This guy to the left is aquatic scientist Oliver Parsons-Baker, who came up dressed as a giant poo. He’s trying to raise awareness and promote better sanitation around the world with Water Aid:

The 26-year-old, who works for Severn Trent Water, has teamed up with Water Aid to raise awareness of the billions of people trapped in the poverty cycle due to a lack of safe water and toilets.

His cumbersome costume meant he had to be hoisted onto the plinth, drawing laughter and applause from the crowd. The outfit was composed of brown foam and leather, with a sizeable housefly dangling from it.

Parsons-Baker got his message across via two placards which bore the message: "2.5bn people don’t have a toilet" and "G8 leaders – take action on the sanitation crisis now".

You can view the live webstream of the shenanigans here: Link | Coverage at the Guardian | Poo-Man at The London Paper (photo: PA)