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Thursday 27 Oct 2016

All the world is a stage - and so is this bridge

Region & Route:

| Southern

A railway arch under a bridge in Southwark, London, has been given a dramatic makeover thanks to street artist Jimmy C and William Shakespeare.

In the year of the 400^th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, Jimmy has sprayed a colourful image of our greatest playwright just round the corner from The Globe theatre in Southwark.

Jimmy C, who is best known for his portrait of David Bowie in Brixton, approached Network Rail to ask permission to create the mural on a wall on Clink Street, under the tracks to Cannon Street station.

Jimmy, originally from Adelaide, Australia, said: “This year we’re celebrating 400 years of Shakespeare and I thought it would be the ideal time to do a portrait of him on the street. As far as I know I’ve not seen a picture of him on the street before so it’s also unique.

“I’ve been looking at this wall over the years and I then found out it was owned by Network Rail. I asked permission and I was very surprised when they met me on site and they said yes, yes please do it. I was thrilled and really excited.

“We’re in the heart of Shakespeare territory right here. The Globe is nearby, the Rose Theatre was nearby and his brother is buried in Southwark Cathedral so this is the ideal spot.”

The idea proved popular, with crowds of tourists turning up to watch Jimmy at work.

Network Rail South East’s Eddie Burton, who worked with Jimmy C to help the work come about, said: “It’s great to see this wall looking so good and I’m really pleased we could do this. We’re always happy to talk to artists about their ideas and we help them where we can.

“There’s a process we go through before we grant people a licence to do the work, including making sure they have the right insurance in place and a safe plan for doing the work, but any artists who are interested in working with us should get in touch.”