A local councillor in a town in West Wales has resigned his position, because he said everyone thinks he's Bristol street artist Banksy.
William Gannon, known as Bill, has been a street artist for 40 years, and has painted walls all over the country, but he is so adamant he's not the Bristol street artist that he's even had a badge made saying 'I'm not Banksy'.
But he said the talk in his local town of Pembroke Dock got so bad that it made his position as a town councillor untenable and he was quitting because of it.
Read more: The most ridiculous theories about who Banksy is
He said his short spell in public life was over within a matter of weeks because the rumours that he was really Banksy was 'undermining my ability to do the work of councillor' properly.
The bizarre claim comes from the fact Bill was a street artist for many years - so everyone in Pembroke Dock just assumed that meant he was Banksy.
In his resignation letter, Bill wrote: "As you may be aware an allegation has been repeatedly made that I am not who I say I am but that I am the artist Banksy. This allegation is undermining my ability to do the work of councillor and council rep properly. Therefore, I have decided to step down as both town councillor and council rep to the port with immediate effect." Bill vehemently denies he is anything to do with the iconic Bristol-based street artist and now even walks around with an 'I'm not Banksy' badge on his chest to try and distance himself. Speaking after his resignation letter was published, he said: "The story was started up that I am Banksy. I am NOT Banksy and I have got a badge to prove it.
Banksy, for those who still don't know, was a Bristol-based street artist who came to the fore in Bristol in the late 1990s - initially by stencilling his name on the railway bridge over the M32 and on the railings on the Eastville M32 junction roundabout.
He was in the next generation of street artists who came after the famous Barton Hill Dugout youth club led by John Nation, that produced the likes of Inkie and Cheo, and his first major work in Bristol is still there - Mild Mild West, in Stokes Croft. He went to London in the early 2000s and became world famous, before returning to the West Country before lockdown, and continuing to paint sporadically in the region. He's done a couple of works in Bristol in the last couple of years - in Barton Hill and in Totterdown, as well as a work of art on the wall of Reading Gaol. His most recent creation was a t-shirt sold in Bristol to raise money for the Colston 4.
Bill Gannon was a street artist, but is not Banksy. "I have been a community artist for over 40 years now and in the past was doing much the same as Banksy in the same areas and cities at the same time," he said. "That does not make me Banksy. There were thousands of us at it. If I am Banksy then everyone is Banksy.
"Anyway, I was a councilor in Pembroke Dock. A lovely town full of lovely people who have had some controversial councillors over the years. When this ridiculous story surfaced it was felt that the council did not really need another controversial councillor so I did the decent thing and stood down. The idea was to keep a lid on it and hopefully the allegation would go away. It hasn't. My phone has been ringing non stop ever since," he added.
Mr Gannon said the claims were started by a former councillor he was running against but were widely believed and featured in multiple public posts. He added: "Following a number of discussions with various people it has been made clear to me that there are a growing number of people who believe the allegations made against me.
"It was felt that, to protect the reputation of the town, Pembroke Dock did not need another controversial councillor dragging the reputation of the town through the mud. As a result of all this, my position became untenable and after some consideration I sent my resignation notice to the town clerk."
While Pembroke Dock has never had a Banksy of its own, one did appear on a garage in Port Talbot, about 70 miles away, in 2018 before it was removed earlier this year. Bill said as a community artist he was now beginning a campaign to distance himself from all the false rumours. He added: "This is an attempt to illustrate how ridiculous the claims that I am Banksy are."
Mr Gannon is the latest in a long line of people who are accused of being Banksy but have denied it - from Massive Attack frontman Rob del Naja or Gorillaz artist Jamie Hewlett to, slightly more improbably, Art Attack presenter Neil Buchanan.
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