It’s a story that seems to happen every few months. A new artwork from Banksy is discovered by locals. The sight then becomes a media circus as the artwork becomes a national talking point. Then, the artwork either gets nicked or a feud takes place over its ownership and who stumps up the cost of protecting it.
In this new series, a spin-off of the successful BBC Sounds series The Banksy Story, James Peak speaks to those who have been caught up in the middle of the storm. What becomes evident is how the first 12 hours of the art being discovered is critical.
“It’s easy to look back with hindsight,” says one Margate local, Sam, who found a Banksy on the wall of her property, “but at the time you’re very quickly making decisions on things you don’t really understand or know anything about.”
