Day 2712
Saturday July 4th 2026
Winchester
Don Lavelle’s up and about, looking like he’s nearing the end of a painting of the sidestreet opposite the Nat West Bank. ‘Now Marvin, you’re a technical guy, what if you made a three dimensional graph of all your busking sessions? What time of day, where you set up, the weather, how many people were about. You know, all that. Then you compile all that info and you’d be able to see what was the best spot. What do you think of that?’
It’s an easy question to answer. ‘I’ll tell you what it would say, Don. It wouldn’t tell me where the best spot was because if I play at the same spot two days running, same time, same weather, same amount of people about, I can make two completely different amounts of money. There’s no guarantee of anything!’
‘Ah, right, well YOU know your job. I’m not going to tell you what to do…well, it’s a been a bit quiet here and I think we need a bit of music. What d’you think, Marvin? You could set up over there, couldn’t you?’ Don nods to the Nat West on the other side of the street.
‘Ah well, there’s no shade there, Don…let me see…’ I leave the shade we’re in and walk across the street and it’s in the sunshine and it’s too bloody hot. I go back – ‘Don, it’s too bloody hot to play there! I’m going to The Square and if there’s someone there I’ll come back and set up here, in the shade.’
I walk off, turn right just before the Buttercross, have a peek through the alley, see a young bloke standing with a guitar in The Square, turn back and I’m with Don again – ‘There’s a bloke in The Square so it looks like you’re stuck with me, Don. Sorry!’ I set up in front of the small mobile phone shop, fifteen feet away from Don…and I haven’t even disgourged the contents of the trolley when Dangerous Dave appears with his electric bike. ‘What you gonna start with, Marvin?’ ‘Hello Dave. I don’t know…oh, I tell you what. I’ll start with your favourite.’ ‘The Third Man. Yeah…how long you gonna be?’
‘I’ll just be a few minutes, Dave. I’ve gotta check the tuning and all that.’ I open the case, take the guitar out, strap it on.
‘That’s a nice strap, Marvin.’
‘Yeah, quite an old-fashioned one, actually. I’ve had it for ages.’
‘Yeah? How’s the missus these days?’
‘Still about, still putting up with me.’
‘No, I bet that’s not true, Marvin.’
I get sorted out and do The Third Man and Dave even contributes! I mean, pass the smelling salts! Mind, it’s a mere 23p but still.
‘Here, can you keep an eye on the bike while I go get something.
‘Sure Dave’ and he goes off, returning in five minutes with a pastry. Five minutes later and he’s off. Strange man. I’ve never seen him smile, not ever, not even when I play his favourite Third Man.
Posh Sarah comes by – ‘Marvin, if you’re ever in Southampton, I’ll take you for lunch at The Pig In The Wall. Such good food!’
‘OK Sarah. I play near the mall entrance, is it near there? You know the big wide pedestrian bit?’
‘Is that West Quay, the mall?’
‘Yeah, is it near there…or is it down past the Bargate?’
‘Yes, down past there, let me know when you’re in Southampton, I’ll buy you lunch!’
‘You’re on, Sarah, it’s a date!’ It’ll never happen.
At 27 degrees, it’s very warm – I’m jacketless, wearing my stone Next trousers, yellow linen Reiss shirt and new Justin Reess green shoes with red laces – you got both red and green laces! I make constant use of my white hanky, wiping the sweat from my face between every song…and I think there’s another heat wave next week. Bloody hell.
Sue comes by with her phone to film me doing the Gnossienne. She doesn’t know what it’s called so I tell her – ‘It’s the Gnossienne – the first one, and it’s by Erik Satie.’
‘Oh, is that one word, Eric…’
‘No, it’s a K, E-R-I-K then Satie, two words. And it’s Gnossienne – silent G.’
‘Oh, could you spell that?’
‘Sure, G-N-O-S-S-I-E-N-N-E.’
‘Ooh, they’ll think I’m intelligent when they see that! I’ve never heard it before.’
‘Really? It’s very famous. It’s been in films and adverts. It’s a piano piece, sounds really nice on the piano.’
‘Would you like a drink? Something cold?’
‘Oh, thank you Sue. Umm…’
‘Or something hot?’
‘Thank you Sue, I’ll have a coffee if that’s alright.’
‘Sure…so what kind?’
‘Oh god, there are loads of them, loads of styles, aren’t there. Just a normal coffee. An Americano, I think that’s what they call them now. You can’t just go in and say “Can I have a cup of coffee”, can you?’
‘No, you can’t! So…cold milk? Or warm?’
‘And that’s the other question they ask! Loads of questions!’
‘Oh yes, and there’s one with froth. Moche, I think they are.’
‘Yeah, no, just an Americano, Sue, thanks.’
She goes off and comes back with a cup for me. Nice lady.
Don packs up after an hour and twenty minutes – the whole time he gets loads of people admiring his almost-finished work – and I say ‘I’ll be off in a minute, as well, Don. It’s rubbish here!’ And it is. I’ve made less than a tenner in almost an hour and a half but I’m disciplined and it’s got to be no less than an hour and a half! Then I’m off round the corner…and the young guy’s now gone.
Well, maybe my timing wasn’t very good at the first spot but it’s spot on here because just after the second song, Everybody Wants To Rule The World, a man comes up with a fiver, saying, ‘Hey, that’s my favourite song!’ Result.
The set goes fine – another fiver lands in the case…then blows away towards the diners outside The Old Vine. I have to stop playing, put the guitar down on the stool, walk over to where it is and pick it up, waving it in front of a woman sitting down!
At around forty minutes – I’m going to do an hour – I’m doing The Pirouettist and suddenly there are ten young boys and girls who have come in from the cathedral grounds and are dancing away. At the end, one of the boys, a real curly haired Adonis comes up – ‘We are Italian students studying English. Can you play for us Beatles?’ ‘Of course I can! How about…Here Comes The Sun?’ ‘Beatles, yes?’ ‘Yes, definitely.’ So I do an extended version of that – I even sing it!’ At the end one of the girls puts a few pound coins in the case, then the boy says ‘I hope you don’t mind us. I am trying my English on people, I’m sorry if you don’t understand us.’
‘No, you’re very good and I can understand you completely. I mean, your English is much better than my Italian!’
‘I am Alexander, what is your name?’
‘It’s nice to meet you Alexander, I’m Marvin.’
‘OK, I’m sorry…I hope I haven’t bothered you too much.’
‘No, you haven’t bothered me at all, you’re very polite and it’s a pleasure to meet you. Really! Thank you for coming up to me.’
What a polite young man! In fact, they were all polite – you couldn’t meet a nicer bunch of young people. They’re a credit to their country…and generation!
Total takings for the 2 1/2 hours is £30.03.