Banksy’s Great British Spraycation: 10 new murals appear in a week

Banksy via his Instagram account posted a short film about his mural-making journey in coastal towns in eastern England. With the short film, titled "The Great British Spraycation", he confirmed that he is the creator behind the ten newly appeared murals in the towns. The short film starts off with him finishing a mural of a rat sipping a cocktail. Driving around with his camper van, he continued his journey to create nine other murals.

“Spraycation” satirises the idea of “staycations,” which can be an alternative to traditional holidays in the wake of COVID-19 and restrictions on international travel. Three of the cities the artist worked in, namely Great Yarmouth, Gorleston and Lowestoft, are competing to become the next UK City of Culture in 2025.

In Lowestoft, Banksy drew four murals: a boy making a sandcastle in London Road North; a seagull swooping on a skip in Denmark Road; a group of children in a boat with the tagline "we are all in the same boat" in Nicholas Everitt Park; and a rat drinking a cocktail in North Beach. 

In Norfolk, he created four other murals. One is painted on a miniature stable with the tagline "Go big or go home" and Banksy's name. One of the murals, which is located at Gorleston model yacht pond, has been painted over due to sensitivities in the local area following the death of a three-year-old child after an inflatable trampoline burst in 2018. The Great Yarmouth Borough Council said that it was “the right decision, respecting local people and feeling”. The council, however, said they hoped it could be restored and placed elsewhere.