It was one of the priciest art pieces ever to make its way in front of the experts on the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow, and the sale of a Banksy mural is still said to be supporting a Bristol youth club nine years later. Part of The Riverside Youth Project, Broad Plain Boys’ Club in Easton gained international attention when it sold a Banksy work with the artist’s blessing, after finding it on a boarded-up doorway outside.
Dennis Stinchcombe, who has been the club leader for 47-and-a-half years, was the first person to find the creation, which showed two lovers embracing while both are staring at their phones, but believed it was the work of vandals. He only discovered the artist behind the piece – entitled Mobile Lovers – was Banksy, after fans and film crews descended on the building.
It’s understood that Bristol’s elusive street artist was a former club member – and this was his attempt to help keep the project alive after a lack of funding meant it could be forced to close. Dennis later took the artwork onto the Antiques Roadshow, where it was valued at £400,000 but later sold for a reported £563,000 to a philanthropist.
Speaking about the legacy of the sale, Dennis said this week: “Banksy was a member of the club when he was a young boy of 14 or 15, you see. I believe he saw our appeal for money to save the club and wanted to give back. I wouldn’t ever reveal what his name is and who he is, but he went to the club and grew up around here.
“When there was a lot of publicity for it, there was a man outside who told me to take the painting off the door so it didn’t get damaged – to this day, I believe that was him as well.
“We still have about £20,000 left of the Banksy money in our account, so it’s still keeping us going. It’s not just the money that helps us; having his name behind us helps us enormously to keep us going.”
Dennis’s wife Edna, 66, who also runs the club, added: “We’re very grateful [to Banksy]. He’s become a major part of our lives, and just having his name behind us has given opportunities to thousands of children in Bristol. It’s amazing.
“I must say if he ever wants to help again, it would be nice if he could do it on my house next time so we could have a nice retirement!”
Broad Plain offers boys the opportunity to participate in sports and recreation activities to help them “realise their full potential”.
Dennis said “Established over 128 years ago, the youth club I run is one of the oldest in the country and keeping it going has been my life’s work.
“We help hundreds of children every year, providing a safe space where they can go and keep them off the streets, and I’ve helped run it for 46 years – so I was devastated when financial troubles threatened to close us down.
“Things came to a head in 2013 when I had a triple-heart bypass and spent six months in recovery. Looking back, I think, in part, this was caused by the stress of constantly trying to secure funding to keep the centre open.
“We were six months from closing, and once I was better, we started a new fundraising campaign. Banksy – who, unbeknown to me, had been a member of the club when he was around 14 – must have read about it.”
The 67-year-old said he was with his son when they spotted the artwork on a door outside the club. He said: “I thought it was amazing, but didn’t for one second think it was a Banksy – until suddenly, two days later, loads of people descended after the artist himself had posted a photo of the piece on his website.”
Dennis admits he “thought there’d been a murder” because of the number of cameras and film crew outside, and while he was thrilled to have an authentic Banksy etched on the door of his club, a fight then broke out with the council over who owned it.
Luckily, the artist himself settled the dispute. Dennis says: “Banksy sent a letter to me confirming it belonged to me, and it was stored in the museum for safekeeping.
“It was valued at £400k and later sold for £563k. I can genuinely say it transformed and changed the lives of so many.”
Dennis and his team donated £96k to other youth groups in the area, which he says has helped thousands of young people access youth work. They were also able to buy two new minibuses, as well as install central heating and replace old equipment.
Dennis told the Sun: “Most importantly, we were able to keep going. In monetary terms, the art was sold for hundreds of thousands, but to us, it was absolutely priceless. To us, it was priceless – I can’t thank Banksy enough.”
