British TikToker sparks fury in Greece

A British TikToker has sparked fury in Greece by likening the Acropolis to ‘somewhere Bob the Builder would live’.

The influencer, who states on the platform that he is from Manchester, slammed the ‘absolute state’ of the famous monument and called it a ‘glorified construction site’.

‘So they call this the city of gods but I’m a bit disappointed [as] it’s a glorified construction site. Look at the state of that, the absolute state of it,’ he said while filming ruins with scaffolding surrounding them. 

During his visit, a furious staff member ordered the man to get off the restricted area after he stepped over the rope to get closer to the temples currently being restored. 

‘People think it’s all amazing… look at that, they are kicking me off here as well. What’s wrong with me walking here, realistically?,’ the TikToker asked while a staff member repeatedly blew a whistle at him and told him to ‘come out’ of the roped-off area. 

Greek TikTok users called him out for the video, with one telling him: ‘You are disrespectful and I wonder if you would dare not following the rules in the British museum. Never visit the Acropolis again.’

The influencer (pictured), who states on the platform that he is from Manchester, slammed the ‘absolute state’ of the famous monument and called it a ‘glorified construction site’

‘So they call this the city of gods but I’m a bit disappointed [as] it’s a glorified construction site. Look at the state of that, the absolute state of it,’ he said while filming ruins with scaffolding surrounding them

‘What are you paying £10 [for] if you’re just going to walk around and look at the scaffolding and stuff. It’s like giving a kid a minecraft game and [telling] him to just create a bunch of c***,’ the TikToker said

The man, with the username peakedteaviews, appeared to be upset over builders storing the materials they need for the restoration on the Acropolis.

He said while pointing at scaffolding and seemingly unused equipment: ‘They just left it there. To be honest: they don’t care. If they are just going to leave that there, leave that there – it’s a tip. It’s a glorified tip.’

After the staff member told him that he is ‘not allowed’ in the restricted area off the walking path, he replied: ‘But I just wanted to go to that side… I just want the go around,’ as she reiterated that he wasn’t allowed to do that. 

‘What are you paying £10 [for] if you’re just going to walk around and look at the scaffolding and stuff. It’s like giving a kid a minecraft game and [telling] him to just create a bunch of c***,’ the tourist said.

He added: ‘Is this the city of gods or is it like where Bob the Builder would live, let’s be honest.’ 

The TikToker claims that he was ‘kicked out of Acropolis’ later, but it is unclear whether he refers to being kicked out of the restricted area or being asked to leave the Acropolis entirely. 

Comments quickly flooded his video calling him ‘disrespectful’ and telling him that he deserved to have been kicked out. 

One person said under the video: ‘Instead of embarrassing yourself like this you should better go to your country and bring back the sculptures you have stolen from Acropolis.’

During his visit, a furious staff member ordered the man to get off the restricted area after he stepped over the rope to get closer to the temples currently being restored

Pictured above are some of the marbles that Lord Elgin removed from the Pantheon temple on the Acropolis in the 1800s 

The Pantheon (pictured in 2023) was partially destroyed during a Venetian bombardment on the Ottoman Empire in 1687 – when a cannon ball fired at it blew up the gunpowder stored inside it – then looted 

What are the Elgin Marbles? 

The marbles, also known as The Parthenon Sculptures, are a series of Ancient Greek sculptures created between 447BC and 432BC.

They were the work of Greek architect Phidias, who also created a statue of the ancient god Zeus, which was considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.  

The artefacts are made up of 17 figures that adorned the Parthenon.

Athens is still home to a smaller 164ft section of the sculptures, but the majority – around 260ft – are in the UK.  

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Another added: ‘An uneducated person. Please don’t be like him. If you wanted to see a better Acropolis then ask [the] UK to bring back all the marbles they stole. Sure then it would look magnificent.’ 

‘If you and your country (UK) don’t care about the acropolis by violating the rules in the temple (which you clearly did), then bring back the marbles you guys have stolen from us to Greece,’ a user called Freskos urged. 

The marbles the commenters are referring to are the Elgin Marbles, who were taken from the famous Pantheon temple to Britain.

In the early 1800s, workmen stripped entire friezes from the monument on the orders of Scottish nobleman Thomas Bruce, known as Lord Elgin.

Elgin sold the marbles to the British government, which in 1817 passed them on to the British Museum where they remain one of its most prized exhibits.

London has long argued that the sculptures had been taken with permission from the Ottoman Turks who ruled Greece at the time, but Athens insists they were stolen.

The Pantheon – along with the Erechtheion, Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Propylaea of Athens and Athena Nike standing on the Acropolis – was built in the 5th century BCE to honour Athena, the patron goddess of Athens.

The Pantheon was partially destroyed during a Venetian bombardment on the Ottoman Empire in 1687 – when a cannon ball fired at it blew up the gunpowder stored inside it – then looted.

Fragments of the temples and the artworks inside them are scattered throughout many renowned museums.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, Greece has been trying to recover them.