Explore Hull & East Yorkshire on the A Mischief of Rats Sculpture Trail

Chasing rats around East Yorkshire – now there’s a sentence I never thought I’d have cause to say! And yet, that’s what I spent a few June days of 2025 doing! Not the ugly disease infested ones though thankfully, but a trail of 45 over-sized colourfully painted ones in the form of a sculpture trail. Yes, I’m back out exploring the UK through the medium of sculpture on the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail in Hull & East Yorkshire.

From the 3rd May till the 30th August 2025, you can follow this trail yourself across the city of Hull. However, like rats do, this particular mischief of rats have bred and spread well beyond their central Hull proliferation into the wider East Yorkshire area, reaching as far as Pocklington, North Cave, Brandesburton and Burton Constable.

Whilst their real-life counterparts are typically viewed unfavourably, these critters are rather adorable with their whiskered smiling head pointing upwards as if sniffing the air, their arms pulled in at the chest like a cute mouse would typically be depicted and their tail wrapped round their side.

Why a Rat Sculpture?

So why rats you may wonder? I certainly did! And this is where my education began and something I really love about these kinds of sculpture trails – you learn all sorts of interesting facts, not just about the locations you visit, but often lots of general knowledge related to the sculpture topic, or about events and things that have happened in the area / place.

The inspiration for the rat came from a Hull based band who were prominent in the 1960’s/70’s called The Rats. Rock music from this era is not my forte in pub quizzes so this was news to me. Lead guitarist Mick Ronson, bassist Trevor Bolder and drummer Woody Woodmansey went on to form David Bowie’s band in the 70’s called Spiders from Mars.

As a result, there were plenty of rat sculptures that featured designs incorporating spiders and the band. My favourite of those was located in Beverley and featured a painting of Mick Ronson during his Ziggy Stardust fame of 1971 with gold spiders’ webs radiating out from him. As a major arachnophobe, I’m surprised I like this as much as I did.

Raising Money for Daisy Appeal

Like all sculpture trails of this kind, the main incentive behind the creation of the trail is to raise money for a charity. The sculptures from the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail will be auctioned off at the end of the trail to raise vital funds for Daisy Appeal, a charity which provides life-saving technology to support people living with cancer, heart disease and dementia. Equipment is costly, even more so as technology advances, so the funds raised by the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail will contribute specifically to the purchase of a new scanner.

There is a poignant link between the inspiration for the trail and the beneficiaries. Sadly, both Mick Ronson and Trevor Bolder from The Rats died of cancer, so it’s fitting that a charity focused on the early diagnosis of the disease should benefit from the trail.

Following the Trail

The A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail was not my first Hull sculpture rodeo, as two years ago I found myself in Hull hunting puffins on their ‘Puffins Galore!’ trail. There were not as many puffins in Hull however, as the trail was more spread out over the whole of East Yorkshire. So, I only spent half a day in Hull that year and whilst I saw lots of attractions while visiting, I did not go into anywhere as time didn’t allow.

This time I was going to be staying in Hull for 3 nights, with every intention of seeing more of Hull itself. For once, I’d decided it wasn’t important for me to see absolutely every rat, but instead experience more of Hull.

A Mischief of Rats Apps, Maps & Merchandise

Downloading the free ‘Find a Rat’ app is essential to pre-planning and seeing where all the rats are located. Before arriving in Hull, I’d worked out how to spend my days based on what I wanted to see and largely I managed to stick to this. There is a QR code on each sculpture plinth that when scanned in the app, pulls up all the information about it.

My only quibble with this app is that it does not distinguish between the rats that you have seen and scanned and those you haven’t, so it’s harder to keep track of which you’ve done and how many. On other trails I’ve experienced, the sculpture icon turns a different colour and it keeps a count of how many you’ve seen.

There is a physical trail map booklet for the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail, but you need to pick this up from one of the outlets that have them once you get to Hull. Not everywhere had them available but I saw them in The Deep, Ferens Art Gallery, Hull Minster and Burton Constable Hall.

Look out for the A4 full colour brochure which dedicates a page to each rat design. Again, many of the main visitor attractions will have these, as well as children’s activity booklets and other rat-based merchandise.

Getting Around the Trail

Of the 45 rats, 10 of them are situated in the centre of Hull and are easily walkable around. Doing these on foot is great as you get to see the city while you are walking around and I did just that. Parking was also cheap at just £3 all day in a city centre car park.

There are 17 more rats dotted around the suburbs and outskirts of Hull, and while I’m sure many could be visited by public transport, by far the easiest way is by car. All the ones I ticked off in the greater Hull area I had no problem parking for nearby and free of charge.

The rest of the rats are scattered around towns and villages near Hull, the furthest out being Pocklington and Market Weighton, both of which it made sense for me to see on my driving route to Hull on day 1. I loved the market town of Pocklington and spent several hours there, hitting the shops as there were lots of independent stores and charity shops.

Again, these rats are easiest to see by car and apart from one, I had no problems parking.

That one particular culprit was the Hedon rat. Situated on a village green with a view of the beautiful church, but surrounded by narrow roads and tight corners, traffic came to a grinding halt around the green area. I was lucky to nab a parking spot, but I had to wait 20 minutes to get my car out, due to a full car jam with no one giving way. It was chaos. While I loved the look of Hedon and I’d love to revisit when I have more time to explore the town itself, I have to say, I abhor the road network!

It was worth the trip however to see Hedon’s rat who is dressed as Hull-born aviator Amy Johnson who famously was the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia in 1930. When flying to and from Hull, she took off and landed at Hedon, thus explaining the link with Hedon itself. Landmarks from the town are painted around the base of the rat.

If like me, you are just visiting for a few days, I would recommend choosing the rats you really like the look of from the app, and basing your trip around that. Whilst the determined few could probably get round them all with a car in a couple of days, you would miss actually seeing and enjoying the area.

For example, I really wanted to visit Burton Constable Hall as I love visiting historic houses, so this formed the main part of one day for me and as a result, I only saw 7 rats that day. I ticked off the rats in Hedon and Paull on the way to Burton Constable and drove back to my hotel in Hull via Beverley to see the 4 there.

If you have not visited Beverley before, it definitely warrants spending time there as the minster is stunning. I explored Beverley fully while on the Puffins Galore! trail 2 years ago, so this time it was a flying visit to see the rats and seek out somewhere for dinner. Thanks to ‘Greko’ on Wednesday Market (street name) for an excellent Greek meal out. I can highly recommend.

My Favourite Rat Sculptures, Places and Experiences

City Centre Rats

After recently discovering that Hull’s aquarium: The Deep has a colony of Gentoo Penguins, I knew I had to visit, so I spent a whole afternoon at The Deep on my first full day in Hull. I was very impressed by this attraction which has won numerous awards since opening in 2002. It is clearly dedicated to education and conservation and its hands-on interactive exhibits are superb. It’s certainly the best aquarium I have visited thus far in my life. The cherry on the top for me was of course seeing penguins, my favourite creature in the world!

I could wax lyrical about The Deep, but I’ll leave that for another post. And of course, outside the aquarium was a rat.

There were 2 other rats in the waterside area of Hull, so very easy to see when visiting the aquarium. ‘Rats Ahoy’ located on Nelson Street showcases a wonderful maritime rich design with scores of rats scrambling around a coiled rope, off on their adventures at sea to pastures new. Such a cute design with so much humorous detail, including the rat trapped in the rope on the base.

‘Light the Way’ located on nearby Blanket Row features a gorgeous stained-glass design of a lighthouse lighting up a seascape – a beacon in the night, the light reaches right around the body of the rat. This area of hull has been redeveloped and is now home to many bars and restaurants, making it a good stop for refreshments or dinner.

I visited the other 7 central rats on the other side of the A63 on a different day, where I also toured the Ferens Art Gallery and Hull Minster, both attractions I can highly recommend visiting and are free to enter. I parked in Osborne Street multi-storey which cost £3 for all day parking. You do need cash however as the machines do not take card (or you can pay by phone).

The Ferens Art Gallery has a huge permanent collection on display, each gallery categorised by time period. Considering Hull’s maritime heritage and position on the Humber estuary and River Hull, it was great to find a gallery dedicated to Maritime Art, telling the story of Hull’s relationship with water. In the centre of that gallery is a mixed media installation by Caitlin Smith from 2023 about her memories of the 2007 Hull floods which I found incredibly moving. In her piece she wants to emphasize “the importance of how history must be recognised in what determines the future prevention of floods.” 

Also currently at the Ferens Art Gallery is an immersive and interactive digital exhibit called Microworld, which is on until the 7^th September 2025. As you move through the 3 gallery spaces, the artworks respond to your movement and project your image or silhouette into the work. You become part of the art. You are encouraged to “move around, dance, create shapes, work together and see what happens”. I unexpectedly had way too much fun in these spaces!

Whilst walking around seeing all the rats on the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail, I finally got a feel for Hull’s city centre. There is so much beautiful and impressive architecture around the city, including the Maritime Museum, (which was under scaffolding when I last visited), City Hall, the Guildhall, St Mary’s Church and of course Hull Minster, the interior of which is so light and airy, qualities that are rare in large cathedrals and churches. The beautiful stained glass and ceiling paintings are reason enough to visit.

Unfortunately, Queen’s Gardens are currently undergoing a massive renovation programme and not due to reopen until early 2026, but this would normally be a fantastic area to walk through and relax in while visiting Hull.

I did however discover the pretty Hepworth’s Shopping Arcade, a grade II listed building with the typical curved glass roof and ornate ironwork of late Victorian architecture.

Finding ‘Ratty’ brought me to discover the Hull History Centre, though it was closed by the time I reached it, so definitely an attraction to add to my next Hull trip. ‘Ratty’ has been painted to resemble the character of the same name from The Wind and the Willows so is sporting a vintage checked tweed coat and complimentary neckerchief.

Nearby is Hull’s bright white New Theatre which stands overlooking Kingston Square where you’ll find ‘Ticket to Ride’ which celebrates all the musical artists that have performed in Hull. The design features a collage of tickets listing all the artist names, venues and dates of performances. It is a mind-blowing array and its suitably well positioned outside one of Hull’s performance spaces.

There are 2 more maritime themed rats along Ferensway that I love. ‘Pirats’ is located in the square outside Albemarle Music Centre and features an illustration inspired by fantasy tales of pirates. The numerous pirate rats on this sculpture are commandeering a shipwreck and making off with the treasure. There are so many glorious details – I love this style of painting.

‘Mutiny on the Bounty’ is situated in Paragon Square and celebrates the ship called ‘Bounty’ that was built in Hull in Blaydes Yard in 1784. Two portraits are painted on each side of the rat – that of William Bligh, the Bounty’s famous captain, and Fletcher Christian, the mutineer that took over control of the ship.

Hull Suburbs Rats

On my routes travelling in and out of Hull each day, I drove to many of the rat locations dotted around the suburbs.

Of particular note was ‘Glam Rat’ located on Londesborough Street, as it is a modified sculpture. The artist used fibreglass, marine plywood and epoxy render to form robust arms, hands and a guitar that are built out from the original sculpture. Glam Rat’s suit is based on one of the outrageous glam rock outfits that Mick Ronson wore in the 70’s. Gold leaf has been used to create the metallic effect of the suit and he even has textured hair.

Another rather special rat ‘Believe in People’ is positioned outside ReNew, Hull’s drug and alcohol support and recovery service on Beverley Road. The result of a collaborative project, this rat sculpture is adorned with stunning iridescent mosaic tiles, a shimmering vision of gold, pink and purple, designed to be a visual declaration of transformation. The added headphones and microphone features are a tribute to ReNew’s award-winning ‘Believe in People’ podcast. These features are intended to “symbolise the power of lived experience, storytelling and public voice – ensuring recovery is not only seen but heard and valued by the wider community.” I was humbled by the intention behind this sculpture. It exudes vibrancy, colour and confidence and as I read in the app it was designed to “challenge stigma and honour recovery… reject outdated stereotypes and embrace the strength and dignity of those overcoming addiction.” A highly commendable intent.

My pursuit of rats on the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail led me to various parks around the greater Hull area, of which two of them I will always remember and hail as lovely little gems.

Pearson Park will always remain a place where I could happily wile away a few hours, sitting in the shade of a tree, listening to the fountains while reading a book. The park was donated to the people of Hull in 1860 by its then mayor Zachariah Pearson, a philanthropist who sought to improve conditions for the working class, by gifting them a piece of land where they could breathe clean air, play and relax and was free for all to enjoy. It became Hull’s first ‘People’s Park’ and has never veered far from its original design with many of its Victorian features faithfully restored. The bandstand is beautiful and it was a delight to see all three of the fountains working in the serpentine lake.

The Pearson Park rat entitled ‘A Stroll Around Hull’ overlooks the lake, gazing happily at all who enjoy its environs, wildlife and people alike. I love his design; a rich colourful cityscape wraps around his body comprising all of Hull’s major landmarks. As a huge architecture lover, these designs always make me happy to see.

The Pickering Park rat sculpture came loaded with a massive surprise. I knew ‘Pi-Rat’ was positioned by the Pickering Park Aviary; however, I was completely unaware that the aviary also came with a meerkat enclosure and this is the first thing you see as you enter. Sorry ‘Pi-Rat’, you were temporarily forgotten while I ooo’d and ahhh’d over those adorable creatures, possibly coming in a close second to penguins on my faves list! I easily spent a good 45 minutes just admiring and photographing the meerkats as there is an indoor room with seats which look into the enclosure.

I was so enamoured by the meerkats, that I actually left Pickering Park without photographing ‘Pi-Rat’, though luckily, I realised before I drove off, so went back for a snap.

Beyond Hull Rats

I’ve already mentioned many of the places I visited outside of Hull while rat-spotting, so here’s a few extra titbits of information on the more scattered rats and things worth seeing along the way.

One of the overriding images I have of Hull is actually just outside the city – the Humber Bridge. I stayed in a hotel which had a view of the bridge and there’s something just so mesmerising about this amazing feat of engineering; so, it’s only fitting in my mind that the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail brings you up close and personal with the bridge at Hessle.

There are 2 rats located by the river either side of the bridge, handily with a free car park right next to the one at Hessle Mill, called ‘The Rat Who Witnessed the Ocean’s Wonders’.

I discovered from the information boards in the area that the mill tower here is that of a whiting mill, something I had never heard of before. Built around 1810, the mill was designed to crush chalk from the neighbouring quarry which is now the Humber Bridge country park. The crushed chalk was used to make whiting in the works that once adjoined the mill. Whiting is a purified powdered form of chalk, essential during the industrial revolution for use as a filler in paint or mixed with linseed to make putty. During the 20^th century, whiting was used to make toothpaste, rubber and even plastics. You can see several of the original millstones dotted around the mill site.

It’s a short walk under the bridge to the other rat sculpture called ‘Copper Colin’ who features detailed sketches of local landmarks and things associated with the county of East Yorkshire, for example the glorious puffin on his chest.

Just standing so close to the Humber bridge or even under it, is something you have to do when visiting the Hessle Foreshore area. You can’t help but be marvelled by the height and sheer scale of the bridge.

You can of course keep walking along the river here in either direction and if I’d have had more time, I would have gone for a walk around the Humber Bridge Country Park. If you walk in the direction of North Ferriby, you’d ultimately reach another rat location a few miles further along. I drove to it however and parked by Ferriby Riding Club, walking the short distance to find ‘Cheesed to Meet You’.

This is just such a fun and quirky design inspired by a rodent’s well-known love of cheese. With him being sat on a round of red wax encased cheese with holes, I’m more inclined to believe this rodent loves his edam, rather than being a true Yorkshire rat, partial to a slab of Wensleydale.

I couldn’t resist the draw of a viewpoint here, making my way beyond this cheesy rat to get yet another fab view of the Humber and bridge. And I’m glad I did, otherwise I’d have missed another fascinating piece of local history. On the ground here is an outline of a boat shape in wooden planks set into the ground.

This is a memorial to Ted Wright and depicts the outline of the oldest known boat in Europe, built and sailed from this foreshore 4000 years ago. Back in 1937, Ted Wright discovered the remains of 3 huge oak planks in the peat and clay river bank at low tide. Initially believed to be the remains of a Viking long boat, subsequent excavations dated it back to the Bronze Age. Further digs years later uncovered 2 other boats. The first 2 boats were taken to the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich and the third boat was conserved locally at Hull Museum.

From one amazing discovery to another at Burton Constable Hall – the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail certainly delivers intrigue. I had not read up on the rat at Burton Constable before arriving, so I was most surprised to find myself coming face to face with the skeleton of a 60ft sperm whale in one of the stable buildings.

This whale (eventually named Constable Moby) beached itself at nearby Tunstall in 1825 and after much study and examination of its form over the years, its skeleton was finally brought to Burton Constable in 1836 where it has been displayed in various ways ever since.

Constable Moby provided inspiration for the rat that is situated at Burton Constable Hall in the stables’ courtyard by the whale skeleton. Called ‘Whale Tales and Rat Trails’, the artist also drew inspiration from Herman Melville’s novel Moby Dick, which features Constable Moby in the tale. The sculpture design features aspects of the Moby Dick story in a children’s storybook illustrative style.

You can access the Burton Constable rat without paying admission for the hall; however, it is well worth visiting the hall as so much of it is open to the public. You actually get to see and walk through a complete English Country House, with one of the most beautiful stairways I’ve seen and an absolutely astounding collection of artworks, furniture and artefacts. The Long Gallery and Dining Room are stunning rooms and I could happily have sat in either of them all day long.

There are walking routes around the Capability Brown landscape and its worth taking a walk down to the lake where there is a lovely ornate bridge crossing the centre.

There are also wire animal sculptures dotted around the grounds, though I couldn’t find all of them that are pinned on the map, so I’m assuming many have been damaged or moved for some reason.

The food in the restaurant at Burton Constable Hall is excellent and can be accessed without paying admission, so you’ll find many people come and meet up just for a meal here.

Get in Touch!

I hope I have demonstrated that it is certainly worth venturing beyond Hull city centre on the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail as there are so many interesting places, attractive towns and villages and weird and wonderful things to discover. I’m glad I got to spend time exploring the region’s attractions, although I have already got my next trip to East Yorkshire planned of things I didn’t manage to fit in this time. And it’s all thanks to this adorable little critter, the rat! Should I come face to face with a real rat in the future, I promise I will think of them far more favourably.

Have you been out on the A Mischief of Rats sculpture trail yet? How many rats have you seen? Drop me a line in the comments below and let me know. I’d love to hear from you. I think my final tally came to 29. You’ve got till the 30th August to catch them all. Happy hunting…

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Further Reading…

Travelling around Yorkshire? Have a gander at my other posts on God’s Own Country:

Walk to Lumb Hole Falls from Hebden Bridge  /  Explore the mystical site of Devil’s Arrows Standing Stones, near Boroughbridge  /  Visit Beningbrough Hall during Bluebell Season  /  See Brimham Rocks in the Snow  /  Explore Wakefield Cathedral and the city’s Rhubarb Festival /  Walk the Ingleton Waterfalls Trail

For any sculpture trail fanatics out there, you may like to check out these previous trails I’ve written about:

Follow that Duck through Hastings  /  The Big Hoot owls in Ipswich  /  A Dog’s Trail Snoopys in South Wales  /  Derby Rams sculpture trail  /  the Burton Swans  /  Elmers Big Parade in Ipswich  /  Walking With the Snowman sculpture trails  /  Worcester Stands Tall giraffes  /  Let’s Go Quackers ducks in Ironbridge  /  the Hoodwinked robins in Nottingham