Art News: Folke Art

There are many competing and controversial claims about what it means to be English, but this kinda sums up everything I love about coming from my country.

Well played, Folkestone, well played.

Gayness: Another Victory!

A huge international corporation, NewLookOrangeFuckYouMcSlaves™, has suddenly decided to become a moral agent, Fagburn can exclusively reveal.
Following a campaign by almost 6,000 gay idiots clicking on another stupid petition on AllOut, the company has now done a spectacular volte-face, and will now pretend to care about The Gays.
This was supported by Pink Star News, who filed endless stories about how something bad is bad.
Celebrities who signed up to the campaign included Christopher Biggins, Su Pollard, and Dave Nobody, Conservative local councillor for East Twittery (West).
The company will now no longer be doing something that they weren't actually doing before, a spokeslady has said.
"We shall now try harder to pretend to be nice," she told us.
All the other bad things they do, like using 12 year-old children to work 12-hour days in sweatshops, will however continue.
So everything is now alright for ever.
Because only corporate whores can save us now.
Well done, The Gays!

Arts News: This Is England

'Cheeky, yes. Rebellious, definitely. But quintessentially British? Banksy's image of kissing policemen, originally daubed on a Brighton pub wall, has been surprisingly named the single work of art that best expresses British identity in a poll of 1,000 artists.
'The graffiti artist's depiction of a two policemen in a clinch tops a list dominated by bold and predominantly modern works chosen by British artists as representative of their national heritage...'

The Independent. 
I don't know a lot about art, but I do know any great work of art would be much improved by leaning an old bike against it, and having it right next to a pub's stinky bins.
Brigh'on!

Banksy: Kisses For Sale

"A piece of wall bearing one of Banksy’s most iconic works has been flown to America to be sold.
"Experts predict the kissing policeman [Sic], painted on the wall of the Prince Albert pub in Trafalgar Street, Brighton in 2004, could reach in excess of £1 million."

The Argus, Brighton.
Eh? The original was painted over by (presumably homophobic) vandals in 2006, but I hope the squillionaire new owner is happy with whatever he's bought.

Update: "In 2008 a specialist art restoration company used chemicals to transfer the image onto a canvas, and the original was replaced with a facsimile, encased in perspex. "I don't think we are cheating people," said Steward. "Maybe it's a little bit misleading but it's 80% a Banksy, just the stencil's been done by somebody else." (The Guardian)
Eh?