Hackney Peace Mural turns 40
2025 saw the 40th anniversary of the unveiling of the iconic Hackney Peace Mural
Hackney Peace mural, 1985
The mural was officially opened to view on 19 October 1985. In September 2025, communities involved in its development came together to celebrate with music and speeches from those who painted, were featured in and commissioned the public art.
The story of the mural involves three key players: Hackney Peace Carnival, mural artist Ray Walker and the Greater London Council (GLC) – which commissioned it to mark its Year of Peace, 1983.
The mural represents Hackney’s communities campaigning for peace and celebrating the borough’s diversity and creativity.
Ray extensively researched and engaged with the community over a period of 18 months prior to beginning work on the mural. Sadly, he died unexpectedly aged 39 in March 1984.
His friend, Mick Jones, and Ray’s wife, Anna Walker, took on the project as a memorial to him, returning to his extensive reference photos to complete the mural.
Ray’s final design was slightly altered with the additions of Ray (based on his self portrait), Anna and their young son Roland, as well as the miners’ strike.
Ray Walker (1945-1984) studied art at Liverpool Art School and the Royal College Art, graduating in 1969.
A move to Poplar, east London, was to influence Ray’s socialist values and his love of mural work that communicated the experiences of those that lived close by.
This led to several murals in Tower Hamlets, incorporating themes of community, poverty, racial inequality and trauma, including the collaborative redesign and completion of the famous ‘Battle of Cable Street’ (1983) depicting the clash between anti-racists and fascists in 1936.
Watch a reel about the Hackney Peace Mural turning 40
Ray was inspired by Hackney’s peace movement and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), which are captured in his designs for the London Muralists for Peace project. Only two of the six peace murals commissioned still remain today.
The Hackney Show was an annual event funded by the Council to bring communities together with music and cultural events. It involved a carnival procession, music and cultural performances.
The 1983 show adopted the GLC’s theme for ‘peace’ and commissioned the Free Form Arts Trust to curate a ‘Peace Carnival’ involving Hackney CND, Chats Palace and Arkestral players performing a piece composed by Jah Globe, called ‘Jah Creation’.
In 1981, Labour took control of the GLC. The leader, Ken Livingstone, was nicknamed ‘Red Ken’ by The Sun newspaper due to his socialist values of equality, anti-racism and peace.
The GLC took a strong stance on the issue of nuclear disarmament, which led to 1983 being declared a ‘Peace Year’. It commissioned four murals via the London Muralist for Peace.
The GLC committed £8,000 to a Hackney Peace Mural, and the Council provided an additional £5,000. The site, at 15 Dalston Lane, was secured by the Council in 1984.