May 2nd - Day 14

My girlfriend, Claire, and I saw this guy performing underneath the arches of Southwark Bridge. He was being watched by a young woman, maybe his girlfriend, sitting against the opposite wall and smoking a cigarette. He sang 4 Non Blondes' "What's Up" and a distinctive punk-yodel version of Eddie Cochran's "C'mon Everybody" that had more in common with the Sid Vicious version.

He was the first of four buskers that we saw along the South Bank that evening. Add to that the fleeting experience of singer Georgia Mancio when we wandered into the foyer of the wrong theatre, and live music accompanying the play "Dido, Queen of Carthage" (about which I should one day write a few words) when we were sitting in the seats of the right theatre, and, erm...well... a lot of music was had.

June 5th - Day 48

I found a string duet under Southwark Bridge. They were playing Bach (I know this because there was a Bach music sheet on their music stand). They told me that the damp weather was effecting the strings and making it quite hard to play.

August 26th - Day 130

Another trip along the South Bank shoe-horned into the school holiday day. I've allowed myself until the end of the school holidays to continue snatching buskers along this well trodden path when necessary, but thereafter I intend to be more pro-active in encountering less accessible and less obvious live music - to be bold and step out of me comfort zone a bit.

September 2nd - Day 137

Oliver and I went to the Tower Bridge Exhibition today. Afterwards we walked along the North Bank alongside the Tower and then weaved our way through the City streets to the base of The Gherkin, because Oliver wanted to have a close-up look. After remarking that it was small and wouldn't it be funny if it turned out to be a real gherkin, he followed me to Bishopsgate and over London Bridge. I was kind of hoping we might encounter some music somewhere on our journey, but wasn't surprised that we didn't and so, for maybe the last time for a while, the South Bank came to my rescue. We walked down Nancy's steps at the side of the bridge, past Southwark Cathedral, The Golden Hinde, The Clink Museum, The Anchor pub and as we approached where the path turns and dips under Southwark Bridge, we heard beautiful operatic music. We got under the bridge just as two women stopped singing and bowed to fifteen applauding watchers. They started another piece (which I recognised, but am unable identify) and hadn't got far when two uniformed South Bank Rangers interrupted them. Some cloth-eared, mouse-pushing Philistines from one of the local offices had complained about the music and these two had to tell the women, Elizabeth and Alison, to stop. But they loved the music and were loathe to tell them. Watching the scene unfold without being able to hear the words, the Rangers (Charles and David) looked like fans gushing praise after a concert. I got closer and, bearing in mind the multitude of musicians I've seen busking undisturbed along here over the past few months, asked whether it was regular policy to move people on. Apparently it is, though maybe, I think, only when a complaint is received. I didn't get around to taking a photo until after the performance and ended up only with the shaky image above. Still, at least the complaint wasn't lodged five minutes earlier or I would have missed Elizabeth and Alison altogether.