London commuters have a low tolerance for quirky antics on the Underground, Overground or generally everywhere.
Even a brilliantly choreographed dance on the train won’t warrant a glance for a nation that loves avoiding eye contact.
One man is determined to get stiff upper lipped British folks smiling.
You might’ve seen videos of Elvin Mensah doing the rounds on social media after a video of him setting up a date on the train went viral.
He soon came to be known as ‘That Train Date Guy’.
The prankster has been up to all sorts on the Overground, hanging his washing on a clothes horse, exercising with a portable treadmill, and even shaving, which he did by bringing a whole sink on the train. As you do.
His videos have delighted his 44,000-strong Insta followers and beyond, though some of his content has been criticised.
In the dinner date video, for example, Elvin could be seen preparing a table with a rose and pouring wine for the female traveller sitting next to him.
People sharing the video on social media said it the prank was a form of sexual harassment – but Elvin tells Metro.co.uk that the lady was happy to be in his video.
Elvin told us: ‘Hundreds of thousands of women and several media pages on the internet didn’t see it as harassment. They got the joke.
‘The passengers on the train and the lady who was my “date” were evidently amused by the prank so that’s saying something.
‘Anyone who is good at what they do will always have haters, it’s just part of life. I don’t let any of that get to me but rather use it as fuel to keep delivering content of good quality that people will enjoy.’
Elvin’s been doing comedy skits for years now. He started by writing funny stories on Facebook around six years ago.
He adds: ‘I’m a creative individual and as a comic, I’m always trying to make observations and find ways to create things that will give people a laugh.’
‘I also get inspiration from things I see or hear people talk about.’
In another video Elvin is seen in exercise gear, setting up a treadmill and then going for a run on it. He says that was his favourite to do.
We have no idea how he kept a straight face.
‘A large part of comedy is that it has elements of surprise, spontaneity and audacity,’ he says.
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