Eye-catching pop-art piece unveiled at Horbury park

The piece of work has been unveiled at the shelter at Carr Lodge Park and depicts a series of cultural icons from the past seven decades.

The work is that of local man Liam Staniford, whose work at the park attracted the public's attention when he created a Banky-style painting in 2020.

This time he was commissioned by the Friends of Horbury's Parks to create the 15-metre-long piece of work of famous faces around the sides of the shelter, produced in the style of The Beatles' Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover.

It ties in with the 70 years since the Queen came to the throne, and was unveiled in time for the park's Picnic in the Park event this Sunday.

Among those famous faces on the mural is The Beatles, World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore, Ziggy Stardust, record-breaking runner Roger Bannister, Gazza, Harry Potter, Freddie Mercury, Ian Botham, The Spice Girls, Oasis, Del Boy's three-wheel van and Queen Elizabeth.

Liam, 60, made headlines in October 2020 when he left a Banksy-style painting on one of the shelters in the park and led some to believe that the famous artist was in town.

He said: "When I did that Banksy tag, it caused a bit of a fuss.

"Graham Roberts from Friends of Horbury's Parks managed to track me down and told me they were making plans for the park and asked if I wanted to work on all four sides of the shelter.

"I wanted it to look like a graffiti tag and do it in the style of Peter Blake's Sgt Peppers album cover.

"I designed it and it took me about 40 hours.

"It starts off in the 50s in black and white and goes to colour over the decades. I think it's impactful, it stands out and will be a nice addition.

"From what I gather it's had really good feedback already.

"All the characters on there are British and it's about British achievement.

"Every generation can easily reference someone who is on there, without making it complex."