Discovering Banksy’s Bristol via a new app

A new app allows Banksy fans to discover all of the world famous graffiti artist’s work around Bristol.

Banksy’s Bristol Trail – available here from for £2.29 – maps out some of Banksy’s most well-preserved pieces across his home city. The idea is to provide tourists and locals alike with a walking tour which they can complete at their own pace.

The location of each piece of graffiti is clearly plotted on an interactive map embedded in the app, which is based on bestselling book Home Sweet Home: Banksy’s Bristol from Tangent Books.

Simply click on a numbered pin and a description detailing the work’s name, its significance and history will pop up. 

I decided to make a day of it and give it a whirl.

The graffiti is quite spread out and – as I discovered as I haphazardly negotiated my way around the city – it’s a good idea to properly plan your route before you set off. 

You can follow the trail all the way up from Spike Island to Park Street and then onto Stokes Croft but which piece you visit first will of course entirely depend on where you start. 

My first encounter was with the ever-so-slightly vandalised Well-Hung Man on College Green. The work is often mobbed by tourists but on a wet Wednesday morning I had it all to myself.

Next I visited the Smiley Wall tucked underneath the Bristol Central Library, now littered with tags.

My route then lead me towards the harbourside where my plan to explore M Shed and its Banksy exhibition was quickly thwarted. Turns out the museum doesn’t open until 10am and I was more an hour early. 

If I was to follow the trail again I’d obviously go at a significantly later time (and on sunnier day) but I’d also leave myself with a little more time to explore the surrounding area.

By the time I’d wandered over from M Shed to see The Girl with the Pierced Eardrum, I sadly didn’t have enough time to take a detour and spend an hour or two wandering around Spike Island’s art gallery.

Stokes Croft, on the other hand, I did right. After managing to rope a friend into dinner, we kicked back in The Canteen and, over a pint of cider, took our time to admire Banksy’s Mild Mild West which overlooks the beer garden of Hamilton House.

This app is great for first timers and tourists in the city as it gives allows you to take a tour of Bristol, letting you explore all its little nooks and crannies. 

To top it off, the articles that accompany the map are fun and informative. And the app even has tabs detailing Banksy’s encounter with Bristol Museum in the summer of 2009 and his more recent Dismaland exhibition in Weston-super-Mare.

The only downside is that the map doesn’t show you where you are in relation to the pins; but if you have internet on your phone then that can easily be countered by Google Mapping your way around instead.

And whenever Banksy next strikes in his home town, the app promises to be updated so you’ll be the first person to know its location.

Read more: Banksy releases Dismaland video trailer