The Mandela Way T-34 Tank, nicknamed Stompie, is a decommissioned Soviet-built T-34-85medium tank, formerly located on the corner of Mandela Way and Page's Walk in Bermondsey, London, England.[1][2] The tank was regularly repainted in a wide variety of colour schemes, often by graffiti artists. In January 2022 it was removed for restoration,[3] and its owner stated in April 2023 that it may not return to its former location due to concerns that the graffiti may affect its historical preservation.[4]
History
The tank is a former Czechoslovak People's Army tank that is rumoured to have taken part in the suppression of the Prague Spring uprising in 1968.[1][2][4][5] Following the "Velvet Revolution" and the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, it was decommissioned and sold, and was used as a prop in the making of the 1995 film Richard III in London. On completion of the film, it was bought in 1995 by Russell Gray, a local scrap dealer,[6] for £7,000 as a present for his son. He had previously failed to secure planning permission from Southwark Council to redevelop a vacant plot of land that he owned; and so, in an act of humorous protest, he placed the tank on the site, with its gun turret turned towards the council offices. He had previously allegedly obtained permission for the installation of a "tank" there, assumed by council officials to mean a septic tank.[1][2]
It was removed for restoration by its owner, on 4 January 2022, who said that "it might be a week, it might be two years".[3] In an interview the next year, the owner said he was unsure if the tank would ever be returned to the corner, as the graffiti did not respect "its value as a piece of military history".[4]
Repainting
The tank was regularly repainted, and its colour scheme changed, often by local graffiti artists. In 2002 it was painted pink by Cubitt Artists and Aleksandra Mir.[8] In April 2017 it was temporarily repainted by artist Charlotte Meldon to its authentic military olive drab. In April 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, it was painted sky blue in support of the National Health Service.[9]Remembrance poppies were added in November 2020. In July 2021, it was repainted light green with dark green letters reading "Go Go Green".
Gallery
The tank in its original military olive drab colour
Painted pink in 2002
In a black and cream swirling design, December 2008
The Monument to Soviet tank crews was a memorial located in Prague, Czech Republic, made up of an IS-2m tank on a pedestal. In 1991, the artist David Cerny painted the tank pink and hoisted a large middle finger over the turret in protest against the controversial monument. The monument was later removed and the tank is now displayed at Military Museum Lešany, painted pink.
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