"And actually what that means is that `them who know better than us' sell off every inch that they can..."
After thirty years of comedy, theatre, tv, stand up, investigative journalism and mischievous activism, Mark Thomas has still got loads to say and do. Material is everywhere. All he has to do is walk around and open his eyes. And walking around isn't as easy as it used to be, as his latest show, Trespass, which hits The Lowry on 10th March, literally demonstrates.
Thomas and his cohorts go playing in public spaces that have been privatised and relay the tales, via video and live performance, to audiences that can't get enough of his brand of hands-on, boot-up-the-establishment's-arse political humour...
"If you look at the River Thames, when the tide goes out no-one is quite sure who has authority on the beach, and we suspect that the people who actually do have authority haven't actually got the resources to enforce it" he explains "So what you can do is go down on the beach and do things without actually having any kind of permission... because you just can...
"So, for example, we recently put on a punk rock gig on the River Thames when the tide went out" he deadpans "We had five hundred people there, and a great punk band called Oi Polloi playing along with the Flowers of Flesh and Blood. They were all just going ballistic on the beach in a free gig. A couple of security guards poked their heads over, saw a load of punks going nuts and just kind of moved away..."
It's the sort of fun that people in Manchester and Salford could have, with more and more of our public spaces being sold off and guarded by private security firms...
In Salford, Buile Hill Park mansion, currently in public ownership, is about to be sold off with its grounds. If you want to have an event on Greengate Square paid for with £13.3million of public money it will cost you £500 a day. And kids on Salford Quays are subject to Public Spaces Protection Orders with fines of up to £1,000 for indulging in `prohibited activities', like chucking their dog into the water or `procuring' someone to `hang from a bridge'.
Indeed, Mark Thomas need only walk a few hundred yards from his gig at The Lowry to Media City, where gangs of the Peel Group's private security firm patrol on Segways despite the `public realm' costing the public £30million.
"That's the thing about the councils, they are now basically extensions of construction companies" he says "There used to be a gag in Lambeth; that whoever you vote for, the builders get in. It's basically saying `Who do you want the contracts to go to?'.
"I think it's a real shame that local democracy is just an extension of a rather moribund system that allows people to show an interest in politics once every four or five years, and then just to go `Well we'll give up now and let them that know better rule us'" he adds "And actually what that means is that `them who know better than us' sell off every inch that they can."
Come on down, Salford City Council and Manchester City Council. But there has been resistance, led by homeless people who have set up camps in public squares and unoccupied buildings. Even Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs weren't immune... "It was very sweet, allowing people to take over their gaffe" says Thomas "Of course it was a PR exercise but people got them into a position where they could claim a moral victory; but it's their victory."
Whereas the cities' homeless acted out of necessity, Thomas's stunts are more politically comedic, like the River Thames punk prank, with lots more happenings around the country that will be relayed in Trespass.
"I go off and find little chinks in the armour of these places" he says "And try to find ways in which we can explore and play with, and encourage people to join in; encourage people to defy them, and encourage people to beat them, whilst at the same time enjoying ourselves and hopefully staying on the right side of the law.
"Obviously I think we can change things otherwise we wouldn't do it" he adds "There really is no point in running at a brick wall unless you think at some point the brick wall is going to give. It's about how we change our relationship with those spaces as a result of being there."
As he insists, gentrification and the private ownership of public space is on the increase. But only Mark Thomas could make a show of this rather serious issue and make it accessible and funny to any audience. How the hell does he do that?
"With the gift of thirty years experience" he responds. Totally serious.
Mark Thomas performs Trespass at The Lowry Quays Theatre on 10th March. For ticket details click here
Main photo by Vanessa Furey
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