Ipswich Town Hall is today preparing to say tatty-bye to the threadbare flags that have been making the Cornhill look untidy over the autumn.

Three of the flags fluttering over the town’s main landmark look more like rags – but by tomorrow evening they should have been consigned to the bin.

Two new flags, a Union Flag and a cross of St George have been ordered and should replace the fraying specimens that have flown over the Town Hall for years.

For the rest of the week they will fly alongside the new French flag, raised to show Ipswich’s solidarity with the people of Paris following Friday night’s attacks.

The shoddy state of the ragged flags was thrown into the spotlight as a new French Tricolour was run up to half-mast on Monday morning to mark solidarity with Paris.

That had been bought from Framlingham’s Bill Bulstrode – after an employee who lives in the town spotted that he had flags on sale at 7.30am yesterday morning.

Chief executive Russell Williams said it showed up the existing flags and new ones were ordered straight away.

A new flag with the borough’s coat of arms will also be ordered – but that has to be made specially so it will take longer to arrive.

But the existing borough flag – the most frayed of all – will be taken down and put in the bin straight away!