As well as winding queues, there’s one thing you’re almost guaranteed to see at a London food market: influencers.
Armed with an iPhone camera and unnatural levels of self-confidence, they’ll be biting into the most viral and Instagram-worthy treats going, telling you whether or not it’s worth splashing the cash on.
But one market has come under fire online, after it was claimed that they were ‘banning’ influencers from filming there.
Borough Market has been accused of changing up its filming rules after a video of two food reviewers being kicked off the premises went viral – but a spokesperson for the market wants to set the record straight.
A spokesperson told Metro: ‘We haven’t banned influencers or content creators from Borough Market and our filming policy has been in place for years.’
They continued to say: ‘We value the role that food reviewers play in showcasing Borough Market and its traders.
‘Our filming policy is designed to ensure that activity doesn’t cause disruption to stallholders or visitors and our security team is trained to ask for the relevant permission from anyone filming in the market.
‘Our number one priority is to ensure that visitors are comfortable and at times we do need to alleviate the congestion which can happen around particularly popular sites within our market.
‘This occasionally means we ask food reviewers to stop filming if they are causing congestion or haven’t got the relevant permission.’
What is Borough Market’s policy on filming?
The FAQ section of the Borough Market website states that people looking to film or take photos for ‘professional purposes’ need to let the market know in advance by filling out a form.
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Metro asked the team at Borough Market what was specifically meant by professional filming and they said they ‘usually consider this to involve a crew with kit’, such as microphones.
They also clarified that no professional filming is allowed at the market between the hours of 11am and 2:30PM, Monday to Friday, or at any time during the weekend. This has been a strict rule for a ‘long time’ they said, and isn’t new.
Those who apply to film outside of these hours will either have their request approved or rejected. People who receive approval will be sent an email with a permission letter, which they may be required to show at the market.
Borough Market adds they are in the process of ‘reviewing’ their filming policy right now and their intention is to remain ‘open and welcoming to everyone who wants to celebrate its food and support the 100+ small businesses who trade’ there.
Are food reviewers being kicked out of Borough Market?
A viral video is doing the rounds, which shows food reviewers Gerry del Guercio and Paul Delany (known as @bitetwicefoodreviews) being asked by a security guard to leave Borough Market in the middle of reviewing a £9 dessert from Humble Crumble.
The pair say they were escorted from the market, after spending almost £100 of their own money on food there, because they were filming for social media.
The video isn’t new, but was first shared online in May of this year and was recently re-uploaded on November 3.
Gerry, 44, claims he and Paul aren’t the only ones this has happened to. He told The Times that he’s ‘aware of many other content creators being thrown out of the market for unauthorised filming’. He added that the whole thing is ‘ridiculous’.
What do social media users think of an influencer ban?
Gerry and Paul’s video has garnered thousands of likes and hundreds of comments, with many fellow food reviewers outraged by the idea of being asked to leave when filming.
@pistachioinlondon repelied: ‘What the hell?? I had filmed so many spontaneous videos there through the years. If this place is packed is only for people like us and social media. But also what if tourists want to film and remember their experience?’
@sabrinaghayour felt similarly, writing: ‘What a crock! You don’t need permission to film on your own bloody phone for a non-commercial entity! If nobody filmed footage on their phones there, some of their biggest revenue-generating stalls would be forced to close!’
While @morgainegaye said: ‘Our freedom of speech is being reoded in so many scary ways.’
However, not everyone felt this way and others supported the idea of filming being ‘banned’.
@mallikabasu_ commented: ‘They can film outside the market instead of clogging up an already busy spce with too many people milling about aimlessly. There’s a difference between taking a pic and filming content. This is a victory for common sense.’
And @ecoffey shared: ‘I was there last week, a guy literally set up a camera on a tripod in the middle of the footpath. Security came and spoke to him and moved him on. The market is insanely congested at times.’
Whil @thumbsupfunsup boldly posted: ‘Stop being dramatic. Influencers need Borough Market FAR more than Borough Market needs influencers.’
‘The modern concept of Borough Market now exists because of social media. It needs it, it’s important to them,’ he said. ‘The whole not recording thing is ridiculous, we are just two guys with our camera phones. I understand if you are Channel 4 with a big set-up, camera and lights, but we aren’t getting in anyone’s way.’
In response to the video, a Borough Market spokesperson said: ‘Our security team is briefed to ask people to keep moving if they’re in a particularly busy spot. If they have kit including mics etc and are obviously filming on phones, that’s when they might ask if people have permission.
‘It would be helpful for awareness and logistics if influencers let us know that want to film and we can help them navigate, but of course we understand this isn’t always possible.’
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