Mike Turner, Kings Chase, Kingswood, Bristol
Since moving back to the UK, Mike has found his pitch to be a great way of meeting people
Image: Juliette Pedram
I’ve been in the UK for almost two years now. I left in 1988 and started a family in France. I worked internationally in many, many different places. I was in the oil industry so I had a good job, started in ’73, left in 2018, so that’s a long time. I was living the dream really. I had a very good job, quite affluent.
There are so many memories from my time abroad. I worked in a lot of places and I couldn’t even begin to tell you what I remember, dolphins in Africa and whales and elephants in their wild habitats. Siberia, Russia, China, the Great Wall… I’ve been very privileged. I worked in Africa and every evening the elephants, wild elephants in the jungle, used to walk through the camp.
But then the house and quite a substantial amount of my savings went in divorce settlements. I developed some health issues as I got older and one of them necessitated that I had to come back to the UK for an operation which I’m having soon.
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I arrived back here from south-east Asia in 2023 and I’d run out of money. I went to the council and got no help at all. I found myself living on the streets, living rough. Which was an eye-opener. I was 73 on the street. I had stuff with me, even though it was all in a backpack. I very quickly became aware that I was extremely vulnerable. But luckily I met a couple of nice people on the street.
I was in a homeless shelter then one day some people from Big Issue came around.I’d seen Big Issue obviously and I’d seen people selling the magazine but it had never really crossed my radar. I got talking to one of them and they outlined it to me. I thought, well, at least I get some money. I’m on a reduced pension, so I had to get my housing, my pension credit sorted out.
I came over and met the team and got my five free copies. The free starter was great. I sold five copies and suddenly I found myself with £20 in my pocket so I thought: this is all right, it’s some food for the day. So yeah, I just stayed selling it.
As soon as the Big Issue team found out I was looking for housing as a veteran they said, well, there’s this going and there’s that going. The council said I had no ties here because I’d been out of the country so long and I would be better off going somewhere else. Because of my experience in the oil field, they said I had more ties in Aberdeen, so they said I should go to Scotland.
Big Issue is the way I’m meeting people. I’ve got people who stop, some of them don’t even buy the paper, but they’ll stop and chat and they’ll bring me a coffee or they ask how I’m doing, and this is very important. If people actually acknowledge you as a human being and show some sympathy for your situation they don’t have to give you anything. Even people walking past, if you get eye contact, a smile, you know, a nod, it acknowledges that you’re not a fire hydrant. The words cost nothing and it has a big effect.
When I wear the tabard I feel like I’m part of something. You’re out there, it’s a positive action that you’re doing, the paper’s really good. I always enjoy reading it myself when I’m sat there.
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Kings Chase Shopping Centre, Regent Street, Kingswood, Bristol, UK