Graffiti removed from King Richard III statue

One of Leicester's best known statues has been cleaned after it was sprayed with yellow paint by vandals.

Crude anatomical shapes were sprayed on the statue of King Richard III, which stands in Cathedral Gardens, on Friday.

It was donated to the city by the Richard III Society in 1980 and refurbished as part of a £2.5m project following the discovery of the Plantagenet monarch's remains nearby in 2012.

The King Richard III Visitor Centre, which is located next to the figure, said Leicester City Council's street cleaning team "did their magic" and cleaned the graffiti.

The bronze statue, which features Richard holding a crown in one hand and a sword in the other, marked the fact he marched from Leicester to his death at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485.

For centuries, a widely believed story stated his body had been thrown into the River Soar in Leicester.

But University of Leicester archaeologists, along with the Richard III Society, decided to investigate suggestions the king had actually been buried in the former Greyfriars friary in the city.

They uncovered his skeleton in 2012 and the remains, with Richard III's famous curved spine, were later interred at Leicester Cathedral.

A spokesperson for King Richard III Visitor Centre said: "We are delighted to let you know our incredible street cleaning team at Leicester City Council did their magic over the weekend. All repaired and restored."

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