News / Animals
When Martin Parr met Martin the donkey
“Are you looking for a donkey?” a woman asked someone walking by the Martin Parr Foundation with a camera slung over his neck on Tuesday morning. He was heading elsewhere, but smiled broadly when he looked into the Paintworks building and saw the animal standing casually inside.
Martin the donkey had earlier been warmly greeted by Martin Parr the photographer, after who he is named, before proceeding to casually trot around the gallery.
Martin the donkey’s travelling companion is Adam Lee, a freelance photographer and donkey enthusiast, with the pair nearing the end of an extraordinary journey together.
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This meeting of the two Martins marked the final 75-mile stretch of Martin the donkey and Adam’s 700-mile journey from Cape Wrath Lighthouse in the Scottish Highlands to Portland Bill Lighthouse in Weymouth.
“The journey is lighthouse to lighthouse,” said Adam, who has so far been walking for four months to raise money for Centre Point, a charity that helps the homeless. The walk has already raised £3,478, well over its original £2,000 target.
“Martin is actually named after Martin Parr, so I thought we must visit,” Adam told Bristol24/7 as he affectionately stroked the ears of Martin (the donkey).
“Don’t smile, look candid,” Martin the photographer instructed as he snapped a picture of the pair.
Adam said that he simply loves to walk and travel, speaking of the warmth it brings him to see people so happy and engrossed with his furry friend.
“I love bringing joy to people, but really it’s all Martin. I am just his PA. Sometimes people start referring to me as Martin!”
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“Touch his ears, they are like velvet,” Adam instructed one visitor in the gallery as more people gathered around Martin the donkey, beaming, laughing and stroking him.
Adam recounted how the pair have been met with similar amusement as they have made their way down the western side of the UK.
“Some of the funniest things I have heard are, ‘that’s a big dog’ and ‘nice ass’. One guy in north Glasgow even shouted, ‘am I tripping or is that a fucking donkey!'”
Before he and Martin the donkey left, Adam asked Martin the photographer for a selfie, telling him a bit more about his travelling companion.
“It’s just like having a dog,” said Adam, who will be officially adopting Martin the donkey once their journey is complete.
“We have created a big bond. The thought of letting him go is unimaginable.”
To donate to Adam’s fundraising effort, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lighthouse-to-lighthouse
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