Landlord removes entire wall featuring Banksy artwork

Mural increased the value of shop by around £200,000

The wall was removed via a yellow telehandler (Crispin Hook / SWNS)

An entire wall featuring a mural painted by the artist Banksy has been removed from the side of a shop in Suffolk.

The work, which featured a child with a crowbar kneeling next door to a sandcastle, was cut out of the wall of an empty shop in the coastal town of Lowestoft.

Workmen were seen carefully removing the work of art by cutting it out of the brick and plaster which make up the wall of the former electrical shop

Pictures show a yellow telehandler removing the painted part of the wall which was protected with a screen and wooden boards.

Workmen were then seen loading the slab onto a truck, before it was taken to an undisclosed location.

As yet it is unclear whether the artwork will be sold at auction, although other works by Banksy have sold in millions.

Some locals were unhappy with the development. Writing on Facebook, Brandon Eames described the removal as “stupidity” and “disrespectful”.

He wrote: “Now being shipped off to sell at public auction.. This is terrible. Why spend the money to protect it then just take it away...”

Matthew Cook added: “Greed, lack of understanding, lack of respect.

“Remove a painted artwork all because who did it... its a joke tbh and should have been allowed. Sets a bad precedent.”

In a statement, East Suffolk Council said: “We have spoken with the landlord of this property who has confirmed the artwork is being removed.”

Before the arrival of the artwork on the shop’s wall, the building was initially up for sale for £300,000. It was, however, re-listed for £500,000 after Banksy confirmed that the mural was his, following a so-called “spraycation” on the east coast.

The street artist claimed responsibility for 10 pieces of work around the coast in East Anglia over the summer.

Four murals appeared in Lowestoft, attracting crowds of people to the town. These included the mural on the side of the shop, one near to the railway station, another in a park and one on the beach.