Episode 3 The Real Hustle

This is The Real Hustle: New Recruits.

The hustlers are back. And this time,

they've brought in two new faces to help them with their scams -

new recruits Polly and Jazz.

They'll join original hustlers Paul, Jess and Alex.

Working together as a team,

they'll carry out scams that are more cunning and devious than ever before.

On tonight's show...

A mark is taken for the ride of his life.

-That's not what you were driving.

-Eh?

Jazz pops his cork.

Worked up a sweat after that!

And these guys have a terrible day out in the country.

They've scammed us, boys, big time.

The hustlers have invited celebrity friends to help them with their scams.

They'll be thrown in at the deep end - no training, and no practice, just straight in.

Today's celebrity guest hustler is former EastEnders wheeler-dealer

and King Of the Jungle, Joe Swash.

I don't know what to expect today. Everything's been a little bit secretive.

It's early, it's quite far from my house.

It's in the middle of nowhere. It's quite beautiful as well, coming from the city.

But I don't know what to expect. I'm hoping that it's nothing involving big members of the public,

you know, that might attack me, or might chase me.

Joe is about to get his hustle briefing

from a shifty man in a field.

-Hello.

-Hello, mate.

-I'm Joe.

-Good to meet you.

-Nice to see you.

-This isn't exactly the classic backdrop for a scam.

-No, it ain't. It's quite beautiful, to be fair.

-It's very nice. We're not going to steal cows.

-No livestock?

-They're hard to shift, that's the problem. We're going to hijack something.

-Hijack something?!

-Sounds exciting!

-We're con artists. We're not going to use shotguns.

-We'll get someone to give us the keys.

-Just hand the keys over?

But not only that, we're going to make sure that exactly what we want is what we get.

Next question is, what is it we're going to hijack?

-You want to find out?

-I'm dying to find out!

-Come on, I'll show you.

Joe's going to get a taste of the criminal life in...

The Hijack.

For the first part of the hustle, Joe has been paired with Alex.

They've driven to a local shopping precinct in the outskirts of London.

Their target is a TV sales and rental shop.

-That's the place.

-Right, OK.

-I'll let you go in first.

-Shall I just go in now, yeah?

Yeah. Two minutes. I'll be right behind you.

Joe is being sent in first, all by himself.

Hello, how are you? Em, just, the telly in the front window - is that available?

This is the mark.

We've been let down by a company that was going to give us loads of tellies.

We only need them for 24 hours. I've got a list of the sizes.

-Maybe...maybe 10? You've got 10 in stock?

-Yeah. Not here.

-We've got them down our factory. Let me see what's down there.

-All right, thank you.

So here's the story.

Joe's claiming to work for a film company that's been let down by a supplier.

He needs to persuade the mark to hire him 10 flat-screen TVs for a shoot.

See your best bet? Have you got a little while?

Can you pop down to Isleworth to see our man?

No. We're in such a rush. We've got people running round everywhere...

-Well the man that deals with it's in Isleworth.

-OK.

-Which isn't far.

-Right.

I've just come back. Took me five minutes.

Joe seems to be struggling to persuade the mark.

Time for Alex to make his entrance.

-And the fella that's down at Isleworth...

-He deals with it.

-And how far is that from here?

-Five minutes.

-Five minutes.

-How are you doing? Did you get one?

-The one at the front, that's not available.

-The one at the front's not available.

-Is it not?

-And a lot of them, he hasn't got the boxes.

OK, well we need... Did my colleague explain to you we're a bit stuck?

-If he pops down to Isleworth, which is where they are...

-Right.

Yeah? The guy that deals with film rental is down there.

For this scam to work,

Alex and Joe need to persuade the mark to give them TVs from this shop.

They don't want to go off to a depot to deal with the press department,

who will be much tougher to convince.

-I've got a van that's coming here.

-It's five minutes away in a car.

-Right, and they will have...

So you could go down there, sort it out. When your man gets here, get him to go and collect them.

-And there's no way you can get them here?

-It's five minutes away, man.

-But I've booked... If I keep changing lorries around...

-I'm sorry...

-If I keep reorganising...

-I'm trying to save you time...

-I know, but I don't have the authority to reorganise the van.

Do you see what I mean? That's my problem. That's my problem with my boss!

-What's the name of your company?

-TRH Films.

-And have we dealt with you before?

-I don't think so, no.

He's not convinced.

But they're about to face a potentially catastrophic problem.

I don't know. I don't live too far from here. I live about...

-half an hour, 40 minutes from here.

-What, in Chiswick?

-Yeah.

If the mark recognises Joe as a TV star,

his cover will be blown, and the scam will be over.

You know what, I've got a lot of friends that live round here.

I've probably, I probably when I was younger, I used to knock around here.

Yeah. You've probably chased me off a few times!

Likely story! But it seems to have worked.

Yeah. Soon as I've got payment, they'll be wrapping them up and putting them on the van.

-Lovely!

-Perfect.

-They're 120 quid each.

-Lovely, I've got a card.

So now, they just have to pay 1,200 quid for the day's rental.

All right there?

-The PIN number's rejected.

-Which card have you got there?

-Who's Alexis Conran?

-That's the wrong card!

I haven't... I didn't pick up the production card. I've picked up...

-Phone him, make sure...

-No, no, no. I'll phone him.

-Sorry about this.

Actually, Joe put the wrong PIN in on purpose.

These guys have no intention of paying for the TVs.

Yeah, Susie? Listen, we've got the tellies.

Alex pretends to phone his boss for advice.

She can pay you cash before a television steps off the van.

I know, I appreciate that. What I would suggest is, if you come with us...

No, we're not... No, we can't do that.

-Listen, you're two guys that come in off the street asking for 10 televisions...

-I appreciate that.

-I am not going to do anything till I've got paid.

-I absolutely appreciate that.

-But they're not going to leave your sight, at all.

-They all say that.

-I'm not saying you are!

-You're going to be exactly next to them.

This is...I'm doing my best here to try and make it work.

How am I going to suddenly magic somebody out of the air?

-Who's coming - who's bringing the tellies?

-Could you...

-Can't we give him an extra score...

Could you come with us? You?

You'd have to pay me a lot of money.

-I'll pay you...

-How much would it cost to have you for the next...?

We'll pay you for the day. And we'll get you a cab back.

-200 quid, for you. Agreed.

-Lovely.

Bingo. The offer is too good to refuse.

Thank you, mate.

-Nice one.

-Sweet.

Alex and Joe leave behind the drop-off address, and head off.

The booked delivery truck will be turning up shortly.

But in the meantime, the mark has spotted something out of place in the shop.

It's a laptop bag, seemingly left behind by Alex. How careless of him(!)

The mark phones a contact number on the bag, using a hands-free set.

Half an hour later, a truck turns up to pick up all those TVs.

So what are the hustlers up to?

The TVs are in a genuine delivery truck,

operated by a genuine delivery company.

And they're being looked after by a very suspicious mark from the TV rental shop.

One thing's for sure - he won't let anyone else get their hands on the TVs

until he's seen cold, hard cash.

-At least, that's what

-he

-thinks!

-You didn't see the sign?

-Do you have glasses? Did you not see that I was coming out?

When hustlers go out, they don't bring money - they bring prop bets.

Challenges designed to win or lose a drink.

But a proposition bet only has one rule

and that's that the hustler always wins.

New boy Jazz is out on the town and he needs another drink.

What we've got here is...bottle, cork and a 5p piece.

What I'm going to do is put the 5p in the bottle...

the cork in the top. Just clean it so you can see it all.

What you have to do is get the 5p out before the cork.

-So the 5p out before the cork?

-The 5p out before the cork.

It sounds impossible.

The challenge is to get the 5p piece out of the bottle before the cork.

Can it really be done?

There's no way you can get the 5p out without the cork.

-There is a way.

-There is a way.

-There is a way.

It's not a trick bottle. A normal bottle.

-The only thing I can think of is smashing the bottle, but that's not OK.

-No.

-Health and safety issues with that.

-Just take the cork out?

-No, because the cork will come out first.

-Stumped.

-That's stumped us.

-Giving up?

-Yeah.

If I can do it, you'll buy me a drink, both of you, yeah?

-Yes.

-Yes, yes? OK. Good, good.

-All right. So what we do is, you have to get the cork in first.

-Why didn't we think of that?

It's a tricky one, but when it works, it's very good.

God! Worked up a sweat after that.

OK. So now...

5p first before the cork.

Now what we have to do is get the cork out.

Use this beautiful white silk hankie.

-Put it in.

-I will be very impressed.

-If we can get this out?

-All right. Well, I'll give it a go.

-Especially with the napkin.

Here we go.

-And the cork comes out.

-Well done.

Easy when you know how.

First, Jazz pushes the cork into the bottle.

-He can then shake out the 5p coin.

-5p first before the cork.

And that handkerchief wasn't just there to mop his brow.

He uses it to snag the cork inside the bottle.

A firm tug and pop. One free drink.

-Make it a wine.

-Wine?

-Yeah? Perfect.

Jess is sitting on her own in a country pub.

Not like her to be short of male attention

and having to buy her own drinks.

Actually, she's here waiting for this guy - the mark,

clutching a big wedge of money.

Jess is going to take him for the test drive.

Hello. Hi, I'm Susie. You all right, love? Nice to meet you.

The mark's made an appointment to see a classic car Jess is selling.

Being the law-abiding citizen she is,

she first makes sure that his licence is in order.

I need to check your points. How many you got?

None? Well done.

Formalities out of the way, it's time to look at the car.

-There it is under a rain cover.

-Can you give me a hand to take this off?

The 1971 MGB sports car is in excellent nick.

Thank you. If you want to shove that just in the back there.

Finally, the test drive.

I took someone on a little drive earlier and we just...

The mark's chomping at the bit to take this little beauty for a spin.

I've only had it since last summer. My boyfriend bought it for me.

So I've driven it, you know, bits and bobs, but not a lot.

The test drive is over and everything seems to have gone well.

Still worried about the rain, Jess insists on putting the canvas cover back on the car.

Can you help me with this cover again?

Just cos I don't know what the weather's like in Scotland.

And until it's sold, I just want to make sure it's...

It stays perfect.

Finally, they go back inside to discuss the deal.

-How was that? Was that OK?

-Yeah.

-Right, I've got to go.

There's the keys. I've got all this paperwork for you now.

This is the MoT certificate and service history.

This is everything you could possibly need to know about the car.

That's everything that's happened in the past, all papers. Anything to do with this car is in this folder.

Jess has certainly got all her paperwork in order.

The mark can rest assured the car's been well looked after.

Just one thing left to do.

-And that's pay for it.

-You've got, like, a whole year on that.

-Great.

Em, that's a little invoice. Are you going to pay now?

There goes that wedge of cash.

Right. Are you going to count this out in front of me, so I don't have to do it?

The mark's paying £1,800, and at that price,

the vintage sports car is an absolute steal.

This is good. I hate counting money - especially with these nails!

Are you happy with everything? Have you got any questions?

If there's anything you need to know, just give me a ring. I'll pop that in there for you.

Your keys.

OK? I'm going to shoot. is everything OK, yeah?

OK, have a great day, boys. Any problems, just give me a call, yeah?

-See you later.

-See you later.

-Oh, I've got to go out this way.

He's got the keys, and all the paperwork.

Of course, he wants to take another look at that beautiful classic car.

In a matter of minutes, the car is turned from a well-preserved classic

into a crappy old rust bucket.

So, what really happened?

There wasn't one car, but two. Both with the same plates.

Once the hustlers had found the old banger,

-they bought an identical car in good nick.

-Wow.

-It's an MG?

-It's the same make.

-Yeah?

-Brilliant.

Back in a minute.

It was no accident that there were traffic cones in the car park.

It looks like they've reserved me a spot.

They'd been left to make sure the spaces around the car

-were kept clear.

-Perfect.

Are you going to count this out in front of me, so I don't have to do it?

And Jess wasn't working alone.

There were plenty of hustlers at work here today.

Paul got into the hustle van, and as soon as the mark was distracted with the paperwork,

he pulled the van in front of the window, blocking the view.

The lemon was in the car-park the whole time.

Alex and Jazz just pushed it into place next to the sports car.

Your keys.

And that rain cover meant the mark wasn't able to tell the difference

until it was too late.

I'm going to shoot. Is everything OK, yeah? OK. Have a great day, boys.

The two vehicles drove off in perfect synchronisation,

making the switch completely invisible from inside the pub.

And off they drove, with the sports car and the money,

stopping only to pick Jess up round the back.

This is a classic bait-and-switch scam.

The mark thinks they're buying a good car, but drive home a lemon.

We've made the differences between the two cars immediately obvious.

But when this scam happens for real,

you may not know that the car you now own

is not the one you took for a test drive.

It may be unsafe to drive, and you could end up paying with your life.

Don't let the seller leave

until you've taken full possession of whatever you're buying.

And don't carry out the transaction in some random pub in the middle of nowhere.

Instead, go to the seller's home or place of business.

That way, if there's a problem, you know where to find them.

Earlier today, actor Joe Swash helped persuade a TV rental shop

to hire out ten flat-screen TVs for a film shoot.

We only need these... We've been let down from another company

that was going to give us loads of tellies.

We only need them for 24 hours.

When the card payment failed, they agreed to pay cash on delivery.

She can pay you cash before a television steps off the van.

The TVs were loaded onto a truck from a genuine delivery firm, booked for a pick-up over the phone.

The suspicious mark is now riding along with the TVs to the film location in...

The Hijack: Part Two.

They arrive at the driveway to the film location.

-But it seems to be blocked...

-Are you blind?

What the hell do you think you're doing?

..by two cars, two squabbling women, and two yappy little dogs.

-Do you have glasses? Did you not see that I was coming out?

-What were you doing there?

-The rule is you wait...

-Do you know the Highway Code?

In fact, this whole scene has been staged for the truck's benefit.

The hustlers knew exactly when they'd be arriving,

thanks to that laptop bag left behind by Alex.

It actually contains a smart phone, with a tracking app enabled.

Paul watched their progress on a laptop,

and signalled the others as soon as they were arriving.

They'll be here soon.

The two cars were then pushed into place,

and a broken headlamp added the finishing touch.

So now, they're at the right delivery address, but can't get up the drive.

Luckily, there's a country gent on hand to help the driver with a diversion.

Straight up here, first left, and left again.

All right. Cheers, guys, sorry about that.

Look, it's all right, we've got insurance!

-As soon as they're out of sight...

-My mother warned me about people like you!

-Really?

-Shut up!

Jazz legs it to the next part of the scam. He's only got moments to get there and change.

As planned, the driver is now forced to take a back route

down a country lane, through the middle of fields.

This is the back road into the location.

But the path through the fields is so narrow

the driver decides to reverse down it.

He's faced with a very disturbing sight in his mirrors.

The road is blocked by three men in biohazard suits.

And one latecomer, Jazz, who's made it just in time.

Whoa, whoa, whoa! Whoa!

The drivers and the TV shop employee get out.

All right? Stand here, guys. Over here.

You didn't see the sign?

There's no sign down there? Are you sure?

There was a sign, conveniently obscured by a fence.

Do you want to stop spraying? These guys don't have any breath equipment.

Along with the hustlers is Joe.

He's also wearing a mask, so the mark doesn't recognise him.

-Do you know what foot-and-mouth is?

-Yeah.

You've put your foot in your mouth here. Come on.

You'll have to clean your shoes and your tyres before we let you out of here.

All right, follow me.

Clean these tyres, will you?

They've got no choice but to follow Paul's order.

Step inside.

Very sorry - this'll take about half an hour.

We're going to have to drive it backwards for you anyway through a tyre wash.

What kind of kit is in here? What is it? Well, it does to me.

Though this guy still refuses to let the truck out of his sight.

I need you in here, or I'll have to call the police.

We'll be here till two in the morning. It's up to you.

Then fair enough. OK.

Are you guys happy with that?

Well, he's only going to drive it backwards to there, sir.

-He'll put a tyre wash on the ground.

-OK.

-OK, all right.

-Paul's talked him round.

Do you want to wash your own shoes?

I can have these washed for you, or you can wash them yourself.

You want us to do it? All right, fair enough.

OK, can you drop those in there for me, please?

Right, you won't get those mixed up? And those as well.

Paul leaves with their shoes,

pretending to talk to his colleagues on the way.

OK, you want to take these?

In fact, it's the signal for Jazz to do a runner.

And for Alex and Joe to get into the van.

Before the marks know what's happened,

the hustlers, the van and the ten TVs are gone.

Get on the old bill, man.

They've scammed us, boy - big time.

The marks are left standing in a field, shoeless and clueless.

I came haring out the tent when I heard it go.

And saw it going, and I came back to the guys, I said, "We've been scammed."

-And I said to you, "Get your keys and lock it."

-Yeah, I know. Yeah.

He said, "No, they've got to move it anyway."

I was suspicious when they came in the shop. I hate thieves, I just hate thieves.

You know, there's no need for them.

I just hate thieves.

The most stressful moment for me was going into the shop.

He didn't seem like the most... gullible fella in the world.

He wanted to know where we were taking them, what we were taking them for.

So I had to think on my feet a bit.

There's always an element of trust in human beings.

So, as long as that's there, people are always going to take advantage of that.

This scam happens so fast that the marks never get a chance

to stop and really think about what's going on.

A last-minute order from a film crew seems reasonable,

and when faced with officials in biohazard suits,

most people are going to do what they're told.

People in biohazard suits, policemen,

council officials in uniform - they're authority figures.

But it doesn't stop us from challenging them,

and saying, "OK, fine. I see what you're saying, but show me some ID."

And if you're uncertain, challenge that ID every single time.

If you want to know more about how the show is made,

go to:

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

E-mail [email protected]