Are these the world's creepiest photobombs? Perfect pictures ruined by surprise guests

PUBLISHED: 11:05 EST, 24 February 2013 | UPDATED: 11:05 EST, 24 February 2013

Next time you pose for a photograph, take a quick look behind before saying cheese - you never know who might be lurking there.

This terrifying collection of photobombs includes a ghostly presence in a vintage snap, a couple's happy snap hijacked by a scary clown, glaring wedding guests and ghoulish-looking bartenders.

Perhaps the crown for best photobomber should go to the little boy who turned a family snap at a picnic into a terrifying scene with his expression straight out of a zombie movie.

Clowning around: A couple were likely to be surprised when they returned home with the snap of an unexpected friend

Face off: A clown hops into the background to ruin the posing of this glamorous couple

Freeze: This artistic shot is ruined by a red-haired girl's manic expression

Eerie: The vintage snap of the three young children also features the ghostly presence of an old man

Photo-bombing - the craze for hijacking a picture by hopping into the background just as it is taken - has led to some hilarious photographs being posted online.

Celebrities have proven themselves adept at the instant publicity generator - although sometimes the tables are turned, like the snap of Paris Hilton and a man in a scary mask below.

At the Grammy awards earlier this month, singer Kelly Clarkson photobombed Ellen De Generes and Portia De Rossi.

Veteran movie director George Lucas was caught photobombing old friend Stephen Spielberg when the pair attended an industry event earlier this month in California.

Dinner date: A little old lady unwittingly photobombs two friends

Don't look back! A group picnic shot is livened up by this young man's comedy pose

Party fever: A bunch of high school friends strike silly poses.... while their classmate eyeballs the group

Locked out: One young man chose the ideal moment to be walking past for this photobomb on a group of girlfriends

Celebrity photobomb: Never one to miss out on time in front of the camera, Paris Hilton has her close-up ruined by a man in a hideous mask

Prom date? These two girls have their shot dressed to the nines messed up by one rather intense young man

Keep smiling: A happy couple have their romantic shot ruined by some prankster friends

Distracting: Despite a comedy moustache, the center of attention in this photo is the photobomber

Staring contest: Two friends are happily unaware of the presence lurking in the background

Do you like scary moves? Suprisingly, the Scream mask is not the most frightening thing about this picture

Disaster on the dance floor: A passing party guest ruins this couple's happy pose

Freak out: A group shot of strange stares... but the gentleman in the back takes top prize

Say cheese! A friend secretly ruins the smiley snap of these girls

Attention seeker: Despite everyone's comedy poses, one girl steals the limelight

23 February 2013, Daily Mail article

'Stolen' Banksy mural withdrawn from sale at U.S. auction house following storm of protest as mysterious new graffiti appears in its place

By ANTHONY BOND

A Banksy mural which was controversially ripped from the wall of a north London shop has been withdrawn from sale at an auction in Miami, it emerged this evening.

Slave Labour, which shows a young boy hunched over a sewing machine making Union Jack bunting, appeared on the wall in Wood Green, north London, last May, just before the Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

It disappeared from the side of the Poundland store last weekend and was due to be auctioned thousands of miles away in Miami this evening.

Not for sale: A Banksy mural which was ripped from the wall of a north London shop has been withdrawn from an auction in Miami

The Haringey community are outraged that a free piece of art was taken and is to be sold for profit

The Haringey community are outraged that a free piece of art was taken and is to be sold for profit

Fury: Locals in Wood Green were left furious that a piece of free art was to be sold for profit

Street art: This new mural, centre, appeared today in the space left after the Banksy work was taken. The rat, bottom right, is believed to be the artist's response to the work being taken

Fine Art Auctions (FAA) were expecting it to reach between 500,000 US dollars (£328,063) and 700,000 US dollars (£459,288).

But Haringey Council said it had been told the sale was halted at the last minute, with no explanation given from the auction house. It came as a new mural showing a woman in a nun's habit appeared in the space left behind by 'Slave Labour' today.

Haringey Council Leader Claire Kober this evening told of her delight that the sale of the piece was halted. She said: 'It's a true credit to the community that their campaigning appears to have helped to stop the sale of this artwork from going ahead.

'We will continue to explore all options to bring back Banksy to the community where it belongs.'

It is now known if the new mural which appeared today is a Banksy piece.

The new mural was spotted by Andy Gordon. He told the BBC: 'We thought we were just going along to see the gap in the wall and were surprised to see something else had appeared.

'It could be that Wood Green in Haringey has got its Banksy back. It could be a happy ending,' he added.

'Why?' The artist appeared to vent his feelings on the row

Local residents, who become attached to the work by the famous street artist, were left furious that a piece of work given to the community for free could be sold for profit.

Outraged art fans had been bombarding the auction house with abusive calls and e-mails.

Details of the backlash emerged after a stencil of a rat holding a sign that reads 'Why?' appeared on the Haringey wall, next to the blank spot where 'Slave Labour' used to be.

It is thought the rat could be the reclusive graffiti artist's way of voicing his verdict on the row over his original piece.

Frederic Thut, owner of Fine Art Auctions Miami, previously insisted the sale of the artwork is legitimate, but admitted he had been inundated with angry phone calls and e-mails from the UK.

'It's been said that the artwork was stolen, and that's just not true,' Mr Thut told the Guardian.

'We take a lot of care with our consignors: who they are, what they do, and if there's any illegality we will not touch it.'

The street art was stencilled onto the side of a Poundland shop in Wood Green in 2012 and protected by a perspex screen, but disappeared last week.

The Metropolitan Police have confirmed they were contacted by authorities in the U.S. regarding the Banksy piece. They were advised that there had been no reports of theft, Scotland Yard said.

U.S. officials had waded into the row after the disappearance prompted a storm of outrage by furious Haringey businesses and residents, the Evening Standard reported.

Mr Thut claimed it is being sold by a 'well-known' collector who is not British, but has refused to divulge any more information. He added that the painting was being stored in Europe.

Councillor Alan Strickland says the artwork was a 'gift' to his community and had instigated a campaign to get the artwork returned by urging people to e-mail the U.S. auction website.

He said: 'The Banksy appeared last May and created lots of excitement in the area - people were coming from across London to see it.

'We were really proud to have a Banksy in our neighbourhood, so residents were shocked to realise it had been ripped out of the wall.

New addition: It is thought the reclusive graffiti artist is behind the stencil of a rat that has appeared next to the blank spot where Slave Labour used to be

'The community feels that this art was given to us, for free, and it's now been taken away to be sold for huge profit. I'm very angry about the Banksy going - we want our Banksy back!'

Much of the controversial artist's work is believed to have a political message, and Slave Labour is believed to be a statement on sweatshops churning out decorations and memorabilia ahead of the Diamond Jubilee and the London 2012 Olympics.

In 2008 the graffiti artist Banksy revealed that millions of pounds worth of works attributed to him were fakes.

A body set up by the artist to verify his work identified 226 falsely attributed pieces in eight months in 2008.

He said at the time:'Graffiti art has a hard enough life as it is - with council workers wanting to remove it and kids wanting to draw moustaches on it, before you add hedgefund managers wanting to chop it out and hang it over the fireplace.

'For the sake of keeping all street art where it belongs I'd encourage people not to buy anything by anybody unless it was created for sale in the first place.'

Monday, February 25, 2013

Are these the world's creepiest photobombs? Perfect pictures ruined by surprise guests

Sunday, February 24, 2013

'Stolen' Banksy mural

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