Ancient fountain 'springs' to life

Ancient fountain 'springs' to life

The statue has been restored to its former glory

An ornate 19th century fountain, which has not worked for almost 70 years, has been "fired up" again in time for the Easter holiday.

English Heritage carried out a £700,000 restoration project on the Perseus and Andromeda fountain at Whitley Court in Worcestershire.

The fountain is the centrepiece of a 54-metre pool at Whitley Court and was last operated prior to a fire at the mansion in the 1930s.

It holds 700,000 gallons of water and has 120 separate jets - the main one reaching up to 90ft.

'Spectacular sight'

As part of the fountain's year-long restoration project, stonemasons re-carved the Perseus and Andromeda figures, which date back to 1853.

Margaret Oakden, historic properties manager for English Heritage, said: "It is an absolutely spectacular sight and something that has never been seen for 70 years.

"The fountain looks wonderful and for many local people it is a dream come true and it is not often you can say a dream comes true."

Many famous people have tried to acquire the fountain over the years including Bing Crosby, who wanted to ship it to his American home.