A STRIKING mural of a comedy legend from Ulverston has appeared on a wall in a ‘neglected' part of a county Durham town - a walk away from where he went to school.

The gigantic work of Stan Laurel was the brainchild of street artists who felt the icon should be honoured in a part of Bishop Auckland “crying out for a sense of colour”.

The labour of love, at the gable end of The Smoke House in Railway Street, grew from a community project spearheaded by Bish Vegas Legal Graff art collective.

Dan Walls, who was joined by Raven Nelson-Flower and Michael Clarke in creating the mural, said “We spent three days smashing this Stan Laurel up.

"Its been one of the best weekends I had.

“We didn’t stop laughing and had a really fun time.

"I knew it would turn out good, but didn’t expect it to be as spectacular it is and that it would attract as much attention as it has.”

He added: “It is something I personally wanted to give back to the town. Stan is a huge historical figure.

“He went to King James School, which is walking distance from our wall.

"We we thought with him being a big figurehead for the town it would be fitting commemorate him in this way - and to get people more people to that side of the town."

Stan Laurel-one half of comedy duo Laurel and Hardy-was born in Ulverston on June 16, 1890, but moved to Bishop Auckland where he lived in the Princes Street home with his parents and attended King James School as a boarder between 1902 and 1903.

Mr Walls said a high-definition photograph found online was used as a basis for the work, which was done in mixed media - from rollers and emulsion paints to spray paint. The outline was projected onto the wall.

“The biggest challenge was the height involved," he said.

"We had a cherry picker donated from Planet Leisure in Newton Aycliffe and transported by Dale Robinson it free of charge.”