Edinburgh Council painted over street art 'vandalism' at Banana flats

Edinburgh Council has painted over a controversial mural created by a popular street artist on the listed Banana flat building in Leith.

The Rebel Bear is believed to have painted the artwork on the side of Edinburgh’s listed Cables Wynd House on Thursday.

The mural, called “Falling in love”, depicted a man and a woman intertwined and falling from the top of a building.

Edinburgh’s housing, homelessness and fair work convener emphasised that the artist did not have all the “necessary consents” to move ahead.

The Rebel Bear was granted planning permission to paint a “life-sized” version of the mural on the outside of the brutalist listed building, known locally as the Banana Flats.

However, the idea was not popular with residents.

STV News understands that following a meeting with the Cables Wynd Residents’ group, officers informed the artist in mid-May that the council had refused permission for the artwork to proceed.

“While planning permission was obtained to install the artwork, this does not cover other necessary consents, including permission from the building owners, who are both the council and private building owners in the block,” Councillor Lezley Marion Cameron said.

The anonymous artist used a cherry picker to paint the mural last Thursday.

It is understood that council officers requested the artist to stop work, but that it was completed later that day.

The council then arranged for the artwork to be painted over.

Further remediation work is anticipated, but options are still being reviewed to minimise the impact on the listed building.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 12.10pm on Thursday, September 25, 2025, police received a report of a vandalism in Cables Wynd, Edinburgh and enquiries are ongoing.”