Has a rival street artist painted over a popular artwork on the wall of a shop in Blackstock Road?

The mural of a giant magpie, believed to have been by street artists Irony and Boe, had been on the wall of the Arsenal Fruit and Veg shop in Finsbury Park until last week.

It is believed that another artist began painting over the work last week after seeking permission from a neighbour, but was stopped by shopkeeper Ozgun Koral.

Mr Koral said he was coming back to the shop last week when he saw a man painting his own graffiti on the whitewashed wall where the magpie had been.

It was too late to save the bird so he asked them to repaint the wall white.

Mr Koral is among those saddened to lose the magpie. He said: “It looked like one of my childhood pets when I was in Turkey, it reminded me of a bird I used to play with.”

• Keywords
  MURALS, STREET ART, BIRDS
• Geographical keyword
  BLACKSTOCK ROAD
• Persons keyword
  Irony and Boe [Artists]