Huge Jeremy Allen White billboard sparks planning row in Hackney

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A large Calvin Klein billboard featuring the actor Jeremy Allen White has sparked a bitter planning row in the London borough of Hackney.

But despite complaints from locals and the council claiming that the ad is “unlawful”, the 20 by 8-metre picture of the actor reclining in a denim jacket has not been removed.

The advert is so large that it covers the fronts of a reported four properties on Kingsland Road. The space was approved for advertising use in June 2012.

While the exact date of the billboard’s erection is not known, it appears to have been an issue for almost four years, and the council said it was first investigated in 2020.

According to council documents, the billboard’s planning permission was initially granted for a five-year period, which came to an end in 2017.

There have allegedly been no attempts to renew it by the billboard’s management company, blowUPmedia, the Guardian reports.

A spokesperson for Hackney Council told The Independent: “The council investigated this matter in autumn 2020 and concluded that the advertisement was unlawful.

“A ‘removal notice’ was issued in October of the same year, but an appeal was made against the notice to the magistrates’ court.

“We will follow the process through and take appropriate action in due course.”

The Hackney Council spokesperson added: “In Hackney, we have seen previous cases of advert installed illegally, with owners failing to remove them despite enforcement attempts, showing not just the greed of some landlords but also the challenges councils face preventing this kind of advertising.”

One local, who admitted to being a fan of the actor, described large adverts such as this as a “blight on the area”.

“Think of the poor people who live in the flats behind them,” he said. “They won’t be getting the money but have to live in a dark home.”

But while the billboard remains an issue on the high street, the council has had some success in similar cases, and a wrap-around advert on the same road was successfully removed in 2019.

The ad space is managed by blowUPmedia, who previously praised the billboard on their Twitter/X account last summer when it was being used by Brewdog.

BlowUPmedia claims that the space, which has been used by several major brands, allows ads to be seen by an estimated 27,897 people every day.

The Independent has reached out to blowUPmedia, Calvin Klein and Brewdog for comment.