‘My personal best is about an hour-and-a-half. ‘Standing still is much harder than you’d think,’ says Paul. 'She screamed and next thing I knew I’d got four policemen saying I’d assaulted her.’īeing a living statue is certainly not for the faint-hearted. ‘I once made a woman jump with a hooter when I was dressed as a clown. His actions are not condoned by his peers, however tempting it must be to lash out at times. Last year as part of a promotional stunt living statues greeted commuters to mark the opening of the newly redeveloped King's Cross Square in central London - including Queen Victoria, a miner and a Roman soldier 45 revolver to his head.Ĭue tears, nightmares for little Conor and a lot of damning headlines about Glint, who has since vanished into thin air. The second that eight-year-old Conor May dropped a £1 coin in Glint’s tin, he sprung into life, handcuffed the boy and held a toy.
They also observe the unspoken living-statue rule of never scaring your younger audience.īut last week, Glint Eastwood - a gold-spray-painted cowboy who was hard at work standing still in a Christmas market in Birmingham - broke ranks. Most of the time Paul and his fellow statues stand still, take the abuse and don’t fight back. ‘Some kids don’t know any better but it’s grown-ups, too - “The Undesirables” as we call them - who push you over and slap you in the face and then laugh.’ ‘The thing we hate most is being poked,’ says Paul, 41.
There’s also a Statue of Liberty, a silver-winged Eros in a teeny thong, a chain-mailed King Arthur and an enormous Queen Victoria with a vast unmoving bosom.Īll spend at least five hours a week applying and removing thick greasy make-up, and up to 50 hours standing still in all weathers while children prod them. He is one of thousands of living statues in the UK who make their living as Roman centurions, terracotta warriors or grim reapers. Paul has been a living statue on and off for 16 years - and a full-time one for the last two. He also makes high, squeaking noises in exchange for tips, and occasionally moves with sudden jerky, piston movements, but otherwise he stands perfectly still. A rival Golden Man pictured in Bath city centre - living statues face unusual occupational hazards