One of the Taxi drivers on the documentary I'm shooting for ch4, Dave, told me a story that I told to a group of undergraduates I was photographing for Bath University:
One day Dave picked up a client from a mental institution. He thought nothing unusual of the client as he dressed impeccably wearing a full suit and talked like a doctor.
The fare went normally until a few miles slipped by on the way to the destination of Romford hospital, whereupon the man began to scream and flail his arms about. Dave, began press his foot harder on the accelerator the louder the man became and they soon arrived at the hospital where the man calmed to a still.
Dave applied the hand-break and turned to the man and said, "Im sorry but the fare is still £8", where upon the man reached into his pressed waist-coat and produced a picked onion and placed it in Daves' outstretched palm. Flabbergasted and a little frightened he accepted and the man exited.
When Dave drove back to the cab office he relayed the story to its contents with much amusement and then went home scratching his head and £8 lighter.
The next day he arrived at the office to find on the desk a jar of picked Gurkins with his name written on the label.
"Whats this?", Dave exclaimed.
"Just in case next time you need to give change" came the reply.
