UK BLIGHTY CAFE The cafe owner has been forced to remove the mural after it was repeatedly vandalised

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“Imperialist”, “warmonger” and “scum” have been daubed across The Blighty UK’s painting to the former Prime Minister who led Britain through World War Two. The cafe in Finsbury Park, north London, had been intended to be a patriotic celebration of Britain, with diners able to enjoy a bite to eat underneath model Spitfires and Union flags while taking photos with a sculpture of Churchill. One of the cafe’s most notable quirks was a huge mural of the former prime minister in his trademark two-fingers pose alongside the slogan “double shot”, suggesting he was ordering a double espresso. However, the painting has been reluctantly scrapped after vandals repeatedly defaced the picture with a variety of scathing insults.

Despite Sir Winston Churchill being voted the Greatest Briton in history in a 2002 BBC poll and widely being considered among the most influential people in UK history, his inclusion in the design of the cafe has sparked complaints. The eatery and its sister cafe in Haringey have also come under attack from a group of Labour activists who claim the decor makes “many in the community feel uncomfortable”. The group started a petition against the cafes, which they claim “insensitively evokes memory of the Empire”, and it has been sent to local Labour MP David Lammy. The campaign was started by Labour Party members Ewa Lefmann and Zainab Khan, who are supporters of Jeremy Corbyn, and Jasmine Davies, and urges the cafe owners to “rethink their theme”. The petition claims the owners have “made little attempt to tastefully or sensitively celebrate India in its Tottenham branch”.

GOOGLE One of the Blighty Commonwealth of Cafes on Blackstock Road in north London

It adds: “It is adorned with Hindi and a neon Ghandi on the wall. The owners are not Indian, and the food is not Indian, but British with an Indian 'twist' - which frankly many Indians would find offensive. “It is a garish colonial view of India, stereotyped and built for English consumption.” Ms Khan, whose family moved to Tottenham from India in the 1960s, said the Blight India branch of the local cafe chain “ignores the suffering Empire caused to so many and turns colonial rule into a frivolous theme”. She aded: “We’re not asking them to shut down their business...just rethink their theme and its impact on local residents.” Cafe co-owner Chris Evans, whose grandfather was a wartime pilot, has defended the themes of the cafes and said the vandalism has caused an “unnecessary headache”.

Winston Churchill in pictures Sun, May 10, 2015 Winston Churchill died in January 24, 1965 Play slideshow PA 1 of 43 Sir Winston Churchill shows the peace sign while smoking a cigar in 1954