жыл бұрын

Ok

@Popotato7777

Жыл бұрын

And a tragic one it is.

@namii1016

Жыл бұрын

p

@N0Xa880iUL

Жыл бұрын

Interesting timeing! I must say

@bardsonahill

Жыл бұрын

I literally thought this was about SHARKS!!!

This is the true aftermath of a Sharknado that no-one wants to talk about

@paulpollock3804

Жыл бұрын

Nicely done sir, nicely done 👏🏼

@jamesengland7461

Жыл бұрын

Happens every year here in Oklahoma.

@toaster-real

Жыл бұрын

@@jamesengland7461 da fuc going on in Oklahoma 💀

@unniFI

Жыл бұрын

is a sharknado like a horse tornado but with sharks tornading instead of horses?

@ivangh94

Жыл бұрын

I knew it was real!

As a local I'm always proud when people talk about the headington shark, it's such a landmark installation you truly can't miss it

@EnergeticSpark63

Жыл бұрын

hey

@farrel_ra

Жыл бұрын

@@EnergeticSpark63 hi

@EnergeticSpark63

Жыл бұрын

@@farrel_ra hey

@johnfisher247

Жыл бұрын

That's flakey.

@benhall2235

Жыл бұрын

Me too.

The only thing you have to watch out for when it comes to maintenance are the shark edges.

@carlmanvers5009

Жыл бұрын

That pun nearly jumped the shark.

@youssefbencheikh8637

4 ай бұрын

It'll get repaired one day, shark my words!

I grew up just around the corner from this and I must say it brought me and my brothers endless joy as children trying to figure out how it got there. My dad sportingly insisted for years that it was real, blowing our little minds.

@mimii694

Жыл бұрын

I live nearby too and when I had hospital appointments and walked up to the JR and past this house my Mum would ALWAYS say it was real too. Took me longer than it should've to realise that it wasn't.

@lovelifeandothers6784

Жыл бұрын

Do you remember the legs sculpture on the building opposite?!

@danielr82

Жыл бұрын

I used to live on Lime walk, when I moved there people would say have you seen the shark, - I had no idea what they were on about. all I could see out of my window was some scaffolding over the house behind our house, then one day, the scaffolding and tarpaulins were gone, and the shark was there, restored, painted and the roof was fixed... - was quite a shock to wake up and see that outside of my bedroom window!

@TheMcPhersonTape

Жыл бұрын

Sharknado innit

@rjjcms1

Жыл бұрын

It is real. They fed it all the councillors who are now gone,and when no-one's looking it has a wriggle and flaps its fins and tail.

Over 20 years ago, my sister and I got a bit lost in Oxford, and ended up driving down this street. We'd never heard of this, so to suddenly come across a giant shark tail, sticking out of a roof, in one of the most normal looking streets in England, was hilarious! It really made our day!

@Cyba_IT

Жыл бұрын

I wonder how many thousands of other people have been similarly confused and amused.

@tarananajaika

Жыл бұрын

@@Cyba_IT I wonder how many car crashes it caused because people got distracted.

@Smiley957

Жыл бұрын

@@tarananajaika none

@Zack-fu4lo

Жыл бұрын

@@tarananajaika that's on them. Not the shark.

@DarkGladiator

Жыл бұрын

@@Cyba_IT is that an arch linux logo on your pfp

I was born with a Chronic illness and had to travel to and from the JR Hospital almost my entire life, with some inpatient visits lasting months. I can honestly say I used to get excited about seeing this shark as I grew up and it still brings me a smile when I see it as an adult. I never knew it's meaning, I never had any reason to explore further. I just loved the smiles it brought me on every trip. It always lifted my spirits on the way to a very grim and scary hospital visit. I LOVE THIS ARTWORK.

I was going to Uni that morning and imagine my face when I see Tom getting out of this house. I knew what was going on immediately. I nervously babbled ‘Hi I see your videos! Nice!’. And that really made my day!

the blahaj was by far the most important part of this video

@TheGreaterDane

3 ай бұрын

100%

@goldenpiston8449

3 ай бұрын

yessssssss

@wattieiscute

3 ай бұрын

this

I'm really glad the shark house has the very important blåhaj shark as part of interior decoration, wouldn't be complete without it

@elaineb7065

Жыл бұрын

YES!!! Came for Blahaj, stayed for roof shark xxx

@vividandlucid

Жыл бұрын

blåhaj my beloved

@Mats-Hansen

Жыл бұрын

Magnus Hanson-Heine - there surely must be some Scandinavian influence here?

@KamoSensei

Жыл бұрын

BLAHAAAAAAJ mine is named Kwak because that's ducks crie and I love ducks :D

@ThAlEdison

Жыл бұрын

*nods*

3:25 Blahaj appearance

love that there’s a blahaj to go with it

As a renowned marine biologist I can confirm that is in fact the very rare Terraced Headed Shark.

@cometisV2

Жыл бұрын

they're critically endangered, right?

@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721

Жыл бұрын

Ah, yes, _sphyrna ceilingus._

@donoimdono2702

Жыл бұрын

Giles - 😆

@anxiousearth680

Жыл бұрын

@A Megalodon With Internet Connection Dude, how are you getting internet in the ocean. Ship workers would probably kill to get service. What's your ISP?

@cormoranoimperatore8413

Жыл бұрын

@@anxiousearth680 it evolved a Wi-Fi antenna duh

Decorating your house without asking your neighbors for permission, as a protest, is so British that now I need tea

@BeetleBuns

Жыл бұрын

happens in the US quite a lot too, it's a very common thing. Maybe not protesting the government like this shark, but very similar

@fwmh

Жыл бұрын

@@BeetleBuns yea! Carhenge in Nebraska

@moosemaimer

Жыл бұрын

My previous landlord, ages ago, wanted to put a pool in his backyard, behind a fence, but the historical society said it wasn't allowed. He threatened to paint the whole house in polka dots because there wasn't anything in the regs about repainting.

@noire1001

Жыл бұрын

@@BeetleBuns Its way worse in the US with HOAs etc. People get fined for not mowing their lawns, never mind installing a giant shark on the roof.

@fds7476

Жыл бұрын

I'm German, and our neighbours once threw a dead mole on our lawn. Between that and calling the police, this is the standard German way of carrying out neighbours' feuds.

As an Oxford local it’s super surreal and fascinating to see you covering this. It’s a local icon but I didn’t know a lot of the history behind it.

I moved to Oxford for uni and the shark is so fun! A lot of the historical sites in this city are all connected to the University of Oxford - only really used by academics who've moved to the area, or students who pass through and leave. The shark is firmly a part of the history of the 'town', a fun part of the local area where the permanent residents live and work, I really like it for that.

@Supremax67

Жыл бұрын

A shark's tale about a shark's tail.

When I saw the title of this video I thought it was going to be about the "Sharks!" sculptures that CGP Grey did a video about. I was not expecting that there would be another shark sculpture built without planning permission in the UK

@MichaelAW17

Жыл бұрын

Sharks are very well known for their anti establishment stances.

@andrewjones575

Жыл бұрын

The timing of this video's release made me think it'd be about Rishi Sunak.

@Kibannn

Жыл бұрын

lmaooo same

@tsunamie1126

Жыл бұрын

Maybe it is the locked away Megalodon.

@MazHazPazzaz

Жыл бұрын

@Teamgeist CGPGrey, funny, genuine, and intelligent KZreadr. Does animations about educational topics, like "What is the solution to traffic?" Or "Who really owns the Statue of Liberty". One of his videos was one about a art group creating a instillation of five sharks, literally titled "Sharks!", And how the artists are in a battle with the Hackney Council

The fact that there is a blåhaj on the fireplace is one of the best bits about this house they know exactly their theme and are running with it

@evanray8413

Жыл бұрын

Explain plz.

@CA-9526

Жыл бұрын

@@evanray8413 A shark soft toy produced by Ikea.

@gonk986

Жыл бұрын

Blahaj sweep

@nightsfool2693

Жыл бұрын

The fact that Tom Scott did a panning close shot of blåhaj is so funny to me. Hats off to the guy being interviewed putting that there.

@KunoMochi

Жыл бұрын

Look up IKEA Japan Blåhaj real estate

Take it down quietly in the night and spend the next 20 years with the council demanding it's put back.

I’m a town planner with a council in Sydney. Our unit manager is a brit, and whenever we’re hung up on small things in planning assessment he points to this and says that this was allowed to stay and not to worry about that stuff.

Absolutely love how you can see this dude smiling from the very beginning as he explains the shark, like it’s gotta be an endless source of ridiculous yet positive vibes

@israelisjeshuas7009

Жыл бұрын

It’s definitely all positive vibes. Except the leaky roof issues!

@thewardenofoz3324

Жыл бұрын

nah it's just garden-variety attention seeking.

@mbrunnme

Жыл бұрын

@@thewardenofoz3324 no.

@thewardenofoz3324

Жыл бұрын

@@mbrunnme yeh

@claredavies21

Жыл бұрын

(;´༎ຶٹ༎ຶ`)(;´༎ຶٹ༎ຶ`)

It has already been immortalized as a key case study in planning and property law in university lectures, it being physically protected is just a footnote in its magnificence

@eadweard.

Жыл бұрын

Would it have been equally magnificent had it been created to protest immigration, or something like that?

@ricardokowalski1579

Жыл бұрын

It is not being protected..it is being now mandated to bankrupt the owner Soon they will start requiring a schedule of mandatory paintings per year

@Schattengewaechs99

Жыл бұрын

@@ricardokowalski1579 Couldn’t the owners delegate the maintenance to a foundation?

@fawncashew

Жыл бұрын

@@ricardokowalski1579 That is precisely what protection is - requiring the individual, authority or business in charge of a valued asset to maintain said asset. That is why we still have maintained so many culturally important pieces of architecture across the country. Your views on this being some ridiculous grand conspiracy don't change that. As someone working within the property development industry, I am acutely aware of the shortcomings of our planning system, and have to deal with them on a daily basis - that being said while the system may be flawed, the outcome is predominantly good.

@ricardokowalski1579

Жыл бұрын

@@Schattengewaechs99 The point is why does the government mandate the maintenance?... not if a foundation does it.

The art i see is that the people protecting it and attacking it all passed of old age. Marvelous art.

It's fun when I find out about new local (tourist?) spots in my area. This artistic icon is only 20 mins from my home and 5 mins from my nan's house and yet I never knew it existed until today!

@clareshaughnessy2745

Жыл бұрын

Noooooooo!! It’s so famous!! Although I suppose like lots of bits of art, if it’s not mentioned anywhere and you don’t see it….?

@Afif.anNayem.asSalafi

Жыл бұрын

How old are you? You don't go out much do you?

@crescentceleste

Жыл бұрын

I don't live in Oxford but I've only just found out about this today and I'm like "How did I go this long without knowing we had a roff shark here???"

It's got a little Blåhaj brother inside! That's precious

@TheFilipFonky

Жыл бұрын

a little wot

@eterna_light

Жыл бұрын

blahaj my beloved

@ScarletQuiver5856

Жыл бұрын

@@TheFilipFonky Blahaj, plushie sharks sold by Ikea

@saechiru6750

Жыл бұрын

Blahaj my beloved

@buttnutt

Жыл бұрын

Need money for my bottom surgery 😪

3:25 Blåhaj cameo

If it wasn't art it would easily pass as british humor. Love that!

3:28 OMG THEY HAVE A BLAHAJ???? amazing

I never considered that it might be a pain to have a "protected" property. On one hand it's nice that art like this remains on the other I wouldn't want to be stuck with it.

@150booyadragon

Жыл бұрын

Well you say that but really it wouldn't be that much work, at least in this case. I think the main thing that scares people is "Having" to. But really, people tend to keep their houses in good conditions in nice neighbourhoods anyways. Some repaint their picket fences more often than the shark would need to be repainted

@TheRealiindividual

Жыл бұрын

Tom has a previous video - "The broken building that must not be destroyed" which goes a bit more in depth about how owning protected properties is a such a headache, worth a watch :)

@JuneTooJuly

Жыл бұрын

It's known that houses with thatched roofs in England "mysteriously" burn down due to owners getting sick of constantly repairing them and being forbidden from changing them due to their protected status.

@Icalasari

Жыл бұрын

I would definitely try to install some plexiglass around it, just under the shingles, before it gets protected status specifically to let the roof still act like a roof

@goatfood1504

Жыл бұрын

@@JuneTooJuly I heard people due that because re-thatching houses costs a lot and is a nightmare. Honestly I think sometimes they’re overzealous about protecting properties, but there should be some protections

I was born in Oxford and lived down the road from here, when I was little we moved to Wales and I used to tell all my friends in school about this house but none of them believed me and thought I was mad. Many years have passed now and I completely forgot about it till this video popped up in my subscriptions. Guess who’s sharing this video with all their old school friends?!?!

@holger_p

Жыл бұрын

I'm sorry for the neighbors who got invasions from tourists now.

@handsoffmycactus2958

Жыл бұрын

Love this story!

I lived/worked around Headington for a while and it always made me giggle, I think as a university town it would be weird if Oxford didn't have something like this in the town somewhere.

It's so bizarre to open up youtube and see a Tom Scott video about the Shark I walk past whenever I go grocery shopping - thanks for covering this, Tom!

@___dmsk

Жыл бұрын

doxxed?????

This video is absolutely wild to me, because not an hour ago, while I was waiting for it to drop, I got to thinking about what kind of story Tom could possibly cover that would bring him to my neck of the woods, and I came up with the story of our local theater, and how it getting registered as a national landmark has saved it and damned it in equal measure. You see, now that it's a protected site, this 72 year old building, which is the only theater in town and has not charged above $10 a ticket for as long as I can remember, cannot be bought out and torn down to make room for a more modern setup. However, from this point on, everything from the seats to the carpet cannot be replaced, no matter how battered and worn they get, unless the owners can track down the *exact* items that were used. This means that slowly but surely, our little theater is going to die of attrition, as the owners don't have anywhere near the money it would cost to keep up with the damage of time. It's amazing to think, though, that my little corner of small-town America has even just a little something in common with a house in England that has a shark sticking out of the roof.

@Xeddicus427

Жыл бұрын

That exact issue is why the law it stupid too many times. It's importance is its function, not its carpets. Idiot law makers.

@reachandler3655

Жыл бұрын

It is a shame that a law designed to preserve a building can ultimately lead to it's demise.

@GradyHouger

Жыл бұрын

Just like the protest shark, the unrepairable theater can be removed without permission. Just tip off the fire department and they will keep the surrounding buildings safe while it goes.

@jakegarrett8109

Жыл бұрын

@@reachandler3655 That's how you know it was designed and written by government.

@impactkingdelux

Жыл бұрын

The UK has Listed Building consents, which allow alteration, demolition etc. to protected buildings - applications that involve this are scrutinised based on the importance of said Listed Building. The shark is locally listed and not nationally protected. If the owner can make a robust case then there usually is a way. Conservation doesn't mean stagnancy or having buildings fall into disrepair. The problem in quite some cases likely isn't the protection of the site but the funding.

Having grown up in Oxford and seeing the shark multiple times as a kid, I can honestly say that I'm glad it's there to stay. 😊

@rajeshbista2690

Жыл бұрын

Did you know that the artist was an American?

@Simon-ui6db

Жыл бұрын

Same here.

@discowhistle

Жыл бұрын

Seen it many times. Good to be reminded of it.

@ava8340

Жыл бұрын

me too!!

@kaitlyn__L

Жыл бұрын

I’ve been away for a decade, this is how I found out the guy died. My parents chatted with him a couple times. Sometimes we’d drive the long way home to look at the shark.

Lived round the corner from this 2/3 years of the time i was at uni, always wondered what it was and stood for, but just found it funny and a cool art piece. nice to finally learn the history behind it.

I used to live a couple of streets away and went past this every day on the bus - always fun to watch the reactions of people who didn't previously know about it!

I live 5 minutes from that shark and I didn’t really know the history, so thank you for this video.

@nightmarextreme4371

Жыл бұрын

u ever used it as a landmark? like saying, turn to the left and keep going untill the shark in the roof, then turn right.

@babababoiboiboiboi

Жыл бұрын

you were in the tom scott danger zone

@akho47

Жыл бұрын

How can anyone be so incredibly lacking in curiosity. Your life must be boring

@MeiEri

Жыл бұрын

Same here, lived just round the corner all my life and never cared for the backstory till now

@Jenks1

Жыл бұрын

I'm a local parish Councillor nearby, but I didn't really know this history. Very cool.

Petition for “the shark in the roof” to officially replace “the elephant in the room.”

@0638

Жыл бұрын

the elephant in your mom

@jonasdatlas4668

Жыл бұрын

Yes please!

@z31drifterlf

Жыл бұрын

Seconded

@khalilahd.

Жыл бұрын

Lmfaoo yes please

@tjenadonn6158

Жыл бұрын

The shark in the elephant.

I remember driving through this town many years ago when I was staying nearby before the British GP. I had to do a double take when I saw it down a side street. Its a magnificent feat of engineering and i'd always wondered, why?

The leakage and any structural concerns are great examples of why you should involve an engineer in such an ambitious art project.

@shrimpflea

Жыл бұрын

It's fine, chill out.

@deidra-v6575

Жыл бұрын

Something a jobless engineer would say

I wonder, how exactly does one go about installing a giant metal shark IN SECRET?

@MrMonkey2150

Жыл бұрын

@@ragnkja would be very noisy

@harbl99

Жыл бұрын

People over here mind their own business to an almost pathological degree. "Fella over the road is tearing off his roof." "Uh huh." (rustles paper) "Now a crane and a lorry with a big shark on the back have turned up." "Hmm. Not my problem." "They're putting the shark into the hole in the roof." "Alright nosey parker."

@anttibjorklund1869

Жыл бұрын

@@MrMonkey2150 Especially if it was really *dropped* as was speculated(?) in the video.

@paulsullivan9697

Жыл бұрын

Easy instead of cats & dogs , it's raining sharks !

@PandaCake978

Жыл бұрын

Quickly

Isnt his mum a bit of a hero? Big ups to all caring mothers out there.

@qushay20019

Жыл бұрын

somehow I wasn't surprised to hear that dad's endeavor would require mum's intervention to sort everything out 😆

This was my absolute favourite part of going to Oxford to visit family as a kid. It was just so big and expressive. I'm so glad it's still there.

I know I’m half a year late but I live less than a 10 minute walk from here and I pass it everyday on the bus and knowing the history behind it makes it feel a bit more special.

Ah, that moment on the bus where you can tell exactly where you are because someone who hasn't been to Headington before has just glanced down the side road and said "Is that a shark?!"

@kieranmarsden9439

Жыл бұрын

Indeed. I have seen many a bewildered tourist travelling to city centre on the number 8 do a double take

5:15 I’m pleased that he mentions that ‘the council’ is not a fixed thing but a group of individuals who have changed.

@Terminarch

Жыл бұрын

And they will change again. It would be foolish to put the project in their hands...

I don't understand Tom's line at 1:55 that people seem to like the shark "more than the current owner would like." The owner is the son that is being interviewed, and he seems to be just fine renting it out as a BnB and making money off it.

I was waiting for you to do a video on the shark! We've lived a street down from it and all of Headington is VERY proud of the shark, its on drawn skylines of Oxford!

There's a part of me that's interested in the art of the shark and the statement it makes, but I'll admit there is an even larger part of me that just says "look at the cool shark in the roof! You gotta keep the cool shark in the roof"

@1882osr

Жыл бұрын

this guy gets the real art of the shark

@theheadingtonshark

Жыл бұрын

I wouldn't take it down unless they tried to force me to keep it up.

@ThrottleKitty

Жыл бұрын

hu hu shork

Lovely point about how now the planning council are part of the art no matter what they do. It has a Terry Pratchett flavor to me, like installing the art has cast a narrative spell and everyone finds themselves carried along in it helpless. The initial planning council tried to force it down to avoid the obvious geas, but once it had stood for a day, their struggles only got the headless shark's teeth to sink deeper.

@rescdsk

Жыл бұрын

@John Smith ahahahaha nice

@theheadingtonshark

Жыл бұрын

This is a brilliant description. Thanks Thomas.

@andrewweitzman4006

Жыл бұрын

I believe Pterry would have called the shark "anticrime".

@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721

Жыл бұрын

"If you strike me down, I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine." - the shark

@P-Mouse

Жыл бұрын

Shark, no shark, they don't care as long they are the ones who control it

every government should aproove of blåhaj

The blåhaj on the mantel is the best touch

4:22 Tom Scott saying he wouldn’t want to be “part of the art” but he’s already a masterpiece ❤️

@emilybond7556

Жыл бұрын

And now is almost definitely part of the art as without him millions wouldn't have known it existed.

@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721

Жыл бұрын

Tom Scott should be a listed building. I don't care that he's not a building, he needs to be PROTECTED!

I like to imagine the shark on the roof is the parent of the plushie and is trying to save their child

@Slushee

Жыл бұрын

The plushie is a Blåhaj!

@vosskreit

Жыл бұрын

redstone

@logicaltips4107

Жыл бұрын

Or the parent wants to visit their kid in their house but is too big to fit through the door, so the parent shark improvises

@leap6908

Жыл бұрын

blåhaj 🏳️‍⚧️

@boxinabox6608

Жыл бұрын

@@Slushee roughly translates to "blue shark" from swedish

Oxford City Council wanted to move the shark to the swimming pool at Cowley. The original owner of the house, and the shark, was a radio presenter for BBC Radio Oxford.

@theheadingtonshark

6 ай бұрын

Talk about bad taste!

It's Awesome, Artistic, Astonishing, Aspiring and an Amazing piece of work.

This is brilliant. I love that someone just installed a shark on their roof. It also really says something about the person, which is super cool.

@0638

Жыл бұрын

i agree i think

@kakt

Жыл бұрын

i like turtles

@k.r.99

Жыл бұрын

@@kakt apparently, i do like them too.

@bigwizard807

Жыл бұрын

it says they are an attention seeking person who does not care about the wellbeing of their neighbours

@MoontownMoss

Жыл бұрын

@@bigwizard807 "wellbeing" ?

I feel like the most shark thing ever would be, if you knew it was about to be listed as a heritage site, vanish it just before it officially became one.

@pakde8002

Жыл бұрын

Yes! An artificial reef was my suggestion.

@Envy_May

Жыл бұрын

it would be really funny to move it to another house in the middle of the night the day before

@idooard420

Жыл бұрын

Also because it's an antiwar sculpture, a protest against the government. Would be less symbolic if even the government approves it

@MonkeyJedi99

Жыл бұрын

@@Envy_May Ooh! have a group of car kitters turn it into a vehicle then park it out front.

@pineapplesandjellies

Жыл бұрын

This is the solution!

So glad this was posted - I’ve seen this for over 25 years and always wanted to know the story behind it

Lived in walking distance of the shark my whole life (and loved it) but never knew why it got put there. Thanks for giving me a new perspective on it

The original owner's son was very articulate about why he thinks protection goes against the idea.

@sarowie

Жыл бұрын

I think the son wants to protect it, as long as "the goverment" is against it and some people think that it is great. Resolving the conflict of his dad against "the men" by "the men" forcing someone to keep it up removes the nature of protest, while keeping it up their without permission is continued protest.

@DeezNuggz

Жыл бұрын

@@CanadianaEast gets people talking, just because you don't get it doesn't make it stupid. outing your ignorance!

@alexnicolaou3579

Жыл бұрын

the original owner was the kind of legend that would have taken it down (overnight in secret) and repaired the roof as soon as it had been officially listed as protected, and i totally love that

@zwenkwiel816

Жыл бұрын

@@sarowie maybe it's just reverse psychology? XD

@lmonk9517

Жыл бұрын

@@DeezNuggz If I shat on the floor of my local supermarket it would 'get people talking' doesn't mean that that I would be praiseworthy. Getting people talking is what idiots say to defend low concept art.

The Headington Shark is an absolute icon of Oxford, when I lived just down the road I would walk past every morning with a smile. I've been tempted to book a stay in the house since I saw it on AirBnB.

@Garbelerian1234

Жыл бұрын

It is a legend.

@markfryer9880

Жыл бұрын

Well you should book a stay while you can. I mean, suppose something were to happen to the shark and it was removed for whatever reason and you missed out on the opportunity to stay in the house while the shark was there. You would be kicking yourself for years at your missed opportunity.

@Palmit_

Жыл бұрын

OXFORD CITY COUNCIL tho! what complete and utter wankers. and county council. Especially with the absolute mess they are making of the cities roads. Block major routes. traffics forced to take another route, clogging everything up even more.. now they are going to prevent people using the roads that they forced all the traffic on to... UNLESS YOU HAVE A LICENSE/PERMIT of course. I seriously want to the folks making these or supporting decisions to have their brain checked. its ludicrous.

@cf453

Жыл бұрын

Don’t support AirBnB, it ends up screwing up rent prices for whole neighborhoods.

@Garbelerian1234

Жыл бұрын

@@Palmit_ lmao are you getting worked up at the ltns?

I live 20mins away from Oxford love seeing it every time we drive past the road !

I used to live on the Main Street near the shark for a bit and used it as a reminder my stop was coming up when I took the bus home… good times.

I’ve seen that shark multiple times just from randomly going past it but I never knew the whole story, this is why I love Tom Scott

@rjjcms1

Жыл бұрын

When I saw a report on the local news in 1986 about the shark and the battle to stop the council getting it removed I was hoping the shark would stay but never imagined it would still be there all these years later. I wanted to deviate off from our trip to the chippy and go and see it when I went to watch my footy team Watford play against Oxford United at the Manor Ground in Headington in the 90s.

I love it, it looks amazing and the sentiment behind it is fantastic. I would have liked to have met his dad. He seems like the kind of guy I would really get on with. As long as the building remains structurally sound, I don't see any problem with it. Hopefully, it'll still be there for as long as humanly possible, preferably forever.

i love the shark, it was one of my favourite parts living in oxford, also great for directions if you live nearby. Always fun telling people about it as well

3:20 BLAHAJ

@sylbeth808

Жыл бұрын

THE BLÅHAJ

3:30 BLÅHAJ Replay button

@LunaWuna

Жыл бұрын

Blahaj my beloved

@skewerscribbles5259

Жыл бұрын

I watched this with my Blåhaj and i got very happy at this bit

@toastpeople395

Жыл бұрын

Blåhaj ♡

Thanks for bringing another lovely piece of UK to my knowledge.

Yes!! I remember this from my childhood, I used to live in Oxford in the 90s whilst my dad was studying there. I remember it well my dad taking me to see it, I wish I could show him this video.

I remember stumbling across this in about 1992, when I was working in Oxford, completely by chance. Utterly gobsmacked and utterly brilliant! I'm so pleased to see it's still there and still looking good.

@realMaverickBuckley

Жыл бұрын

It's one of the most English things I've ever seen or heard of. I hope the English continue being weird.

@mikaelabowen5781

Жыл бұрын

@@realMaverickBuckley Hehe, it's one of the things I love about this country.

@maninthestreet01

Жыл бұрын

Same experience for me when I moved to Oxford in 1988.

He bought a BLÅHAJ! I approve of everything in this video

I would see it being listed as the ultimate form of poetic justice, at least if the person who originally made the statement was still around. Now it's just an inherited burden, but that in itself is still a testament to consequence. I do hope it becomes a nationally listed building, because it would serve as a monument of living in a society, and how owning the consequences of our actions is integral to that.

@micabryant4513

Жыл бұрын

so overthinking does lead to stupid choices....

Excellent and very inspiring for me, during my renovation work.

I consider it a BLÅHAJ monument and (of course) it should be kept up for generations to appreciate. 🦈

I went to Oxford a few months ago, we accidentally found this on the way to a Greek restaurant - it is crazy! 🦈

@dcocz3908

Жыл бұрын

I've seen it too some years ago. Back then the issues bought up were from neighbours complaining about ingress of weather conditions into their shared roof

I live quite close the Headington Shark, and pass it most days. I did not know the history of it until watching this video. Thank you!

Nice portrait Tom! And kudos to the son and his mom keeping this alive.

@theheadingtonshark

6 ай бұрын

Thanks. I'll pass that on.

The fact that there is an Ikea shark in the house just makes it perfect

@BetterThanYouXuD

Жыл бұрын

i like how Tom explicitly made sure to get a close-up shot of it

I like how Tom felt the need for three shots including the Blahaj, two of which specifically encompassing it

I've passed by the Headington Shark every time I've gone downtown, ever since I was born. It's an icon of my home city, more relatable and evocative to me than even the "dreaming spires" of the Oxford colleges themselves. I have the utmost respect for the family for installing and maintaining it.

I am from the area and loved seeing this as a kid driving last with my mum and brothers.

I remember when this was happening and installed. It was all over local news. I was 11 years old and lived just down the road. I’ve always liked it - even my conservative father did!

@DeezNuggz

Жыл бұрын

true conservatives are anti war

Looking at how it interfaces with the actual roof I can imagine that keeping leaks under control must be an extreme challenge to say the least.

@brianw1620

Жыл бұрын

I was kind of hoping that Tom would explain how the obviously substantial water intrusion is handled. Maybe by some unapproved means that would cause more controversy?

@Cyba_IT

Жыл бұрын

@@brianw1620 There looks to be quite a bit of unpainted fibreglass on the recessed roof part so I'm guessing they glassed it up as much as humanly possible.

@mrbeeoutdoors3213

Жыл бұрын

@@brianw1620 the internal shot shows a boxed area, I'd guess that the felt from the roof would lead into that box, so any water that makes it to the felt would end up in the box, I'd guess that the box is heavily fibreglassed, waterproofed, felted, and that it has a slight fall to it, so that the water in it, runs off naturally down to the guttering.

@JustWasted3HoursHere

Жыл бұрын

@@brianw1620 If it were me I'd have drainage pipes connecting that opening to outlets outside, but it would still be likely to leak.

@farmcat3198

Жыл бұрын

I wish he would have gone into rainwater management. Perhaps there is little to none?

I absolutely love it and can remember it in the newspaper at the time

We see it every time we go to visit out great grandparents, always fun to see!

I knew it was the Headington Shark without seeing the thumbnail. I used to live a couple of streets away and it's much loved in the community. The local brownies have a shark on their badges and the chippie has a shark of their own.

@ringsystemmusic

Жыл бұрын

Oh that’s adorable!

The call to the crane operator might have been one of the funniest conversations ever... "You want me to do what!??"

@jamesengland7461

Жыл бұрын

Right? Is he drunk, and is this his ex-wife's house, or is he about to lose it in the divorce?

@samreid6010

Жыл бұрын

@@jamesengland7461 in some places that last case is illegal. Purposefully sabotaging property you’re about to lose to divorce, bankruptcy, etc. is illegal in a lot of places here in the states

@jamesengland7461

Жыл бұрын

@@samreid6010 duh.

@samreid6010

Жыл бұрын

@@jamesengland7461 there are also places where it isn’t technically illegal. The recipient can take you to court if the damage is extensive enough but if you’re simply changing it for the worse and not actively damaging it, there are jurisdictions where there is no remedy

Ah Headington! Used to live there, just round the corner from the shark. Nice place in general, but the shark was definitely the area's landmark, on the 'new' side of town at least! Local pub also had a monthly music night called 'sharktown' I believe. Missed that area when I moved away, had a nice vibe. Plus it had about the most memorable landmark of any suburban town! 😆

I am grateful for your entertaining and informative posts.

I'm not sure what is exactly on the opposite side of the Earth from that flat, but if it is a land mass, I would dearly love for someone to put a sculpture of the shark's head emerging there, and title the piece "Longshark is long."

@theheadingtonshark

Жыл бұрын

I oddly like this!

@33link333

3 ай бұрын

The antipodal point of Oxford is in the ocean, with the closes land being New Zealand about 885km away.

I've driven past this house many times and always wondered what prompted the owner/s to want to have a giant fish stickng out of their roof. I just took it for another English eccentricity. Now I know, after all these years! Thanks for a great video.

I was a student at Ruskin College and would often see the shark when I walked into Headington to do my food shopping or catch a bus to Oxford. This video brought back some fond memories.

Government worrying about affect to neighbour Neighbour: "I'm not even mad that's amazing"

I looked out for 'the shark house' every time we made our way up to my late grandparents' house in Headington, ever since I was little. Thank you for sharing it with such a wide audience.

I lived in close to that street for 6 years but every time I asked for the story people just used to tell me this is a story for another time, but today finally the story!

Bill was a character. Some of us met him in Witney (cant remember the occasion) and of course, he was a radio presenter. IIRC, he also owned a cinema in Headington which had a pair of stripey stockinged legs above it. The legs somehow made their way to Brighton to top another cinema. Theres probably another story to that.

I used to live around the corner from this house and lived in Headington growing up, the shark has always been a part of Headington for me and everyone I know, this is something that can never be taken down and certainly is something that people will always visit when in Oxford

If I had a quarter for every time there was a Shark Sculpture based legal dispute in Britain, I’d have two quarters! Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice!

@chris4536

Жыл бұрын

No, you would have forty-four Pence Stirling.

@mrmonkeboy

Жыл бұрын

Dunno where you'd get quaters or what you'd do with them in the UK. I guess just show them off and become known as Mr Two Quater Fancy-Pants, ooooh, won't ya just look at him, basking the glory of his two quaters.

@Username-le4eq

Жыл бұрын

@@mrmonkeboy monke

@archsteel7

Жыл бұрын

I can’t tell if people in the replies just don’t know the reference I’m making, or if they’re insufferably pedantic.

@Virgil-Arcanum

Жыл бұрын

@@archsteel7 we're british, it's definitely the second.