“Lead the way, André, lead the way. And you get the readies, don’t ya?” Danny Dyer says to Big Issue vendor André Rostant as they walk along Charing Cross Road in Central London.
Most people passing by are paying little heed to the two men in matching red tabards as they arrive at their pitch. But one young woman does a double, triple and quadruple take. “Oh my god, it is him!” A few seconds later, the actor makes his first sale of the morning. Dyer, who stars in Rivals, the upcoming Disney+ adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s skewering of social class and the media in the 1980s, is selling the Big Issue magazine for the first time. It’s an enlightening experience. Here he is, one of the most recognisable people in the country, being routinely ignored by most of the people he encounters.
“It’s a real eye-opener,” he says later. “André warned me the tabard was like an invisibility cloak. But there’s not a lot of money out there. People are struggling. And I always say that everyone you come across, there’s always something going on in their life. So it’s important to be kind and gentle to everybody for that reason. But when you’re standing in the middle of a street and people don’t even want to engage with you, it is an odd experience.”
At times, Danny Dyer looks a little lost as experienced vendor André hangs back to give him as authentic an experience as possible as a lone Big Issue seller. He spreads his arms wide, shrugging at his own powerlessness when even his famous face fails to make an impact on people rushing by. But Danny Dyer is as magnetic in person as he is on screen and stage. Before long, he has charmed a good number of Monday morning shoppers, workers and tourists into buying the latest edition. Read more in this week’s mag!
What else is in this week’s Big Issue?
The asylum legal aid crisis is costing taxpayers more than you think. Here’s why
Law firms are racking up significant debts while taking on legal aid work for asylum cases – all thanks to a crisis in the legal aid system. As part of our investigation into the pressures on the system, solicitors working with asylum seekers told the Big Issue of burnout, impossible finances and human suffering as vast numbers are turned away without representation, unable to find a solicitor.
Catchphrase star Stephen Mulhern promises to end his tenants’ damp and mould nightmare
Tenants of television star Stephen Mulhern will have their two-year damp and mould nightmare come to an end – thanks to Big Issue. Catchphrase frontman Mulhern is one of the UK’s most popular television presenters. But away from the small screen he has amassed a £4 million property empire. One of his tenants – who wished to remain anonymous – contacted Big Issue out of desperation after efforts to fi x damp and mould in their Leicester bungalow fell on deaf ears.
