Did The Clash really once use York Minster's door as a drum?

There had been no official announcement, but on the afternoon of May 8, word spread that punk legends The Clash were to perform live in the city that evening, outside York Minster.

It wasn't a complete bolt from the blue. The band had embarked on a busking tour of the UK, playing jam sessions on street corners, small pubs, student union cafes and the like. 

The tour had started in Nottingham, then continued to Leeds. Suddenly, it was York's turn.

The four photos above capture the band and the crowds.

In 2015, 30 years on from the gig, we asked Press readers for their memories, and the appeal drew this fascinating first-hand account from fan Stuart Heron:

I WAS lucky enough to see The Clash busk outside York Minster and busk in King’s Square the following day.

In the days before social media, I got a call from my friend Andrew Ellis on the evening of May 8 that The Clash were going to be performing outside the Minster in two hours time. He had found out about this from his fellow students at York Art College.

When we arrived at the front of the Minster there were a couple of hundred people, most of which were students from the art college. The band arrived 20 minutes later and played a couple of songs before the police arrived and promptly tried to move the band on, whereupon The Clash started singing “I fought the law and the law won” accompanied by the drummer using the Minster door as his drums.

The Clash then moved on and had a few drinks in the nearby pub, The Hole in The Wall, accompanied by me and my friend, among others.

The following day I was working in town and heard The Clash were going to be busking in Kings Square. The square was packed and again the band sounded great, this time the police did not try to move them on.

All in all a memorable 24 hours which I can’t believe was 30 years ago.

Memories and photos of the performances have also been shared on this discussion thread on the Memories of York facebook page.