Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Oct 30, 2025

Landlord sells Banksy mural 'for £2,000,000' after ripping it off wall

Landlord sells Banksy mural 'for £2,000,000' after ripping it off wall

A Banksy mural ripped from a wall has sold for a rumoured £2 million, sparking outrage among residents of a seaside town.

Depicting a child with a crowbar next to a sandcastle, the graffiti had appeared on an old electrical shop in Lowestoft, Suffolk, in August.

Gary and Nadine Schwartz, the couple who own the building on London Road North, later removed the work of the world-renowned street artist and have now sold it privately.

But Nasima Begum, the deputy town mayor, branded it a ‘shame’ that the pair had decided to ‘profit off something that wasn’t for them’.

She added: ‘I’m sure Banksy didn’t put it on there in the hope that someone would profit from it.

‘It’s a real shame. The Banksy art created such a buzz and attracted so many visitors to the area.’

People had been flocking to the coastal town to check out the satirical work until it was removed in November.

The work, which depicts a child with a crowbar next to a sandcastle, appeared on the wall of an old electrical shop in Lowestoft in August

The owners of the property decided to tear out part of the wall featuring the grafitti, which was covered with a protective screen and wooden boards


At the time, some people argued that ‘this was not what Banksy had in mind for one of his master pieces’.

‘Crowbar Girl’ was one of 10 created in Norfolk and Suffolk by the elusive street artist, whose real name and identity are the subject of much speculation.

The former electrical shop had originally been on the market for £300,000 when the work appeared.

Shortly after, it was relisted for £500,000 after Banksy confirmed it was part of his ‘Great British Spraycation’ series.

John Brandler, who owns several Banksy pieces, believes the ripped out graffiti could have sold for as much as £2 million at auction

Initially, it was rumoured that the artwork was shipped to the prestigious Julien’s Auctions in California, US.

But it has now emerged that it never left British soil and has instead been sold to a private buyer for an undisclosed price.

John Brandler, who owns several Banksy pieces, believes that Julien’s low guide price – apparently $200,000-$400,000 – had deterred the seller.

He revealed that the mural could have sold for as much as £2 million at auction.

Previously, the collector had pointed out that this was a ‘missed opportunity’ for the town.

He told BBC: ‘Lowestoft was given a gift by Banksy; a golden opportunity to bring thousands of tourists into the town and help the local economy.’

The sellers have declined to comment.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
×