His unique street art has adorned walls in London, Los Angeles and even the West Bank – now a Lancashire man believes Banksy has paid a secret visit to Accrington.
Nick Heartshorne Evans, 40, from Hapton, claims a fresh piece of artwork by the world-renowned graffiti artist has appeared on a phonebox on Accrington Road.
Nick, who runs a HR consultancy, spotted the artwork during his drive to work last Friday at the roundabout which leads onto Bentley Wood Way.
"I saw it in the corner of my eye and thought it was a rat or a cat, I had to do a double take," he said.
"It has had part of its face rubbed out but it really looks like what Banksy calls his ‘gangster rat’.
"It’s wearing a little mask over its eyes like Zorro. The only thing I can see that is different from the original is the tail.
"I think it’s really cool.
"It’s only because I’m currently buying some Banksy stencils to decorate my house that I noticed it.
"People might think I’m wrong but who’s to say it isn’t genuine? It would be pretty exciting if he had come up here to do it."
Banksy is notoriously secretive and has never revealed his identity.
The artist’s documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop was nominated for an Academy Award in January, but the eccentric artist refused to appear at the Oscar ceremony this week, instead choosing to tag the streets of LA with a series of stencils and paintings.
But could the balaclava-clad artist have taken time out to travel to Accrington?
"It would be impossible to know if it is real or not because he’s not contactable, but stranger things have happened," said Nick.
"Even if it’s not an original Banksy, whoever has done it has taken a lot of time and effort – it’s really good.
"What makes me believe it could be genuine is the size. It’s a lot bigger than some of the stencils you can buy and it looks very good."
When contacted at their offices in Brighton, Jo Brooks Public Relations, which represents Banksy, was unable to confirm or deny whether the artwork had in fact been created by the acclaimed artist.
Is this Banksy the real thing or an obvious fake? Let us know your thoughts at: accringtonobserver@menmedia.co.uk
