The Great Trafalgar Square Freeze

March 1, 2008 2:18 AM

The Great Trafalgar Square Freeze of February 16, 2008. [2:37 YouTube video] Inspired by Frozen Grand Central.
posted by cgc373 (20 comments total)

Huh, so that's what everybody was doing. I just figured that some kind of zombie apocalypse had finally come and it was time to start lopping a few heads off.
posted by generichuman at 2:29 AM on March 1, 2008

You were there?
posted by dabitch at 2:52 AM on March 1, 2008

Wow, cool. I can't believe this is the first I've heard of this - it hasn't cracked the novelty-hungry London media at all.
I cycled up to Trafalgar Square later on that same afternoon, and by coincidence took pictures of people milling around the fountain at exactly the spot where some of the video was shot - the low light coming through the fountain was beautiful.
And it was freezing, one of the coldest days of the year I think.
posted by Flashman at 3:11 AM on March 1, 2008

Oh, here is London
Home of the brash, outrageous and... froze?

I love the non-participants walking around like "what the fuck?". How was this organized? There certainly were a lot of people involved. Was there any message to it or anything, or just for the sake of doing it?
posted by DecemberBoy at 3:47 AM on March 1, 2008

Sadly, no. I was in SW1, oddly enough, but not in Trafalgar Square. Missed it entirely. That just looks a lot like the precursor to some kind of Zombie flick. Like, any moment one of them will start biting.
posted by generichuman at 3:49 AM on March 1, 2008

Oddly enough, no children were frozen.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:00 AM on March 1, 2008

I hope I'm never around when one of these things happens, because for a moment I'll think that my childhood daydream has finally happened and time has stopped around me... leaving me free to wander around at my own leisure...

...and then I'll be really really disappointed when it hasn't.
posted by rokusan at 4:11 AM on March 1, 2008 [5 favorites]

...and then I'll be really really disappointed when it hasn't.
posted by rokusan

..and possibly in serious legal trouble (I was always up to no good in those dreams!)
posted by Jody Tresidder at 4:18 AM on March 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

That's awesome - does anyone know who organized it in London? I was super bummed to miss out on the Grand Central one back home, would have loved to join for that.
posted by allkindsoftime at 4:29 AM on March 1, 2008

Good job organizing, that's like what, 400 people?
posted by StickyCarpet at 5:32 AM on March 1, 2008

They're also organising one in Birmingham UK on March 8th 1pm in the Bullring shopping centre. Facebook link here.
posted by leibniz at 6:23 AM on March 1, 2008

Copycats!
I participated in Frozen Grand Central :)
posted by Mach5 at 6:49 AM on March 1, 2008

....even though "fermata" is only one of the many names I have for the Fold.
posted by lathrop at 6:53 AM on March 1, 2008

So, if you're "Frozen" and I decide to help myself to your wallet, what are the rules of engagement?

(cool idea, actually. Looks like fun)
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:34 AM on March 1, 2008

they ruined it with the clapping at the end...
posted by billybobtoo at 9:18 AM on March 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Interesting that this Improv Everywhere thing is inspiring a lot of people to repeat the stunt (someone organized one in Seattle a week or two ago) but that most of their operations don't. Maybe because this one is less confrontational.
posted by hattifattener at 9:49 AM on March 1, 2008

Was Mick Jagger there, leaning on Nelson's column?
posted by Tube at 9:53 AM on March 1, 2008

What's confrontational about riding the subway sans pants?
posted by allkindsoftime at 9:53 AM on March 1, 2008

So, before we get a FPP for every single freeze event, here's the page on Improv Everywhere's site featuring 28 freeze events around the world.
posted by flatluigi at 10:09 AM on March 1, 2008

@Tube - Jagger couldn't make it because a young policeman had locked him up for the night
posted by stevil at 3:37 PM on March 5, 2008