Out from the underground, busking isn't worth it

Crime pays, busking doesn't. The first legal performers on the London Underground are finding out what commuters have said for years: the Tube's not worth the hassle.

After decades outside the law, a group of buskers have been allowed to perform at five stations in a 16-week trial because 80 per cent of passengers polled by London Underground said they liked to listen to music while waiting for a train.

But being able to play on the Tube doesn't mean the buskers can raise enough money to travel on it. The Brighton bassist Justin Manser, 30, whose playlist includes the theme from Dr Who, paid £8.50 for a coach ticket to London. His stint at Canary Wharf netted him £12. "If I don't make about £60 it's not worth coming up here," he said.