Parents shocked as OnlyFans mural encouraging people to sign up pops up on Brick Lane
Parents were outraged after an OnlyFans mural with a QR code going directly to sign up for the adult social media site was painted on the side of a Brick Lane cash-and-carry.
The owner of the business says he was “misled” by the artists who asked permission to put up the advert starring IBF bantamweight world champion Ebanie Bridges alongside Towie star Chloe Sims and Blane Muise, best known as rapper Shygirl.
But locals in the heart of Banglatown, Brick Lane erupted in fury with some claiming teenagers on the way to school used the QR code to nearly sign up to the 18+ site.
Graffiti artist Woskerski completed the painting on January 15 but it wasn’t long before locals were threatening to throw paint over it.
Locals, who complained in their droves, believe it was finally painted over on Monday just before King Charles III’s visit to Banglatown so as not to cause embarrassment to the new monarch.
One local told the Standard: “It was originally brought up to me by a mother who was walking past it with her young teenage daughters who are in Year 7.
“We think it being taken down is more to do with the King visiting though than local outrage.”
He added: “It’s bad enough the youth in the ends are exposed to a lot of crap but now they are targeting young impressionable girls and women too.”
Juned Miah, manager of the family run cash-and-carry, told the Standard he moved quickly as he could to paint over the “offensive” mural with the more family-appropriate message ‘Welcome to Banglatown’.
He said: “Kids were walking past it, it didn’t look good.
“I had enough complaints, never in all my three years have we had as many as this.
“We were misled by the OnlyFans people.
“We think someone changed the QR codes so it went straight to sign up for OnlyFans. We thought it would just be the brand name.
“It wasn’t suitable for the community, it didn’t look good. So now we have painted over Welcome To Banglatown.
“I had to cut my holiday to Bangladesh short and come back and sort it out. We have dealt with it as soon as we could.”
IBF fighter and OnlyFans model Ebanie Bridges paid a visit to the mural and asked people to take photos in front of it and tag her.
She told her followers: “Ngl it’s pretty cool that people have commissioned murals of me around England. Thank you for everyone who continues to support me. I feel so honoured to have this beautiful art on walls in the country I now call home.”
A Tower Hamlets council spokeswoman confirmed the mural was on private property so the council couldn’t block the graffiti ad from going up.
She added: “They had some complaints and it’s all gone now.”
An OnlyFans spokeswoman said the QR code linked to OFTV - a family-friendly version of the site.
She added: “While the mural is no longer available to the public, we are proud to showcase the talented WOSKerski’s art in The Mural: UK on OFTV.”
