For years people have tried – and failed – to uncover details about Bristol’s most famous, yet anonymous, graffiti artist Banksy.

Photos of him and stories of people who have met him are incredibly rare. But now a man who got the secretive artist to work with children at a youth club in the late 1990s has given the BBC an exclusive insight into the man behind the murals, just as he was about to become famous.

Banksy is one of the world’s most famous graffiti artists. His work has sold for millions of pounds and his exhibitions seen by hundreds of thousands of people.
But behind layers of paint, lost in time at a Bristol youth club, there’s a Banksy very few people know about.
On the cusp of international fame, the artist was leaving his mark – not only on the streets of his city, but on young people in Lawrence Weston.
Here, Banksy helped groups of teens in art classes, just as he was about to paint his famous Mild, Mild West mural.
“If you look at the photos, you can see the way he was working with the young people,” said Peter de Boer, the man responsible for getting Banksy in the building.
“They were engaged, having fun and sharing ideas. It was a true collaboration.”

“It’s about what speaks to you”: Displaying paintings, prints, textiles and sculptures can all help create a fresh living space for the new year – here’s how, according to the experts.

January is a popular time of year to refresh priorities – and perhaps our surroundings too, creating a new mood for a new year. New artworks can transform a living space, and also inspire future interests, intentions, or the desire for fresh goals. Even repositioning our existing paintings, prints and photographs can revitalise a home and feel like a new start.
“It’s about what speaks to you”: Displaying paintings, prints, textiles and sculptures can all help create a fresh living space for the new year – here’s how, according to the experts.

January is a popular time of year to refresh priorities – and perhaps our surroundings too, creating a new mood for a new year. New artworks can transform a living space, and also inspire future interests, intentions, or the desire for fresh goals. Even repositioning our existing paintings, prints and photographs can revitalise a home and feel like a new start.

Chappell Roan can’t be stopped.
Over the last 12 months, the 26-year-old has become the buzziest star in pop. A flamboyant, flame-haired sensation, whose songs are as colourful as they are raw.
Her debut album, released to little fanfare in 2023, has just topped the UK charts for a second time. Next week, she’s up for six Grammy awards, including best new artist. And BBC Radio 1 have named her their Sound Of 2025.
Success has been all the sweeter because her former record label refused to release many of the songs that exploded onto the charts last year.
“They were like, ‘This is not gonna work. We don’t get it’,” Roan tells Radio 1’s Jack Saunders.
Watch Radio 1’s full interview with Sound Of 2025 winner Chappell Roan.
Reaching pop’s A-list isn’t just a vindication but a revolution.
The 26-year-old is the first female pop star to achieve mainstream success as an openly queer person, rather than coming out as part of their post-fame narrative.
On a more personal level, she’s finally got the financial security to move into a house of her own, and acquire a rescue cat, named Cherub Lou.
“She’s super tiny, her breath smells so bad, and she doesn’t have a meow,” the singer dotes.
If kitten ownership is a benefit of fame, Roan has bristled at the downsides.