Police told Shaun Cartwright, 38, his piping had annoyed members of the public and detained him for a breach of the peace.

His bagpipes were seized as he was handcuffed and driven to a police station, although he was later released and told it was not in the public interest to press charges.

Mr Cartwright, who has been playing bagpipes for more than 25 years, was busking in Bridport, Dorset, when he was arrested.

He said: "I'd been playing for almost an hour outside Superdrug on the main street and had made about 50 pounds, so it clearly wasn't causing that much offence.

"But a shopkeeper called the police and two officers turned up saying they had a complaint and they had to respond to it.

"They asked me to move on but I wanted to finish my hour of playing and put the blow stick to my mouth and that was it.

Mr Cartwright, from Bristol, was released after...

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(LONDON) It seems there simply aren't enough buskers in London's tube these days to satisfy the growing masses.Also known as the underground subway, a clear and present message to the "powers that be" is rumbling around the tube. Buskers believe many more should be permitted to display their art form in the nation's capital.

As it turns out, you can now take a quick internet lesson on How to be a Tube Busker with a recent article at the Londonist.com.

There's only one thing standing in the way - "the system". Tube busking has now been legal for 10 years. The article goes into a step-by-step process that may, in the end, prove the licensing procedure to be entirely futile.

You will be judged by a 3-person jury that may or may not be qualified to determine what is art and what...

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(OTTAWA) — Buskers in the ByWard Market want the City of Ottawa to see them as performers, not panhandlers, and keep its hands out of their pockets — and their hats and guitar cases.“I’m going to move if they don’t change,” said Paul Perreault, a Cirque du Soleil-trained acrobat.

Just in time for the municipal election, buskers are getting organized in response to a city bylaw that went into effect last spring. The bylaw requires street performers in the Market to pay up to $200 for licences, rotate positions frequently and make do without voice amplification.

In response, buskers have formed an association, endorsed a candidate in Rideau-Vanier and voted unanimously in favour of a proposal to amend the bylaw.

Perreault said the current rules are so restrictive, they’re making top-notch international...

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(LONDON) A frustrated busker dressed as the Queen headbutted a plain-clothed policeman once told he wasn't to busk at Trafalgar Square. The "Queen" then hit him over the head with a royal scepter made of plastic. Thirty-one year old Romanian-born Marian Gogu, who lives in Soho, admitted assaulting PC Peter Barnett with a headbutt.

It wasn't that long ago that another street-performer dressed as Chewbacca was handcuffed and arrested in Hollywood, California when he headbutted a tour-guide. Frederick Evan Young was the Star Wars street performer in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre. He knocked heads with the tour guide who complained about how "Chewie" was treating two tourists.

"It was quite a surprise. What they don't realize is that headbutts hurt yourself as much as the other guy,"...

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(THE NETHERLANDS) An article at TheCityAtEyeLevel.com in the Netherlands has published an article portraying busking as a viable means of rejuvenating city streets. Some city's methodology include Glasgow, Melbourne, and Singapore."Busking is at risk of being licensed out of existence, with permit systems, auditions, fees, written application processes, equipment bans, scheduling and branding making the spontaneous, surprising art in public spaces a thing of the past."

The article goes on to discuss street performing policy, proposed permit systems, and a starters guide to encouraging busking in your city.

Many buskers prefer to be self-regulated but there are always a few who abuse this type of system. This can lead to public disputes where there is strong disagreement.

For more info,...

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