SOUTH London comic
Arthur Smith is bringing an air of mystery and amusement to Balham
next month with his unique form of mobile comedy.
The self-elected Night
Mayor of Balham will be hosting a secret night walk around his
beloved South London neighbourhood.
The event, on Saturday,
December 14, will include singing, chat and audience participation.
But the rest - well all will be revealed on the night.
What started out as a
spontaneous idea in Edinburgh many years ago to fill in time between
gigs has become something of a regular occurrence. And they were soon
the stuff of legend as Arthur explains.
"When I was doing
the Edinburgh Festival in the 1980s I was doing a comedy show at
night and was trying to find a way of keeping sober during the day
and hit on the idea of a walking tour.
"It was a bit of a
parody of a tour and history of the place that gets mangled up - it
was all bullshit really as I made up most of it but they were a lot
of fun."
The tours were so
successful he began to do them during the evenings as well.
"Sometimes they
didn't start until about 2am, after a gig, when everyone was pissed
and I used to get about 200 people which obviously had the potential
for a riot.
"It meant they
frequently ended in chaos, had elements of nudity and I got arrested
at least once," he chuckles.
"For example I
used to pay people to climb up lamp posts and sing Scotland The Brave
and I ended up in A&E one time.
"The night I got
arrested for breach of the peace it involved (comedian) Malcolm
Hardee who stripped off and did an impression of General De Gaulle.
"I was fined £100
but have never been asked for the money so technically I am still a
wanted man," he laughs.
"There was one
occasion when we had about 50 coppers descend on us and we all had to
scatter in the wind - it was pandemonium!"
These days although the
walks may be less raucous they are nonetheless a chance to see Arthur
at his comedic best.
"I was born in
Bermondsey and have lived in South London all my life. I couldn't
live in north London. South London is much more real.
"I'm slowly moving
around the South Circular and now live in Balham and I like the idea
that it has its own catchphrase as Balham - Gateway to the South.
"I've lived here
since the 1980s so know it really well so it's a chance to introduce
others to the delights of the area.
"It basically
involves me taking a group of people and leading them on a merry
dance around Balham.
"I take them to my
favourite places and hidden gems - there is no theatrical set that
compares with the outside.
"Sometimes you
have to be a bit careful because if you crowd around a building the
security guards get a bit nervous but they can have a sense of
humour.
"I will quite
likely improvise if I come across people I like the look of - I tend
to surround them and talk about them, not in an offensive way of
course, but just chat really.
"I'm older now and
less foolish so this one will be much more genteel," he
chuckles. "But it will still be a bit of a laugh and a bit more
out there than a children's tea party!"
But he admits he
doesn't as yet have a definitive plan for the evening.
"I don't know yet
where we will be going exactly," he muses. "I know roughly
where we are going to go - but there is always an element of surprise
with a set piece at the end.
"I will need to
have a couple of things set up along the way so I'd better get
cracking on it!"
