Nut reaches Downing Street

BBC NEWS ^ | 2003/09/12 | Unsigned

[aculeus]

A performance artist trying to wipe out his student debt by using his nose to roll a monkey nut across London has arrived at Downing Street.

Crawling on his hands and knees, Mark McGowan nudged the nut over a kerb and up the steps to the famous black door of Number 10.

He began his journey on 1 September at Goldsmiths College in New Cross, south-east London.

Each day he covered about three-quarters of a mile in about eight hours.

During his journey, the 37-year-old from Peckham, south-east London, has encountered abusive people, curious children, wide cracks in the pavement and busy roads.

Mr McGowan delivered the nut and a letter, which asks Prime Minister Tony Blair to accept the nut as payment for his student debt, to Number 10 on Friday.

He said: "I'm a bit tired. I'm a bit emotional that it's all over. I'm going to have a bath now.

"It's been a long two weeks. Sometimes I thought I was going to give up. It was really hard. My knee caps are in a terrible state."

Mr McGowan also described his journey, saying: "The streets were dirty. There was hair and spit and bird poo. There were unmentionable things."

He had written to both Mr Blair and Education Secretary Charles Clarke about his protest and had asked them to waive his debts.

But Mr Blair's office referred him to the Department for Education and Skills which, Mr McGowan said, informed him its spending limits had already been set for the year.

It is the latest in a series of protests by McGowan which have included rolling across London to promote kindness to cleaners and walking backwards with a turkey on his head to fight obesity.

Published: 13:27:03 GMT

© BBC MMIII

[aculeus]

Mark McGowan reaches 10 Downing Street

[aculeus]

"The streets were dirty. There was hair and spit and bird poo. There were unmentionable things."

Pinging for unmentionable things.

[Elliott Jackalope]

There's a big nut in this story alright, and it ain't the one being pushed by a nose.

[SouthernFreebird]

Nobody nose the troubles I've seen,
Nobodt nose my sorrow...

[tiamat]

And hear I thought some lunatic had broken into Tony's place....

Tia

[b4its2late]

[tiamat]

SIGH

"hear" = "here"

Tia

[general_re]

"And it's a straight fight here at Leicester, and we're expecting the result any moment now. There with the Returning Officer is Arthur Smith, the sensible candidate, and next to him is Jethro Q. Walrustitty, the silly candidate, with his agent and his silly wife."

[dighton]

Meacher?

[Bonaparte]

Let me propose a compromise. Since Mr. McGowan now unarguably knows every square inch of London, allow him to work off his debt in a position with city sanitation. He's demonstrated he can keep his nose to the nut. I have no doubt he can do likewise with the grindstone.

[coloradan]

Bump for a (distant) relative?

[LNewman]

All together now ... ALL TOGETHER NOW.
All together now ... and so on

[aculeus]

All together now ... ALL TOGETHER NOW. All together now ... and so on

Huh?