Banksy's Hula Hoop Girl: Where is Nottingham's lost Banksy mural now?

On the morning of October 13, 2020, an ordinary Nottingham road started to attract attention from the world’s media.

Within hours, Rothesay Avenue was packed with photographers, television crews and members of the public; their attention drawn to a spray-painted drawing on the side of a beauty salon. 

That morning, word began to spread that the mural, showing a girl using a bicycle tire as a hula-hoop, had been created by world-renowned street artist Banksy. 

The spray-painted artwork was accompanied by a bicycle, manufactured by Nottingham-based Raleigh, locked to a lamppost with its back wheel missing. 

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Despite appearing in the middle of the pandemic, the artwork drew huge crowds over the next few days as the artwork held its breath, eager to see whether Banksy would indeed confirm that the creation was his. 

Nottingham City Council soon acted to protect the suspected Banksy, covering it with Perspex to deter would-be vandals. 

The confirmation many had been waiting for arrived on October 17, when the elusive artist posted a photo of ‘Hula Hooping Girl’ on his Instagram page. 

The news was met positively by members of the local community, councillors and the art world: Nottingham had its own, genuine Banksy work. 

It didn’t take long, however, before things started to turn sour. 

In November 2020, Nottingham City Council said that the owner of the building the mural was painted on had decided to remove the bicycle for “safekeeping”. 

A replica bike was soon installed in its place, but the decision to remove the original drew criticism, with many pointing out that the artwork had been tampered with. 

A city says farewell

The mural remained in situ until February 17, 2021, when, under the cover of darkness, it was removed from the side of the building. 

It didn’t take long before reports emerged that the artwork had been sold. 

Its buyer was Essex-based art dealer John Brandler, who owns several Banksy works from across the world. 

Brandler told the BBC that he paid a “six-figure sum” for the artwork and that it had been removed by a “very specialised company”. 

Inevitably, the mural’s removal was met by anger, sadness and frustration. 

Many saw ‘Hula Hooping Girl’ as a gift to Nottingham by Banksy, with some pointing out the financial and cultural benefits the city saw as a result. 

In the days after the removal, Brandler said that he had received “vitriolic emails” from angry residents and that he was “gobsmacked” by the level of local backlash. 

More than four years on, it seems a shame that the mural has never returned to Nottingham as part of an exhibition. 

There is no denying that Nottingham enjoyed ‘Hula Hooping Girl’ in the four months she was here, but frustration surrounding her removal from our city will always exist.