Matt Whistler is challenged by artist Julie-Anne Gilburt to take on the world’s largest pom-pom
With the spirit of celebration still in the air following Brighton and Hove Albion’s recent open-top bus parade (8 May), Matt decided to channel his inner cheerleader for this week’s challenge.
Julie-Anne Gilburt of Saltdean set the latest task: to stand on the world’s largest pom pom, and then add all your clothes to it!
Matt was initially befuddled by the first part of the challenge, before he learnt that Brighton Fashion Week (BFW) was already attempting this feat of ingenuity.
Work began on the world record attempt to construct a 14ft pom-pom out of ‘recycled’ clothes two weeks ago and culminated in the giant unveiling in Jubilee Square on Friday 6 May.
Matt said: “When I first read about their [BFW] plans, I thought, ‘This is going to be a pom pom way beyond the carrying capabilities of even the biggest and strongest cheerleader. Even if Captain Caveman – and it’s worth checking him out on YouTube –turned up disguised as a cheerleader he would still not be able to lift this pom pom.”
Matt arrived with Julie-Anne to adjudicate in person, but was surprised by how the giant pom-pom was being created: “All I saw was a big sloppy pile of baggy jumpers tied together in a knot. It looked like lots of malnourished protesters linking arms but then I realised that this colour blast of knitwear was part of a cunning plan to fluff up one mother pom pom before some crazed looking fellow would run around the mountain with a chainsaw and shave off any excess jumperism to create a mighty ball of fluff,” he said.
Upon completion, Matt sped right to the top of the pom pom and found himself overlooking Jubilee Square with lots of eager fashion students watching on. As the spring sunshine broke through Matt decided to go for the second part of the challenge:“With discarded jumpers and static over-heating me, I decided to shake off a couple of garments. ‘OK, here goes’, I thought, ‘Well, it’s not exactly Marilyn Monroe jumping out of a cake but what the hell’. Let’s face it, it’s not every day you get to stand up with a lovely sunny breeze balanced on top of the world’s biggest pom pom and admire the world in the buff,” he said.
Julie-Anne seemed to enjoy seeing her challenge in action, but just as quickly as Matt succeeded, it all fell apart.
“The challenge had been set and I had risen to it,” says Matt. “Well at least until I fell into a gap in the pom pom and suddenly looked like a desperate man caught in a Venus Flytrap!”
Set Matt’s next challenge at www.facebook.com/latest7
or www.facebook.com/mattwhistler brighton
