The elusive artist behind a mystery fake gold toilet

The toilet is a reference to the solid gold one stolen from nearby Blenheim Palace in 2019

Strange things have been happening in the village of Yarnton to the north of Oxford.

For months now, plastic bananas have been popping up gaffa taped to local bus stops.

Last week, a golden model dog poo turned up on a road verge.

But lately the main thing capturing people's attention is the appearance of a gold-coloured toilet on the side of a road leading into the village.

It is a clear reference to the solid gold toilet stolen from nearby Blenheim Palace in 2019, a crime that sparked interest around the world.

It was a few days after the trial of those involved ended that drivers started to notice a golden toilet next to the A44.

Incongruous, security-tagged and attached with a chain to the Welcome to Yarnton sign, the loo gained immediate attention.

Cyclists and walkers passing by took photos with it, and news of the installation soon spread across social media.

Photos of people posing with the golden toilet soon appeared on social media

But the identity of the person behind the stunt was still a mystery - one that some villagers were eager to crack.

One eagle-eyed driver noticed the loo as it was being taken to its new spot, early on the morning of 26 March.

"Spotted on the drive from town towards Woodstock this morning," they said on Reddit, posting under the name Bright-Persimmon1052.

The attached photo shows a man wearing sunglasses and a cap, and - most notably - cradling a gold-coloured toilet.

But the image was blurry, and few villagers could say they knew who the man in it was.

One who did have a pretty good idea hinted at "a joker in the village" but would not say any more than that.

Yet the culprit made one big mistake if he wanted to remain anonymous - putting another gold toilet right outside his house.

Complete with a planted palm tree and a sign reading: "Property of Blenheim Palace", the loo led directly to the elusive artist.

The loo has a GPS tracker sticker and is attached with a chain to the Welcome to Yarnton sign

So who is this plumber extraordinaire?

Well, he's keen to keep that a secret, going only by the name The City Shaman.

As for his toilet-based activities, he first installed a golden one outside his house two years ago, before planting the other on the roadside on 26 March.

But that's not all - the day after, he planted a model dog poo, also painted bright gold, under a sign saying "No fouling".

And he also revealed he is behind the plastic bananas appearing at bus stops all over the area.

Something that was also done by artist Impro in the village of Sonning, Berkshire.

The inspiration for these stunts is the artist Maurizio Cattelan, famous for selling a banana taped to a wall for $6.2m (£4.9m).

He is also man who created the real gold toilet, stolen so brazenly from Blenheim Palace.

As for the City Shaman, he's not planning to stop here.

According to him, he's tacked nearly 100 bananas to bus stops so far, and he's aiming to do as many as 1,000.

As for the rest of his plans, he won't reveal much, but there are certainly schemes on the boil.

"I'm just going to do lots of gold things and lots of funny things," he says.

"I ain't stopping. This is just the beginning."