Diary Of A Busker Day 2595 Friday September 5th 2025 Winchester.
The return of Jeff from New York. I’d done just under an hour down at Nando’s (outside, not inside obviously) then met the son and heir at The Albion near the station before he buggers off for the weekend, then come back to do a bit more and there he is, late of Southampton, the bloke who got me the gig playing outside the Ottoman restaurant awhile back. He was exuberant then but now he’s exuberant and drunk, sitting with his wife outside Three Joes. He’s nursing a pint, she’s got a white wine. He sees me…
‘Hey man, how’s it going!…what was your name?’
‘Hello Jeff. Marvin.’
‘Yeah!, hey Marvin, you gotta play at this place in Southampton, near the docks. Did you hear from the Ottoman?’
‘Actually, no I didn’t. Maybe they didn’t like me although I thought it went down quite well.’
‘Yeah, well…Adam, he’s a bit…I don’t know. Anyway, hey, you gonna play for us? Hey, have this’ he says as he hands me a fiver.
‘Cheers Jeff. Well, yeah, I suppose I am.’
‘Yeah! Great man!’
I set up, start up and after every song, Jeff and his missus applaud with Jeff shouting ‘Best song of the set so far!’ After half an hour, Jeff comes over.
‘Hey, why don’t you have a drink?’ ‘
I’m OK Jeff.’
‘No really, you gotta have a drink!’
‘Right, OK (because I can’t be bothered arguing with a drunk – it’s not worth it)…I’ll have a half a lager, a half pint, cheers.’
‘A half pint?’
‘Yeah, cheers Jeff.’
Just then his wife comes across and gives me a tenner – Jeff says ‘Hey, I said ask him for a fiver back! Just kidding!’ She returns to her seat and he goes into the Old Vine, emerging ten minutes later with a half filled plastic pint glass – ‘I said “give me a small beer” and they gave me this.’
‘That’s fine Jeff, that’s a half pint.’
‘Yeah? Well, it’s a small beer.’
Then I think, oh my god, is he not aware of the famous tombstone of grenadier Thomas Thetcher, a few yards away in the cathedral grounds – “who died of a violent fever while drinking small beer when hot”?!