Day 2738
Saturday September 5th 2026
Winchester
There are Morris dancers everywhere – well, at The Buttercross and in The Square, so I’m down at Nando’s…and it’s very crowded but very slow in the coinage department. Fifteen minutes and I’ve collected 15 pence. I’ll be laughing at this rate. A young woman sits at the Five Guys table on my right, with her two small dogs in a pram, while her husband goes inside to get some food. She’s chatty – one of the dogs has just come out of hospital –
‘This one’s Basil and this one’s Olive’ she says.
‘That’s very…sort of like pasta.’
‘We were going to call them Basil and Sybil, like Faulty Towers but decided not to.’
‘Oh right. No, Basil and Olive is better.’
‘My grandfather used to drum for The Beach Boys.’ (I just played Wouldn’t It Be Nice).
‘Really? What was his name?’ She told me but I couldn’t quite hear her (NHS hearing-aids) and didn’t want to keep asking. I’d never heard of who I couldn’t really hear of, anyway!
Then her husband came out with some chips and burgers.
During our chat, an old bloke pulled up in his chair. I haven’t seen him in awhile – the last time, he was aided by only a walking stick.
‘Hi Marvin, you alright? Haven’t seen you for a long time. Is that a new guitar?’
‘No, well I’v e been playing it a few months now. Maybe even a year. It’s a twelve-string.’
‘Yeah?’
‘Sound alright?’
‘Marvellous. What’s that song I used to like to hear you play?’
‘Um…I don’t know. The Third Man?’ I play it…
‘That’s great…hey, I think she owes you a chip.’
‘No, she’s alright, I had a big breakfast.’
At this point, two young girls walk by dressed in very tight, VERY revealing clothes, sort of jumpsuit-like. It’s impossible NOT to notice.
My old bloke has a good look – ‘You alright there?’ I ask him.
He laughs ‘My generation are the best at that.’ The best at what, luring at young girls? Haha!
I call it quits at ten minutes short of two hours. I reckon I could do another hour up at The Square if it’s free…but no, now there’s the old bloke and his keyboard. I’m going to go home but decided to stop just inside the cathedral grounds, take the stool out, sit down (I’ve got white jeans on and I’m NOT planting my arse on the dirty concrete verge) and have a short listen. The trouble is, he messes around with his keyboard too much, trying to get the right sequence or track up. He started playing that boring Dire Straits thing, Walk Of Life then stopped. Maybe he was having trouble getting his stuff sorted – it’s all on tape or electrical or whatever.
I came home and counted the coinage, £14.36.
…I went back a few hours later and played in The Square. No response from anyone at the tables but I had an enraptured audience of three children who sat cross-legged in front of me for an hour or so. I did an hour and 15 minutes, making the days total up to three hours and five minutes. On packing up, I was a bit disappointed at the coinage but then was handed a fiver then a tenner then five pound coins so all’s well in the world. Total earnings: £42.62 including two very shiny 2025 pound coins with the new bloke’s face on them and a couple of bees or wasps on the front, whatever that’s supposed to mean.