A pub landlord who was threatened with legal action to remove a giant bull mural from the side of his 400-year-old inn has lodged a planning application in a bid to keep the artwork.

Martin Peel paid a local artist £1,200 to have the 8ft mural emblazoned on the side of The Bull's Head in Wootton Wawen, with the artwork finished in April.

Having since received a letter from Stratford-on-Avon District Council saying the bull - known locally as 'Eddie' - breached planning rules for listed properties, Mr Peel has now submitted a planning application to keep the piece in place.

The application said: "The bull depicted in the mural is a British breed of cattle originating from Herefordshire in the West Midlands and not only does it reflect the name of the pub, it would have also been a regular site in nearby fields.

Martin Peel paid a local artist £1,200 to have the 8ft mural emblazoned on the side of The Bull's Head (image by SWNS)

"The applicant is the current landlord of the Bull's Head Inn and since taking over day to day operations of the pub, he has worked to restore the building in attempt to create a vibrant and welcoming community facility to be enjoyed by locals and visitors to Wootton Wawen.

"The applicant was not aware that consent would be required for the mural hence the retrospective nature of this application.

"Nonetheless, the mural was created with care and respect for the building with the applicant choosing a traditional sign writer / mural painter, as he did not want to use standard computer cut plastics or printed vinyl.

"The mural captures the building's heritage and has received overwhelming support from the local community since its creation."

Mr Peel, 52, has also recently attended a parish council meeting to discuss the mural, and has since painted over some of the grey lettering on the 16th century pub following feedback from locals.

The artwork was finished in April and Mr Peel says it was a big hit with visitors (image via SWNS)

Mr Peel, who runs the pub with his partner Omm, 43, said earlier this year: "It's a beautiful pub and the painting just communicates what we do.

"It was meant to be eye-catching and a bit of fun while respecting the heritage of the building.

"It's an impressive structure. It's historic but a lot of people think we're just a big house which can be confusing for people.

"We feel it's a mural that works in line with the era of the heritage. We take the heritage very seriously.

"We've put a new bar and period fireplace and chimney in a room that's been ignored which was all done at our own personal cost.

"That has been done through planning but we just didn't realise this was a crime.

"The council just said 'it's not acceptable'.

"We get a lot of positive comments from people in the pub, you get people stopping and taking pictures with it.

"It doesn't detract from the heritage of the building. We did have a large vinyl banner at the front which looked awful, it didn't suit the pub."

The council said the artwork is 'not acceptable' (image via SWNS)

Mr Peel, a former aircraft mechanic, believes the council were alerted by just one villager who did not like the design.

But over 1,300 have signed a petition to support the father-of-two's battle with the council.

The painting was done by artist Phil Taylor who has been signwriting for 40 years.

Many residents have rallied around Mr Peel, saying the painting has helped "put the village on the map".

Earlier this year, Stratford-on-Avon District Council refused to comment on the case.

A spokesperson saying: "Unfortunately we don't comment on live enforcement cases."

An application for listed building consent and a separate application for advertising consent have been submitted.

See the advertising application here.