Animal rights activists have bid for famous Pork Pie Roundabout to be renamed 'Vegan Pie Roundabout' rejected

Animal rights activists have bid for famous Pork Pie Roundabout to be renamed 'Vegan Pie Roundabout' rejected
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Tom Evans

By Tom Evans


Published: 11/08/2022

- 18:23

Updated: 14/02/2023

- 10:45

Animal rights activists have seen their demand to rename Leicester’s Pork Pie Roundabout as the Vegan Pie Roundabout rejected

Renowned animal rights charity PETA said the name change would inspire healthier food choices, help the environment and prevent animal suffering.

In a letter, they urged Mayor of Leicester Sir Peter Soulsby to “promote vegan pies” to help prevent obesity.


The charity said the word vegan was coined in Leicester in 1944 so "it would also be a great way to celebrate the city’s vegan and pie-loving heritage".

But Sir Peter was clear in his rejection of the proposal.

Southfield Library, of which the roundabout is named after, is nicknamed the Pork Pie Library
Southfield Library, of which the roundabout is named after, is nicknamed the Pork Pie Library
Wiki Commons

Mayor of Leicester Sir Peter Soulsby
Mayor of Leicester Sir Peter Soulsby
Leicester City Council

The mayor said: “It’s a funny and quite clever way of drawing attention to themselves and their cause.

"But there is no way we could change the name people have given to the library and the roundabout next to it.

“It has been known locally as the Pork Pie Library since it was built in the 1930s, thanks to its distinctive circular shape.

"Any talk of changing its name is just pie in the sky.”

The roundabout in Wigston got its nickname from the nearby library, the central tower of which has been likened to a pork pie.

According to Public Health England’s data for Leicester in 2020, 23 percent of children in year six were classified as obese.

De Montfort University Leicester reported in March 2022 that the “latest figures show nearly one in five adults aged 19 and over in Leicester are classified as obese”.

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