London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Jun 03, 2026

Merrivale Model Village owner shares Banksy's tactics

Merrivale Model Village owner shares Banksy's tactics

The owner of a model village has revealed how Banksy used diversion tactics to leave a spray-paint calling card at the venue in secret.

A miniature stable signed by Banksy was placed at Merrivale Model Village in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, on 6 August.

The tiny shack has since been taken off site to protect it.

But the attraction's owner says Banksy's team has requested it be placed on show for the public, which he will honour.

Frank Newsome said he was in a state of shock after the famed artist confirmed the model stable was one of 10 artworks left in Norfolk and Suffolk during his so-called Great British Spraycation.

"I'd convinced myself it wasn't genuine," he said.

"Now it's worrying me about how to keep it safe."

Security measures, Mr Newsome explained, were in place, and the stable he said he had been keeping in Perspex would be on display on Sunday and then again from Tuesday onwards between 11:00 and 16:00 BST.

The artwork was left by Banksy on 6 August but was not noticed until a visitor pointed it out two days later

Mr Newsome revealed how the artist's caper got under way when the venue was visited last week by a group of people who refused to have their photograph taken as part of the ticket system.

"One lady got talking to a member of staff and asked to see the model repair room and that got [the employee] out the way," he explained.

"Then some other guys set up a drone and the staff asked them to take it down and they said they wouldn't, then that got the attention of everyone.

"It was a diversion tactic, they hid in plain site, but apparently that's what Banksy does.

"He is so clever. He had everything planned to a tee."

Is this Banksy? An Instagram video shows a hooded figure spraying the rat mural on the sea wall in Lowestoft

Prof Paul Gough, principal and vice chancellor of Arts University Bournemouth, said Mr Newsome and other owners of locations decorated by Banksy would come under "a lot of pressure" to sell the artworks.

"All sorts of private organisations will be offering several hundreds of thousands of pounds and some people do hold off but some can't withstand that pressure for very long," he said.

Mr Newsome said in the short-term he wanted to keep the model "as it was intended - for the public to enjoy and appreciate".

He added: "But in the long-term we've got to make the right decision, we don't want to jump into anything.

"We are a family business and we will need to sit down together about it."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Japanese Technology Firm Fujitsu Launches Advanced Artificial Intelligence Tool for Corporate Disclosures
South Africa Officially Launches Nationwide Campaign for Highly Contested Local Government Elections
United Kingdom Commits Additional Funding for Unexploded Ordnance Clearance in Laos
Singapore Announces Stringent New Greenhouse Gas Regulations for Commercial Cooling Systems
Cambodia and Thailand Hold High-Level Border Security Talks at United Nations Headquarters
Myanmar Military Government and China Sign Major Agreement to Upgrade Media and Cultural Cooperation
Knife Attack at Swiss Train Station Leaves Three Injured in Suspected Act of Domestic Terrorism
Transnational Extortion Gang Threatens Canadian Police With Army of One Thousand Armed Operatives
Australia Imposes Forty-Two-Day Quarantine on Cruise Ship Passengers Following Deadly Hantavirus Outbreak
International Monetary Fund Unlocks Seven Hundred Million United States Dollars for Sri Lanka Following Economic Reforms
Australia Launches Record One Point Four Billion Dollar Lawsuit Against Chemical Giant 3M Over Contamination
China and Canada Foreign Ministers Meet in Ottawa in Effort to Stabilize Strained Diplomatic Ties
Indonesia Demands Urgent United Nations Security Council Reform Amid Escalating Global Conflicts
Extreme Weather Patterns Trigger Severe Drought in Madagascar and Destructive Flooding in East Africa
Indian State of Karnataka Faces Political Upheaval as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah Abruptly Resigns
Philippines and Japan Reaffirm Defense Ties as Crucial for Indo-Pacific Regional Stability
Norway Joins French Nuclear Deterrence Initiative in Major Shift for European Security Architecture
Global Critical Mineral Alliances Expand as Western Nations Move to Counter Chinese Supply Dominance
United States Imposes Fifty Percent Tariffs on Mexican Steel and Aluminum Ahead of Trade Pact Review
European Union and China Head Toward Major Trade Conflict Over Clean Technology Exports
United States Economic Growth Severely Downgraded to One Point Six Percent as Stagflation Fears Mount
World Health Organization Warns Central African Ebola Epidemic is Outpacing Containment Efforts
United States Treasury Department Conditions Sanctions Relief on Reopening of the Strait of Hormuz
Iranian Air Defenses Intercept and Destroy United States Military Drone Over Bushehr Province
Iranian Armed Forces Launch Ballistic Missiles Toward Unspecified Targets Prompting Regional Condemnation
United Nations Secretary-General Warns Global Order Facing Highest Level of Conflict Since 1945
Israel Issues Sweeping Evacuation Orders in Southern Lebanon Amid Intensified Hezbollah Conflict
Russia Announces Systemic Military Strikes Targeting Ukrainian Defense and Energy Infrastructure
United States and Iranian Negotiators Reach Draft Agreement to Extend Ceasefire and Resume Nuclear Talks
United Nations Security Council Deeply Divided Over United States Capture of Venezuelan President
US and Iran Exchange Direct Military Strikes Amid Fragile Gulf Ceasefire
World Health Organization Warns of Catastrophic Ebola Outbreak in DR Congo
Russia Threatens New Wave of Strikes on Ukrainian Infrastructure and Embassies
Scientists Warn Atlantic Ocean Currents Could Collapse Faster Than Projected
Anthropic Reaches $900 Billion Valuation in Historic AI Funding Round
Washington Imposes Crippling Sanctions on Iranian Maritime Authority
Japan and the Philippines Initiate Strategic Intelligence-Sharing Pact
Microsoft Deploys Autonomous Computer-Using AI Agents to Global Markets
Anthropic Secures $45 Billion Compute Infrastructure Agreement With SpaceX
U.S. Director of National Intelligence Resigns Amid Administration Shakeup
Micron Technology Crosses Trillion-Dollar Valuation Amid Unprecedented Hardware Demand
Canada and Germany Finalize Historic Long-Term LNG Export Agreement
China Expands International Travel Restrictions on Domestic AI Researchers
Japan Approves Sweeping Overhaul of National Intelligence Apparatus
Global Airlines Scramble Logistics as Middle East Airspace Remains Fractured
Japan's Naphtha Imports Plunge 47 Percent Amid Strait of Hormuz Closure
Global Crude Prices Retreat Below $96 as Gulf Tensions Momentarily Ease
Generative AI Outperforms Human Baselines in Landmark Global Creativity Study
NASA Partners With Private Aerospace to Unveil Permanent Lunar Base Architecture
South Korean Equity Markets Surge on Next-Generation Memory Chip Frenzy
×