Dismaland dismantled after exhibition ends

Work has started to dismantle the most successful one-off attraction in Weston-super-Mare's history.

Banksy's Dismaland has been credited with attracting over 150,000 extra people to the resort over the last 5 weeks - providing a £20 million boost to the local economy.

Today residents told ITV News securing the future of the old Tropicana site is now essential for the future growth of the town.

There was no fanfare to mark the end of Dismaland, just a suitably dreary dismantling with a cherry picker. But the legacy of this exhibition is anything but dreary. Yes, Banksy might have been having a subtle dig at Weston-super-Mare, but tourism bosses say "so what?": this exhibition brought an estimated £20 million pounds into the town.

Right up until yesterday, last-minute queues were snaking along the seafront.

But with around four and half thousand visitors a day, some local people are happy see the back of Banksy and his Dismaland. Local business manager Chrissy Shearing told ITV News the huge number of tourists has disrupted life for residents:

But as the towers come down, one question is still looming. What happens now to the derelict Tropicana site that hosted Dismaland? Until the year 2000 it was an open air swimming pool. Not a viable option now, says the council. The local people we spoke to had mixed opinions.

Three seperate developers have pulled out of renovating Tropicana over the past fifteen years. The current plan being explored is to turn it into an events space, possibly with a new tourist information centre. There is general agreement that something needs to happen soon. The Tropicana's dismal state might have attracted Bansky, but it's unlikely to attract anyone else.