Lenton’s beloved Banksy piece has been removed

The Banksy mural located on Rothesay Avenue has been removed for restoration. Residents of the lower-end of the road were awoken in the early hours of 17th February by the sound of workmen removing the road’s prized possession. That’s right, the Banksy is gone.

From around 5am, workmen began the process of cutting the beloved artwork, brick wall included, from the side of the Avi Hair Salon at the end of Rothesay Avenue. The bicycle that makes up part of the mural has also been removed.

The piece, which appeared in the early hours of the 15^th October last year, depicted a young girl hula-hooping with a bicycle tyre from a dilapidated bike chained to the lamppost in-front. Students and full-time residents alike were ecstatic for their road to have been chosen to house Banksy’s now second-most recent installation.

As of this morning, however, the locally treasured piece has been removed for “restoration”, one of the workmen told the The Tab Nottingham.

Nottinghamshire Police, according to a local 101 operator, were sent to the scene just before 7am this morning and confirmed to The Nottingham Tab that the relevant approval was obtained by the owners in advance.

The workers wrapped up at around 8:15am, seemingly loading the slab of wall into an unmarked white-transit van and covering the remaining hole in the wall with a wooden retainer.

Related articles recommended by this author:

• CONFIRMED: Banksy is artist behind mural on Rothesay Avenue

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• Hundreds queue on Ilkeston Road to see new Banksy