Britain's most tuneless busker plays with a saw and nail

Bryan Bryn, a former carpenter who plays an old saw with a nail, has been branded Britain’s most tuneless busker. 75-year-old Mr Bryn, who wears a hearing aid in each ear, has been told by critics he is tone deaf and should stop trying to ‘entertain’ people. Mr Bryn travels from his home in Ely, Cambridgeshire, to Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, twice a week for his street shows.



He takes up his regular spot near the busy market to sing sea shanties and folk songs, accompanied by his flexible saw. ‘He’s really terrible and he’s certainly got some nerve expecting people to give him money – it’s the most tuneless dirge I have ever heard,’ said Oliver Rees, 26, who lives in the town.

Another resident, Paul Kimpson, 59, said: ‘He’s a dear old boy and if he’s not the worst busker in the country he’s very, very close to it. ‘Everything he plays sounds exactly the same and you can never make out any of the songs he sings. I feel really sorry for people who have to work in shops and offices nearby and have to put up with the racket. We have got some really good buskers in the town but he’s letting the side down.’



A defiant Mr Bryn, who makes about £10 in an afternoon, said: ‘I have been playing the saw for years – I used to play on building sites where I worked. People can criticise me all they like. I know it’s more usual to play the saw like a violin with a bow – but I use an old nail to bang it instead.’

You can listen to Mr Bryn perform another tune here.