Danny Dyer said tourists “looked him up and down like scum” as he helped a homeless man sell copies of The Big Issue in Central London.
Speaking on his Live And Let Dyers podcast with his daughter Dani, he described the treatment he received after heading out to the streets with a vendor called Andre, who is homeless.
He said the experience was humbling, making him appreciate where he is in his own life compared to those less fortunate.
“But this guy Andre was a bit older than me; he’s got two teenage daughters. So, he’s in a hostel. And so, I went along with him to Tottenham Court Road, p***ing down with rain,” Danny says. “Of course, I can’t moan – the geezer is f***ing homeless! How can I get tricky about… you know, I’ve got a wonderful life.”
Kitted out with a tabard, spoke of his shock at the way some members of the public “looked him up and down like scum: as he worked to sell copies of the magazine.
“It was really interesting, because they put on me a little tabard, the little red thing,” he says.
“There’s a lot of tourists in London who don’t know who I am. They was looking at me like scum. So, I had this weird thing that I was trying to navigate through people looking me up and down like scum.”
Danny also revealed that some passersby who did recognise him thought he had fallen on hard times.
“Then the others that were going, ‘Oh my God, it’s Danny Dyer. What the f***!’ They’re going, ‘Have you fell on hard times?’” he says. “I’m going, ‘No, no.’ Like, people actually thought I was homeless!”
Aside from the mixed reception he received from the passing public, Danny admitted it was a joyous experience working with The Big Issue, and one that will live long in his memory.
“I stood there, and I did about three quarters of an hour. And you know, it was a joy, because every time someone bought one, I could tell that Andre was earning some money,” he says. “But it was a really humbling experience.”
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