Before England kicked off their World Cup campaign in Dallas, an artist in Suffolk spent over eight hours building a massive badge on the beach. Then a vehicle ran over it. And yes — he fixed it in time for kickoff.
Toby Clark, a 40-year-old cleaner and lifelong England fan, created the 30-foot stone badge near Lowestoft on June 11, the tournament’s opening day. The design — the word ‘England’ spelled out in stones with a star above — stretched 19.6 feet wide and 29.5 feet tall. According to Clark, it took him “a little over eight-and-a-half hours” to complete the work, using only rocks he scooped from the shoreline.
But on Wednesday, just hours before England faced Croatia in Group B, a vehicle drove straight across the emblem. The badge wasn’t ruined — but it was clearly mangled. Clark told reporters he believed the driver had no choice, noting the path was the only vehicle access point onto that stretch of beach.
“I don’t think it was intentional,” he said. “Whoever drove over it presumably had the keys to the gate. It could have been the council, police, fire brigade, or coastguard. I don’t think they had any option.”
Clark spent the afternoon restoring the badge ahead of England’s 8 p.m. local kickoff at Dallas Stadium. By the time the national anthem played, he said the emblem “looks good to me.”
Art Attack Roots and a Handmade Grid
The beach artist traces his creative spark to the classic 1990s TV show Art Attack. “I’ve always wanted to do stuff like this since watching that show growing up,” Clark said, adding that he regularly makes large England badges when he finds the right setting. “I’ve done big chalk ones on the patio before. Whenever I get the opportunity, I do one.”
To pull off the 30-foot design, Clark first flattened the sand and laid down a string grid as a guide. He then filled tubs with stones and sprinkled them into place — a process he described as meticulous but meditative. The result drew attention online, but not all of it was positive in the way he expected.
AI Accusations Became a Compliment
Clark said that when he posted photos of the badge, some people assumed it was artificially generated. “There’s been an awful lot of talk of people just assuming that it’s AI when they see the pictures,” he told reporters. “I take that as a huge compliment.”
Whatever the skeptics say, Clark remains confident about England’s chances at the tournament. “We’re going to bring it home, obviously,” he said. “Otherwise I’ve wasted my time.”
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