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Banksy s Reading Jail stunt could be his finest contribution to British culture
The scene of Oscar Wilde s incarceration should be turned into an arts centre worthy of him, not more flats. Can Banksy s latest work help?
The Bansky painting on the side of Reading Jail
So, Banksy has achieved what Judi Dench, Kenneth Branagh and Stephen Fry could not: turned a huge spotlight on the threat of inappropriate development that hangs over the defunct HM Prison Reading, long and still colloquially known as Reading Gaol.
The three actors – Grade I-listed household-names – have each issued eloquent pleas on behalf of a local campaign to convert for lasting cultural use a building immortalised through its unhappy association with Oscar Wilde.
But interest in the old jail has not suddenly appeared from nowhere like a forgotten cousin. The future of the site has been a hot topic in recent years, with the sale of the prison falling through last year and a council-led bid to turn the Gaol into a theatre and arts centre in the works. The Save Reading Gaol campaign for the site to become an arts and culture hub rather than instead of luxury flats has been running for more than 18 months years now, with support from celebrities such as Dame Judi Dench and Stephen Fry. Reading Gaol has been empty and unused since December 2013, when it was shut by the Ministry of Justice.
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