A CHEPSTOW company has designed and manufactured a huge snow globe to cover an iconic statue in the centre of London.

Architen Landrell was awarded the contract to design, manufacture, engineer, test, and install the snow globe, which is five storeys high, to cover the statue of Eros in the centre of Piccadilly Circus.

The statue has a long history of being a target for vandals in the lead up to New Year so, as a way to protect the aluminium sculpture and get everyone in the West End ready for Christmas, the City of Westminster Council suggested covering Eros in a larger than life snow globe.

In previous years the iconic Grade I listed statue has been covered in advertising hoardings over the festive period to protect it from destructive revellers.

The monument, erected in 1892, is topped by Alfred Gilbert's winged nude statue, originally intended to be the Greek god Anteros, sometimes referred to as the Angel of Christian Charity but generally known as his brother, Eros.

It is dedicated to Anthony Cooper, the Seventh Earl of Shaftesbury, whose work for the poor led to calls for a memorial in his honour.

The snow globe is part of a four-year yuletide plan and will be there for everyone to enjoy this year until Saturday 4th January, when it will be packed up and stored until it is reassembled again in the run up to Christmas next year.

Architen Landrell's managing director Lance Rowell said: "As a snow globe of this scale has never been done before we first installed it, minus Eros of course, in our car park in Chepstow earlier this month.

"This was part of our research and development strategy to ensure that when we went 'live' in London, everything would run seamlessly.

"Our site operatives worked around the clock last week to meet the completion date of Sunday 17th November.

"Besides the logistical challenges of closing roads and bringing a 30-tonne crane into central London for the installation, we had less than two months to take it from concept to completion in the heart of one of the busiest intersections in London."

Councillor Robert Davis, deputy leader of Westminster City Council, said: "We believe this is an exciting project which will add a real sense of entertainment and wonder around an iconic landmark at Christmas. Eros will be able to add its own festive touch to the West End."

The snow globe's lights, video and snow were successfully activated on Monday (18th November), much to the relief of Architen Landrell's crew.

With its prominent position, the octagon base of the snow globe houses eight of some of Europe's highest resolution LED video screens.

These screens will be part of an outdoor advertising campaign created by a company Architen Landrell were partnered with, Wildstone, who are industry leaders in outdoor marketing.