Banksy • Choose Your Weapon Print, by hupster on Dec 12, 2010 12:29:32 GMT 1,

Dec 12, 2010 12:01:46 GMT 1 daddychaps said:

Hi Guys,
Finally recovered from the queue.
I am the (occassionally) mentioned Kiwi guy who along with his pint sized big voiced west ham scarf wearing buddy attempted to create some order amongst the mayhem. ;D

Here is my story...

I took the afternoon off work on a gamble (based on last year) and headed to Marks and Stencils. Got there around 3.30pm and saw 4 or 5 guys queuing outside. Had a wander round the show, (really impressed with the Drans), then went over to Starbucks for an eggnog latte.

Came back from the bucks and the queue was around 15 deep. So I said **** it! I will wait here till closing time and see what happens.

Queue expanded and eventually my gravelly voiced comrade turned up and was 50th or so in the queue. Right next to the lovely German couple who had amazingly gambled and flown from Stuttgart for the day!

Drank a few (read several Fosters fridge packs) beers and chatted with various forum members I had met last year in the NBG queue.

Just enjoying the sights and sounds of Soho and the ladies of the night when the front of the queue started disappearing. Word filtered in we were in the wrong place and the drop would be at POW.

Cue carnage!!!

Grabbed our beers and ran straight out onto the road at Shaftesbury Avenue. Was like a scene from race around the world... Traffic honking, lights flashing people shouting. Absolute craziness. People piling into taxis.

We jumped in one with a young couple (forgot your names, but thanks for getting that cab). German couple tried to get in the cab with us, but cabbie said 5 was max. So they bailed out!

Throwing £'s at the cabbie to run every light from the west end to the east end and finally screeching to a stop outside POW heedlessly running across commercial street (without looking either way) and planting ourselves around the bus stop!

Did a quick tally up from the front, and estimated we were around the 60 mark.

More people arrived in a similar fashion and the queue starting snaking around the corner.

Now to be fair... we had had a couple of beers... and we never intended to be the unofficial 'queue police'... but very quickly we saw chaos ensuing without any sort of order, so... we wandered the queue chatting to people. Giving the someone to dob in queue jumpers too and trying to empower themselves to police their little area of the queue whilst they could be comforted in the knowledge that others ahead of them were doing the same thing!

I know it wasnt an ideal solution (i did go to the chicken shop to buy a ticket book to habd out but he didnt use 1... I said what if you get 15 orders at once... he said i remember them. Really 15 orders rememebered? The guy in the chicken shop needs a new job...) Anywho... I digress!

So we wandered the queue, threw out anyone trying to sneak in (about 30 in total over the course of the night I would think) and tried to reassure the increasingly panicky queuers nearer the end.

Cant remember the time (as I lost all sense of it), but a bloke tried to sneak in near the young guys (in the hoodies with the weapon dog pictured earlier). They tried to throw him out and a scuffle ensued.

This is the fight described earlier. Their were a few good hits, but their was DEFINITELY no blood. Following a surprise king hit by one of the young guys the queue jumper went down and they attenpted to give him a kicking on the ground. Thanks to the guy who posted earlier who helped pull them off. Fair play to you too mate, but there were others helping to stop it progressing. Their were certainly no head stomps and the guy got up and stumbled off down the road!

Around 6am I would guess, people started showing up to replace the people who had queued for them overnight. We were trying our hardest to ensure this was done on a 1 for 1 basis. But it was massively difficult as all of a sudden we had loads of new faces who we hadnt seen all night. (We had memorised everyone inside the top 50ish). And with bigger groups giving the classic "he was here all night mate", it was almost impossible to ensure the odd sneak in!

So... security finally showed up. (We gave them grief for trying to push in ) And started giving out tickets. I dont know if they started at 1 in the front, but I got 88. So from 60th(ish) in the line on arrival, we had dropped 20-30 places. Some of these were people who we missed on our initial count. People who had been there but were sat in cars, getting food etc and the aforementioned cheeky queue jumpers we missed. Apologies... we were far from perfect!

I am really sorry for thos of you who had a difficult night, and I am sorry for the 'scrum' that ensued come first light as the tickets were being issued. We could shout, but we had to maintain our own place in the line at that critical stage. We were just hoping people recognised those around them and prevented any further incursions. That goes for forwards and backwards of our position.

So... all in all, I had a great night. Met loads of nice forum and non-forum members. Chatted about art. Drank a few beers. Sang a few songs (apologies for the renditions of i'm forever blowing bubbles... its the only song we both know the words too.. and he doesnt know the Haka) and eventually left with a hot pink new Banksy.

I know there are many different ways to release these. And this methodology is far from ideal. But an online release only isolates us more from each other. I love reading (and occassionally posting on) this forum, and these events allow us the chance to meet and interract with like minded people who share a love for this style of art. From my experience of the queue, I would suggest that it was more like 80% fans and 20% chancers. Not saying that true fans wont also sell this on. Of course some will. But in 20 hours on the street and speaking to 100+ people, everyone was really cool, passionate about Banksy and excited to be there in with a chance. You cant beat that!

So, enough of my (enormous post) Dont think I sat down for a total of 15 mins over the entire course of the 20 hours I was on the streets of London, so my legs are destroyed and my 'JLS' boots are sagging!

As a side note to POW, if you need Dave and I for security for next year, I will work for 1 Fosters fridge pack and Doras phone number... Dave will only work if you can ensure West Ham doesnt get relegated... so just me next year then!

Till the next release....

DC

While i agree that something needed to be done i think the guy who threatened anyone who walk passed him would get a bottle smashed over their head went too far. Its one thing defending but to threaten life over a print was nuts. There was an innocent man walking passed who nearly had it. Even though i was in the 200 to start with i think i ended up being around 240 by the time the tickets were issued out.

For the record i missed the print there but bagged one at Marks and Stencils.

Dec 12, 2010 12:01:46 GMT 1 daddychaps said:

Hi Guys,
Finally recovered from the queue.
I am the (occassionally) mentioned Kiwi guy who along with his pint sized big voiced west ham scarf wearing buddy attempted to create some order amongst the mayhem. ;D

Here is my story...

I took the afternoon off work on a gamble (based on last year) and headed to Marks and Stencils. Got there around 3.30pm and saw 4 or 5 guys queuing outside. Had a wander round the show, (really impressed with the Drans), then went over to Starbucks for an eggnog latte.

Came back from the bucks and the queue was around 15 deep. So I said **** it! I will wait here till closing time and see what happens.

Queue expanded and eventually my gravelly voiced comrade turned up and was 50th or so in the queue. Right next to the lovely German couple who had amazingly gambled and flown from Stuttgart for the day!

Drank a few (read several Fosters fridge packs) beers and chatted with various forum members I had met last year in the NBG queue.

Just enjoying the sights and sounds of Soho and the ladies of the night when the front of the queue started disappearing. Word filtered in we were in the wrong place and the drop would be at POW.

Cue carnage!!!

Grabbed our beers and ran straight out onto the road at Shaftesbury Avenue. Was like a scene from race around the world... Traffic honking, lights flashing people shouting. Absolute craziness. People piling into taxis.

We jumped in one with a young couple (forgot your names, but thanks for getting that cab). German couple tried to get in the cab with us, but cabbie said 5 was max. So they bailed out!

Throwing £'s at the cabbie to run every light from the west end to the east end and finally screeching to a stop outside POW heedlessly running across commercial street (without looking either way) and planting ourselves around the bus stop!

Did a quick tally up from the front, and estimated we were around the 60 mark.

More people arrived in a similar fashion and the queue starting snaking around the corner.

Now to be fair... we had had a couple of beers... and we never intended to be the unofficial 'queue police'... but very quickly we saw chaos ensuing without any sort of order, so... we wandered the queue chatting to people. Giving the someone to dob in queue jumpers too and trying to empower themselves to police their little area of the queue whilst they could be comforted in the knowledge that others ahead of them were doing the same thing!

I know it wasnt an ideal solution (i did go to the chicken shop to buy a ticket book to habd out but he didnt use 1... I said what if you get 15 orders at once... he said i remember them. Really 15 orders rememebered? The guy in the chicken shop needs a new job...) Anywho... I digress!

So we wandered the queue, threw out anyone trying to sneak in (about 30 in total over the course of the night I would think) and tried to reassure the increasingly panicky queuers nearer the end.

Cant remember the time (as I lost all sense of it), but a bloke tried to sneak in near the young guys (in the hoodies with the weapon dog pictured earlier). They tried to throw him out and a scuffle ensued.

This is the fight described earlier. Their were a few good hits, but their was DEFINITELY no blood. Following a surprise king hit by one of the young guys the queue jumper went down and they attenpted to give him a kicking on the ground. Thanks to the guy who posted earlier who helped pull them off. Fair play to you too mate, but there were others helping to stop it progressing. Their were certainly no head stomps and the guy got up and stumbled off down the road!

Around 6am I would guess, people started showing up to replace the people who had queued for them overnight. We were trying our hardest to ensure this was done on a 1 for 1 basis. But it was massively difficult as all of a sudden we had loads of new faces who we hadnt seen all night. (We had memorised everyone inside the top 50ish). And with bigger groups giving the classic "he was here all night mate", it was almost impossible to ensure the odd sneak in!

So... security finally showed up. (We gave them grief for trying to push in ) And started giving out tickets. I dont know if they started at 1 in the front, but I got 88. So from 60th(ish) in the line on arrival, we had dropped 20-30 places. Some of these were people who we missed on our initial count. People who had been there but were sat in cars, getting food etc and the aforementioned cheeky queue jumpers we missed. Apologies... we were far from perfect!

I am really sorry for thos of you who had a difficult night, and I am sorry for the 'scrum' that ensued come first light as the tickets were being issued. We could shout, but we had to maintain our own place in the line at that critical stage. We were just hoping people recognised those around them and prevented any further incursions. That goes for forwards and backwards of our position.

So... all in all, I had a great night. Met loads of nice forum and non-forum members. Chatted about art. Drank a few beers. Sang a few songs (apologies for the renditions of i'm forever blowing bubbles... its the only song we both know the words too.. and he doesnt know the Haka) and eventually left with a hot pink new Banksy.

I know there are many different ways to release these. And this methodology is far from ideal. But an online release only isolates us more from each other. I love reading (and occassionally posting on) this forum, and these events allow us the chance to meet and interract with like minded people who share a love for this style of art. From my experience of the queue, I would suggest that it was more like 80% fans and 20% chancers. Not saying that true fans wont also sell this on. Of course some will. But in 20 hours on the street and speaking to 100+ people, everyone was really cool, passionate about Banksy and excited to be there in with a chance. You cant beat that!

So, enough of my (enormous post) Dont think I sat down for a total of 15 mins over the entire course of the 20 hours I was on the streets of London, so my legs are destroyed and my 'JLS' boots are sagging!

As a side note to POW, if you need Dave and I for security for next year, I will work for 1 Fosters fridge pack and Doras phone number... Dave will only work if you can ensure West Ham doesnt get relegated... so just me next year then!

Till the next release....

DC

While i agree that something needed to be done i think the guy who threatened anyone who walk passed him would get a bottle smashed over their head went too far. Its one thing defending but to threaten life over a print was nuts. There was an innocent man walking passed who nearly had it. Even though i was in the 200 to start with i think i ended up being around 240 by the time the tickets were issued out.

For the record i missed the print there but bagged one at Marks and Stencils.