Are you paranoid? Possibly. More probably you live in Great Britain, where four million CCTV cameras are recording your every move — unless you get mugged, in which case the person in charge will have forgotten to load it with tape. The principle is the same: most of the time, Britain is the world’s most watched nation.
From next Friday, the Battersea Arts Centre (BAC) in South London is offering “a unique opportunity to hire a stalker” — someone to tail your friend or loved one, or even you, for a full weekend. This is not illegal, it’s art, part of the three-week Imagination Festival, a celebration of experimental theatre.
Harun Morrison, one of the festival’s producers, says: “It’s about living in what is increasingly a police state. We are all potential criminals now.” Morrison will not say who these stalkers-for-hire are lest they be compromised. But no, they do not have experience as stalkers and will not force women to become their girlfriends. They are artists.
“You and your friend come to the BAC café,” says Morrison. “The stalker will be watching you; it could be another customer, or that waiter.” For 48 hours your friend must try to photograph the stalker, and vice versa. They won’t tail your ex-wife unless she gives the go-ahead. So no funny stuff. They may know where you live.