Old Man Stan at loggerheads with council over Basfest (From Echo)

Old Man Stan at loggerheads with council over Basfest

12:00pm Friday 10th July 2009

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BASILDON Council had better watch out – the town’s favourite puppet, Old Man Stan, has declared war on it.

Members of the Ugly Wuggly Puppet Company, which produces the popular Old Man Stan videos for website YouTube, are angry the council refused to allow them to hand out leaflets at last weekend’s Basildon Festival, in Gloucester Park.

They claim they were told this was because restaurant chain Nando’s paid for exclusive rights to distribute flyers.

Founding puppet company member Steve Waters, 41, of the Gore, Basildon, says he was even followed around the festival by an over-zealous council worker, to make sure he kept the leaflets to himself.

He vowed to take revenge by mocking the local authority in the next Old Man Stan video.

He said: “Stan will have his old Second World War uniform on, because he’s going to war with the council.

“None of us get paid to do what we do, it’s a community-run group. Why shouldn’t we be able to publicise ourselves on Basildon’s big day?

“The council bangs on about community and diversity, but it’s rubbish. It should have been encouraging a genuine community group like ours, which is trying to help brighten up the place a little bit.”

The puppet company has posted a strongly-worded message on its website, www.old manstan.co.uk It states: “We feel we were bullied by Basildon Council on Sunday. Our day was ruined as a result of their aggressive actions.”

The Old Man Stan videos, which have gained cult status locally, poke gentle, affectionate fun at Basildon.

Their titles have included Everyone’s gone to the Moon (On the Square) and Hit me with your Bazzo Stick.

Nando’s denied it paid for exclusive rights to hand out flyers. Its statement reads: “At the event, our staff began flyering and speaking to festival goers, but within 30 minutes, we were approached and told flyering at Basfest was not allowed.

“Thoroughly disappointed this was the case, and that we had not been informed prior to the event, we spoke to the organisers. A compromise was reached in that we were allowed to flyer, but only within very close vicinity of our stand.”

Ray McKay, spokesman for Basildon Council, said: “The Council’s main aim was to ensure the festival remained free for the public, and to this end the groups and organisations participating on site paid a fee to be there. With this in mind, it was simply not fair to then allow other groups on the site who had not paid.

“Our staff carefully policed Gloucester Park to make sure any groups attending Basfest 2009 had booked their place using the proper channels.

“As Ugly Wuggly had not done this, they were asked to stop handing out their leaflets. At no time did any Council staff behave aggressively.”

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