Elvis Statue For Cracow

Warsaw already has its Winnie the Pooh Street and John Lennon Avenue, and a few months ago it was declared that the Central Square in Nowa Huta - the communist ideal city that was founded on the fringe of Cracow in 1949 - is to be renamed after Ronald Reagan. Times they are a changin', make no doubt about it.

This week it was announced that another cherry is to be added to Nowa Huta's increasingly fruity cake. A sizable rock has been plucked from nearby Wieliczka Salt Mine, and it will soon be transformed into a dashing likeness of the King of Rock, Pan Elvis Presley himself. The precise location of the statue is yet to be decided, but Nowa Huta's very own Elvis Presley Avenue looks set to provide the home.

Poland has always had a considerable Elvis Fan Club, and this week's news has overjoyed fans of the big-flared genius. What Comrade Lenin would have thought, whose likeness once dominated the Central Square, is another matter. Long Live the King!