Neasden man scaled Eros in Piccadilly putting it at risk of collapsing on to tourists
Reynolds scaled the Eros statue in Picadilly - Credit: Archant
A Neasden man scaled Eros in Piccadilly so he could ‘boogie woogie’ putting the iconic landmark in danger of collapsing on crowds of tourists.
The world famous statue began to wobble precariously as Philip Reynolds danced on the 11- metre monument.
Westminster Magistrates Court heard four fire engines and a cherry picker where called to the scene to rescue the 26-year-old, who lives in Rainborough Close on the St Raphael’s Estate.
Reynolds admitted he had been seeking ‘attention’ when he came down after 45 minutes, the court heard.
Prosecutor Edward Aydin said: “He began dancing on top of the statue doing his boogie woogie dancing shoe shuffle, not realising the mayhem he was causing beneath him.
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“The statue began to wobble left and right, back and forth - the emergency services thought it was going to collapse.”
He added: “When he finally came down he said he wanted attention.”
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Reynolds claimed he ‘heard voices’ telling him to climb the statue after seeing other performers in Piccadilly Circus.
He added that ‘it didn’t wobble that much’ after pleading guilty to one count of causing a public nuisance during the incident on July 15 at 9.40pm.
District Judge Tan Ikram handed him a two-year conditional discharge because he felt a community order was ‘not a realistic option.’
He said: “This is a serious offence, you caused danger to yourself and you caused danger to those around you.”
He must also pay £350 of outstanding fines from previous offences.
