Hairy Bikers fan creates 'heartbreaking' Dave Myers tribute on back of muddy van

29 February 2024 , 16:31

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The amazing piece by 'White Van Gogh' is an incredibly detailed depiction of the pair of celebrity chefs (Image: Ruddy Muddy Art/ CATERS NEWS)

A Hairy Bikers superfan has created a touching tribute to Dave Myers following his heartbreaking death.

Ricky Minns, 49, spent over two hours creating an art piece using mud on the side of his van in Norfolk. The artist calls himself the 'White Van Gough Man' and creates art pieces by wiping away mud from his van. His latest artwork depicts Dave and his co-star best friend Si King and their sweet friendship. Ricky said: "I was always a fan of them, I loved the friendship and the way they would be with people, they always seemed so kind and genuine."

Sadly one half of his favourite duo, Dave, sadly passed on Wednesday, February 28. The former Strictly star sadly died at the age of 66 after battling cancer. Dave never shared what type of cancer he was diagnosed with when his treatment began in May 2022.

Ricky Minns created a touching tribute to Dave Myers of the Hairy Bikers using the mud on his van (Ruddy Muddy Art/ CATERS NEWS)

During his final days, Dave spent time with his "best friend" and TV partner King. Si told fans his "best friend is on a journey that for now, I can't follow" in a heartbreaking tribute on social media. The bearded pair were known for travelling the world on their motorbikes, sampling and cooking food from different regions.

Throughout his cancer battle, at times Dave was unable to ride his motorbike, but in recent weeks, fans were over the moon to see the pair return to their screens, watching Dave and Si on the BBC's Hairy Bikers Go West. Ricky said he found the news "rather emotional" but wanted to honour the TV star. The muddy image shows an outline of the pair, with Si putting his arm around his late friend.

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Ricky, who has spent over 17 years creating his muddy van art, said: "It was raining which meant I had to work fast so it only took about two hours so not quite as detailed as I would have liked but I had to do a tribute." He uploaded the picture to Instagram, where he added: "RIP Dave Myers. Such sad news. Did this as soon as I heard. Was quite a quick one as raining and cold but I had to do it. To one of the wonderful Hairy Bikers from one of the Hairy Artists."

The picture received 100s of likes, with one person writing: Real friends. Beautifully done," while another added: "Heartbreaking, beautiful tribute." A third person commented: "So sad... 66 ffs," followed by a crying emoji. Speaking of the reception he's had from the piece, he said: "There's been such a lovely reaction, many people have even thanked me."

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Lucy Marshall