Bristol-born Banksy ranked as one of the 50 greatest storytellers of all-time
Posted on: 18 May 2017The graffiti artist, one of Bristol’s most notorious sons, is included alongside Roald Dahl and William Shakespeare in the list compiled by Canon.
The famously-anonymous street artist Banksy has been included in the 50 greatest storytellers of all-time, placing in a list which also features Charles Dickens and JK Rowling.
The poll, conducted by camera company Canon UK, predominantly features authors and filmmakers who have contributed to their respective canons, yet counts Banksy among them as the only visual artist on the list.
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He placed 30th in the rankings, beating the likes of Virginia Woolf, EL James, Jack Kerouac and John Lennon. The inclusion reflects the narrative quality that many of his pieces possess, which has rendered him the most famous street artist in the world.
Matthew Searle of Canon UK said: “You can’t beat a good story, whether it’s words in a book, photographs or film or simply through conversation.
“Storytellers come in many different forms whether it’s through music, writing or photos, and those in this top 50 are responsible for some of the greatest tales of all time.”
The full list is as follows:
1. Roald Dahl
2. Charles Dickens
3. William Shakespeare
4. JK Rowling
5. Steven Spielberg
6. Hans Christian Andersen
7. Lewis Carroll
8. Walt Disney
9. Enid Blyton
10. J.R.R Tolkien
11. David Attenborough
12. Beatrix Potter
13. Stephen King
14. Brothers Grimm
15. HG Wells
16. AA Milne
17. George Orwell
18. CS Lewis
19. Ernest Hemingway
20. Ridley Scott
21. T. S. Eliot
22. James Cameron
23. Quentin Tarantino
24. Morgan Freeman
25. George Lucas
26. Alan Bennett
27. Andrew Lloyd Webber
28. Jacqueline Wilson
29. Ed Sheeran
30. Banksy
31. Eminem
32. Virginia Woolf
33. The Coen Brothers
34. Martin Scorsese
35. Philip K. Dick
36. David Walliams
37. Tom Hanks
38. JD Salinger
39. Louis Theroux
40. Adele
41. Iain M. Banks
42. Samuel Jackson
43. Tom Hardy
44. Stephenie Meyer
45. H. P. Lovecraft
46. E L James
47. Jack Kerouac
48. Prince
49. John Lennon
50. Kevin Spacey
To get an impression of how the street artist got going in his hometown, check out our Virtual Banksy Walking Tour of Bristol.
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An ardent Geordie minus the accent, Sam seemingly strove to get as far away from the Toon as possible, as soon as university beckoned. Three undergraduate years at UoB were more than ample time for Bristol (as it inevitably does) to get under his skin, and so here he remains: reporting, as Assistant Editor, on the cultural happenings which so infatuated him with the city. Catch him at sam@365bristol.com.
