LONDON, England - It started out as a regular day in the office.

One of the raiders can be seen clutching stolen watches as the gang makes its getaway.

Isn't that how all good tales start?

After an early start I was all ready to shoot that final piece.

Location: Oxford Street, about 10 in the morning.

But we were thwarted, first by my inability to get my words out right, then by builders drilling, then by bikes revving a la speedway track.

And as I glanced over my shoulder in frustration, the noisemakers were clearly visible: two people on bikes making as much noise as possible with a crowd of spectators gathered around. Dressed all in black with helmets and balaclavas, they looked - to the denizens of Oxford Street - as if they were on a film shoot. To complete that illusion, we gave the bikers the compliment of keeping our camera rolling. In fact, the scene was rather more entertaining than my piece.

In the space of a few minutes, the two loud bikers acquired two similarly dressed passengers, waving what quite clearly seemed to be a handful of shiny watches. A few more revs for effect, V signs and then they left noisily.

The result: Ah, a smashed jeweler's window, a very large sledge hammer that lay abandoned and a lot of spectators rather the wiser. Oh, and plenty of pictures gathered on mobile phones to entertain friends and family later.

This was not a film. It was real, and it was just another day on Oxford Street.

Watch how my story about a new book release turned into something more.