HOMER SIMPSON - MARK LECKEY 'CHUFFED' AFTER TURNER PRIZE WIN

MARK LECKEY 'CHUFFED' AFTER TURNER PRIZE WIN

British artist Mark Leckey has won the Turner Prize for his works which include a film featuring cartoon characters Felix the Cat and Homer Simpson.

The 44-year-old was awarded the prestigious accolade by singer Nick Cave at the Tate Britain on Monday night.

His work includes sculpture, sound, performance and film, with a piece entitled Cinema in the Round featuring the aforementioned cartoon characters as well as Leckey lecturing on his love of animation.

"It's a big thrill. It's great to do something that has some kind of effect on British culture and it's part of British culture," the Birkenhead-born artist said after his victory.

"I'm chuffed to bits - I'm reverting to my roots and getting scouser as I talk. It's a big thrill."

He added: "This is good, it's good, it's a good thing."

Leckey was the bookies' favourite to win the award and beat female artists Goshka Macuga, Runa Islam and Cathy Wilkes.

"With wit and originality, Leckey has found a variety of forms to communicate his fascination with visual culture," the jury said in a statement.

"He celebrates the imagination of the individual and our potential to inhabit, reclaim or animate an idea, a space, or an object."

The work of all four shortlisted artists is on display at the Tate Britain, including Wilkes' exhibition featuring a naked mannequin sat on a toilet draped in horseshoes.

Macuga's entry included her recreation of the glass, steel and textile displays made by Lily Reich for the 1929 International Exhibition in Barcelona

Previous winners of the Turner Prize include Damian Hirst, Gilbert and George and Grayson Perry.