‘I am not Banksy,’ former Welsh councillor denies allegation in new book

A former west Wales councillor, who resigned following allegations he was mystery graffiti artist Banksy, has written a book giving his account.

Former Pembroke Dock Town Council member William Gannon resigned earlier this year, saying the allegation undermined his ability to work as councillor, and harmed the reputation of the council.

Mr Gannon had repeatedly attempted to distance himself from the online allegations, even making ‘I am not Banksy’ badges and releasing a YouTube video about what he thought Banksy actually looked like.

Mr Gannon has admitted he may have crossed paths with Banksy when he was part of the graffiti art scene, has now self-published an 80-page book titled I am Not Banksy.

He has described his new book, available on Amazon, as “a true story and it is not a pleasant one”. 

‘Not Bansky’

“This book has nothing to do with Banksy and does not reveal his identity,” said Mr Gannon.

“About four months ago I was accused of being Banksy. I am not Banksy but the allegation led to me having to stand down as a town councillor. This is my account of the events before and after my resignation.

“The book began as a scrapbook of screenshots and press cuttings that I collected to try and make sense of everything that happened. I still do not understand what happened. It still doesn’t make any sense. 

“People are still asking me to explain what happened and, when I say I do not know, it just looks as though I am being evasive and that fuels the speculation that I am Banksy. 

“I hope this book explains to everyone what I do not know and why I do not know it. 

“The book is in two halves. The first is the events leading up to my resignation and the second is the reaction of some of the press to the story and the lessons I learnt from that. 

“Now that I have written all of this down I want to draw a line under these events and move on with my life. I want to get on with making community art that has nothing to do with Banksy.

“Everything I know about what happened is in this book. Anyone who has any questions can read all about it here 

“I have put it up on Amazon just in case anyone wants a copy. Go to Amazon and type in ‘I am NOT Banksy’ and you should be able to get it from there. Good luck. It makes for grim reading.”

Port Talbot

An original piece of Banksy artwork appeared overnight in Port Talbot in December 2018.

Michael Sheen expressed his disappointment at the Banksy when the Banksy artwork left the town earlier this year.

The actor, who initially paid for security for the artwork out of his own pocket when it first appeared on the side of a garage ion the town back in December 2018, labelled the moving of the artwork ‘uninspiring’.