Panti Bliss refused planning for illuminated bar sign

Gay icon Panti Bliss got a dose of the “planning blues” yesterday as Dublin City Council refused planning retention for her contentious 3.5m-high illuminated sign at the landmark Panti Bar venue.

Panti Bliss, aka Rory O’Neill, now faces the prospect of having to remove the iconic “Panti Bar” sign which her consultants said should receive planning because “it is a logo of international recognition”.

However, an appeal to An Bord Pleanála is likely as a final bid to save the sign which Panti has previously described as a “beautiful landmark” claiming that the “gorgeous sign” is “a perfect example of 21st-century Irish signage and craftsmanship”.