The first official portrait of King Charles is vandalized by animal rights activists: two Animal Rising protesters cover the monarch’s face with the image of Wallace and Gromit and paste a message on a speech bubble about “cruelty in RSPCA farms”

Animal Rising fans have vandalized the new portrait of King Charles at London’s Philip Mold Gallery.

At around 12 noon, two activists plastered posters of Wallace and Gromit attacking the RSPCA over Her Majesty’s face.

One sign showed Wallace’s face and the other was a speech bubble that said, “No cheese, Gromit.” Look at all this cruelty on RSPCA farms!’

The group is calling on King Charles to suspend his support for the charity, of which he is the royal patron, until they abandon the Assured Scheme, which exists to protect animal welfare standards.

Daniel Juniper, one of those involved, said: ‘Given that King Charles is a huge fan of Wallace and Gromit, we couldn’t think of a better way to draw his attention to the horrific scenes on farms secured by the RSPCA.

‘While we hope Your Majesty finds this amusing, we also ask that you seriously reconsider whether you want to be associated with the terrible suffering on farms supported by the RSPCA.

‘Charles has made it clear that he is sensitive to the suffering of animals on UK farms; “Now is the perfect time for him to come forward and call on the RSPCA to abandon the Assured Plan and tell the truth about animal farming.”

The action is an attempt by the group to raise awareness of their recent investigation into 45 RSPCA-insured farms where they allegedly found 280 legal breaches and 94 breaches of DEFRA regulations.

Activists claim to have found animal cruelty and suffering at each farm, including alleged scenes of dead and dying chicks, dead pigs abandoned in farm hallways, and salmon eaten alive by sea lice.

Orla Coghlan, spokesperson for Animal Rising, said: “Just as Feathers McGraw tricked Wallace into robbing a bank, the RSPCA has been misleading the British public into believing that its factory farms are, in any case, an acceptable place for them to live. animals.

‘It is clear from scenes on 45 RSPCA-insured farms that there is no kind way to farm animals.

‘The RSPCA must take a bolder stance on the transition to a plant-based food system, starting with calling for a drastic reduction in meat. The charity can, once again, lead the way for animals in the UK, rather than keeping them in misery.’

King Charles became royal patron of the RSPCA last month and the charity cited his “great passion for nature and regenerative farming and his continued support for the RSPCA and the future of animal welfare” following the announcement .

It adds that although there is no specific job description for the position, first held by Queen Victoria in 1840, “they play a vital role in recognizing and promoting the contributions and achievements of charities such as the RSPCA.”

The charity’s Assured program involves six commitments that promote animal welfare. Insured farms must never cage livestock, provide a “physically and mentally stimulating environment,” humanely slaughter their animals, give them more space to live, use antibiotics responsibly, and be traceable to the food they produce.

The painting of the King, by renowned artist Jonathan Yeo, was commissioned in 2020 to celebrate the then Prince of Wales’s 50 years as a member of The Drapers’ Company.

It depicts His Majesty wearing the uniform of the Welsh Guards, of which he was appointed regimental colonel in 1975.

Yeo spoke of a butterfly in the portrait that echoed Charles’ “metamorphosis” from Prince to King during the process, and the monarch joked that it was nice to know it was a chrysalis. But it was also a reflection of her lifelong commitment to the environment.

The size of the canvas (approximately 8.5 feet by 6.5 feet framed) was carefully considered to fit within the architecture of Drapers’ Hall and the context of the paintings with which it will eventually hang, but it is currently displayed in the Philip Mold gallery in London.