Went busking today with Tony Twist. I had a new setup, using an old tool box and a bit of MDF painted with blackboard paint, Tony had his mega bags of balloons and we hit Uxbridge town centre for 12pm. All went well for two hours. I was doing my simple designs and Tony was wowing the crowd with his awesome creations, including a wearable 5' duck!

Then I get a tap on my shoulder. The guy selling metallics at the other end of the high street asked if I had a licence. I told him that we were busking and I did not need one. So he said he was going to complain to the council. Tony and I looked at each other and decided that it was best to shut up shop, as we did not find out the local requirements and we did not want to upset anyone.

The result was £50 for two hours split 50/50...  :geek:

Had a mind block on what models I can do! I think it was because I was watching Tony in the corner of my eye. Appreciate all your help Tony!

Were you passing the hat periodically or taking a trickle. Or were you selling them?

Henry

I would have bluffed my way with the tap on the shoulder until either the council or police moved me on. In Sutton as long as you add to the ambience of the centre then no permit is required.

Graham Lee

yes was a great time i loved it cant wait to do it again.....

heres some pics folks..............

great pics, thanks for sharing. I do like popsies jeans  

For the record, in Nottingham you will need a buskers licence. These are issued annualy. You may only perform on one of five designated pitches, only one licensed busked allowed on each. If you wish to sell anything you need to apply for a selling licence which is available in person only on the day or the day before and costs an extra £15 for that day day.

Does the term control-freak spring to mind?

Henry

Yeah man, those busking licenses are a really pain in the..! Here in Belgium you also need a license for busking with strict rules. They all differ from town to town. Some are free, other are paying. Can you imagine: for every town, city, village you have to get a permit at the city hall. Sometimes it takes months to get those. Why is it so difficult: the government wants to filter out the "illegals".
If you're asking a fixed price for every balloon, it's an all different ball game. Then you need a business license! There are even cityfestivals who are handing out special permits for grime artists, hair weaving and..balloon artists! Why? The difference from other buskers (mime, acrobats, musicians etc.) that you're selling a "product" and therefore have to pay taxes!
That's why I'm not going to busk in other countries: I'm not prepared to travel to Barcelona or Germany to have issues with the police or the local regulations.
My 2 cents..

I can understand the idea of the authorities wanting to exert control in order to stop certain types. However, these 'certain types' will simply ignore the rules anyway and only the decent performers (who the officials are normally quite happy with anyway) suffer from the restrictions.

The normal advice for buskers in the UK is to enquire of the local council where they live. Actually, I think it would be more sensible to enquire of the local council or authorities where they want to busk. Considering how many councils, centre managers and authorities  there are around and the fact that many will require more than one letter, in order to busk in the midlands, I'd say a full time job for three months trying to get the ok is on the cards.

Better to say sorry than ask permission!

Henry