Overview
- Mike Todd, the longtime York street artist known as Purpleman, died suddenly on November 26 at age 65.
- Residents, cultural figures and former city officials hailed him as an icon, with suggestions from arts voices to memorialize his contribution.
- He became a fixture on Stonegate and the Shambles as a motionless, purple-painted cyclist, sometimes holding his pose for hours.
- His humanitarian work included delivering about 1,000 toys to Syrian refugee children in 2014 and later fundraising for the NHS and for Ukraine.
- Friends say he retired from street performing about two years ago to develop a new project and was due to fly to Istanbul for meetings, while local media reported he was found at his Selby home.