M People lead singer features in new Reading mural
Heather Small is the subject of an urban art exhibition connected to a medieval pilgrimage route which started at Reading Abbey
A mural featuring Heather Small has been unveiled in Reading town centre as part of the world's largest urban art exhibition.
The exhibition features more works spread over 126 kilometres along several stages of the Camino Ingles/English Way walking route of which Reading is part.
Known as the St James’ Way in the UK, Reading has been selected due to its location as the starting point of the St James Way, the UK leg of the Camino Ingles/EnglishWay, which is one of seven recognised routes which form the Camino de Santiago, a world-famous pilgrimage route, which ends in Santiago de Compostela in north-west Spain.
Last week, work began on what will be the first mural of this new stage. The work is located on Friar Street in Reading and has been painted by the urban artist David Speed, known for the innovative neon technique he uses in his work. The mural features the image of the singer Heather Small, perhaps best known as the lead singer of the 90s dance music band, M People. Heather walked the Camino de Santiago for a TV series, Pilgrimage: The Road to Santiago, in 2018, becoming an ambassador for the Camino.
The mural is very close to Reading’s Abbey Quarter, from where pilgrims during the Middle Ages began their pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela. Today’s St James Way follows in the footsteps of these pilgrims, starting its route from St James Church in the Abbey Quarter.
The St James’ Way runs almost 70 miles from Reading to Southampton. It follows pilgrimage routes that would have been used in medieval times and is now fully signposted following a major project completed by The Confraternity of St James in 2023.
Throughout the Middle Ages, Reading was recognised as a pilgrimage centre. The focus was Reading Abbey, which had over 230 relics, including the Hand of St James, making it the centre of the cult of St James. Medieval pilgrims would have taken ships from the English south coast to the Galician ports of A Coruña and Ferrol, the starting points of the English Way in Spain.
You can find out more about the St James' Way in Reading here