BANKSY has made a name for himself with daring street art that has sold for millions of pounds.

Yet the famous guerrilla artist's work has become worth even MORE when it's destroyed – whether it's by accident or on purpose.

Just this week it was revealed actor Christopher Walken purposefully destroyed a Banksy mural worth £10million in Bristol as he filmed The Outlaws.

But it's not the only piece of Banksy's artwork that has been wrecked – here are five others times when his art was destroyed, defaced or even burnt:

PULP FICTION

Banksy's famous Pulp Fiction piece was valued at £300,000 after it appeared near the Old Street tube station in 2002.

The work featured Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta dressed like their film characters holding bananas instead of guns.

The piece remained in the station for several years – until it was painted OVER by Transport for London (TfL) workers.

When approached about the mishap, a TFL spokesperson said their graffiti removal teams were "staffed by professional cleaners not professional art critics".

Despite the set back, the elusive artist has returned to the Tube network.

The elusive artist, dressed in full protective gear, took to the Tube network to paint a carriage with Covid-infected vermin as he urged Londoners to wear masks at the height of the pandemic.

In a video shared to the artist's Instagram, the anonymous graffiti genius was seen entering a carriage in a hazmat suit, face mask and goggles.

Despite the work's popularity, a TfL spokesperson said although the gesture was appreciated, it was removed and he was invited to paint somewhere else.

A spokesperson said: "We appreciate the sentiment of encouraging people to wear face coverings, which the vast majority of customers on our transport network are doing.

"In this particular case, the work was removed some days ago due to our strict anti-graffiti policy."

GIRL WITH BALLOON

One of the most famous cases of a Banksy being destroyed was in fact at the hands of the artist himself.

In 2018, his artwork showing a girl with a balloon self-shredded after it sold for a staggering £1,042,000million at a Contemporary Art Auction in London.

The artist had planned the drama in advance – building a shredder built within the frame to activate as soon as the final hammer rang down.

That half-shredded piece, renamed Love is in the Bin, went on to sell just three years later for £16m this year, with a buyer's premium taking the full price to £18.5m in total.

The sale beat his previous record of £16.8 raised for the NHS with a painting of a young boy playing with a superhero nurse doll he set in March.

MORONS

An original Banksy was created in 2006 – showing an auctioneer in a crowded room telling the masses: "I can’t believe you morons actually buy this."

Initially bought for $95,000 (£70,000) by Injective Protocol, it was then BURNT in a live video.

However this only helped the price increase – with it later sold for $380,000 (£274,000).

Some slammed the burning of the artwork with Ossian Ward, author of the book Ways of Looking: How to Experience Contemporary Art saying: "It's a total stunt, playing off the fact that these things are going for big money.

"You can say anything is a work of art… but if you burn a Banksy and then want money for it, that ranks pretty low on the art scale for me."

Joey Syer, cofounder of My Art Broker, told news.Bitcon the move was risky.

"Last week we lost a genuine Unsigned Banksy print to a stunt that can only be described as brave, yet risky.

"Despite the NFT reaching a record price, selling for 300 per cent more than the print’s physical valuation, it triggers the question of whether or not art can still be art when it no longer exists in its physical form."

BANKSY'S BLESSING

Film mogul Christopher Walken was photographed on Wednesday painting over a £10million Banksy artwork while filming BBC comedy drama The Outlaws.

He used a roller and magnolia emulsion to cover Banksy's work, daubed on a wall of the show’s set in Bristol.

But it's understood Walken did so with the permission of graffiti star.

Mystery man Banksy is a fan of Hollywood actor Christopher, 78, and also  appreciated that writer Stephen Merchant, 46 — a fellow Bristolian — was showcasing his home city.

A spokesman for the production said: "We can confirm that the artwork at the end of The Outlaws was an original Banksy, and that Christopher Walken painted over that artwork during the filming of this scene, ultimately destroying it."

SLAVE LABOUR

A mural depicting Slave Labour was painted on the side of Poundland in 2012.

The artwork, made to highlight child labour, faced being destroyed when it went on sale with US Street Artist Ron English planning to buy it and whitewash it.

He said: "My idea for this painting is to whitewash it for my good pal Banksy, I only wish I could’ve spent more money on it. I’m done. This is a blow to street art. It shouldn’t be bought and sold.

"I’m going to paint over it and just include it in one of the walls in my house. We’re tired of people stealing our stuff off the streets and re-selling it so I’m just going to buy everything I can get my hands on and whitewash it."

The local community also called for the piece of art to be returned, with Wood Green councillor Alan Strickland saying the mural "belongs with the people of north London".

It ultimately escaped being destroyed, being bought for an eye-watering price of £90,000 at auction in Covent Garden.

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