We see how far new rock trio Busted will go to get, erm, busted!

As soon as we laid eyes on hot new rockers James, Charlie and Mattie from Busted, we knew they were going to be trouble, with their cheeky grins and crazy spiked hair.
But what we want to know is, just how much trouble are they prepared to get into in the name of rock? We decided to set them tasks to find out just how far they can go without getting busted.
The hyperactive trio are experienced in the art of mischief-making already. "I was always in trouble at school," says Mattie. "My headmaster had the worst breath. Once he shouted at me, so I waved my hand under my nose and said, 'Ooh, rancid breath!' I ended up with 12 detentions, none of which I went to." Looks like these guys'll have no trouble causing havoc! Let the fun commence!

PRANK NO.1

Pretend you're French and get a passer-by to give you some directions
To get the authentic French-tourist-in-England look, we thrust some maps in the boys' hands et voila, we have some exchange students lost in the middle of London. The boys try to remember everything they learned in French at school - and fail miserably. We spy three young laydeez carrying shopping bags, so Busted jump in front of them, waving their maps in their faces and shouting, "Fromage! Fromage!" (French for 'cheese' and the only French word Busted know, by all accounts.) The women try to run away but James leaps out and starts shouting, "Oui! Oui!" (French for 'yes' pronounced 'wee'). The women look baffled. He then asks them where the station is - in erm, Spanish: "La estacion? La estacion?" These women don't believe Busted are French at all. Instead they think they're three freaky-haired nutters, rambling on about wee and cheese.

BUSTED!

PRANK NO.2

Start shaking someone's hand and see if you can do it for over a minute before they pull away
Busted can't wait to get shaking. They spot their victims - two girls walking through the park. Jumping in front of them without warning, the boys introduce themselves and start madly shaking hands as they chat to their victims. The girls' wrists start going limp - but they're too in awe of Charlie's good looks to say anything. After shaking hands for an impressive 121 seconds, the boys feel sorry for them and let go. Good work!

RESULT!

PRANK NO.3

Go into a shop, buy some special discount food and say you only want the free bit, not the rest
James and Mattie plump for some biscuits that are 33 per cent extra free while Charlie grabs flour. "'Scuze me, mate," says Mattie. "We want to buy these biscuits and this flour, but we only want the free part. Can we open up the packets and take it out?"
The newsagent doesn't know what to do. He's had some crazy customers, but none as mad as this lot. He suggests that they pay for the food and then eat the free parts afterwards. "Nah, mate. It says here it's 33 per cent extra free," says Mattie. But despite their efforts, Busted are forced to pay.

BUSTED!

PRANK NO.4

Make a hoax phone call to your manager claiming that Mattie has had a nervous breakdown and wants to leave the band
The boys are happy to wind their manager up. They cram into a filthy phonebox and dial his number. "He'll go mad!" warns Charlie, as manager Rich answers at the other end. "Hi," says James. "We've got bad news. You should see Mattie. He's stuck some pencils up his nose, punched the Smash Hits journalist in the face and now he's crying his eyes out, screaming that he wants to leave the band!" There's silence before a red-faced James emerges from the phone box about a minute later. "Erm.. he sussed it was a prank," he grins, sheepishly.

BUSTED!

PRANK NO.5

Pretend to be a street statue and try to earn some money
"This is hard!" says James, as the band strike poses in the drizzling rain. The first passer-by, an old man, crawls past at the speed of a snail. Mattie breaks the 'no moving' rule and starts pulling faces at him, but the old crumblie ignores him. Next, a mother and child scuttle past, but all Busted manage to do is make the baby wail. However, they do manage to earn 10p from two teenage girls walking past. Hurrah!

RESULT!

CONCLUSION
Blacklisted by the town and probably targeted by the police as a threat to decent citizens, we decide to go home, happy that Busted, like all good rockers, will risk humiliation and arrest to have a good laugh. "'Feel the fear and do it anyway', that's our motto," says Mattie.

JAMES BOURNE, 18
Random fact: James is a surfer dude who goes on holiday to Cornwall every summer. He lives with the other two boys in an old mental home in North London. "You can still see patients wandering about," he laughs.
Favourite bands: Backstreet Boys/'N Sync. "Their Swedish writers are where it's at."

CHARLIE SIMPSON, 17
Random fact: He went to a posh school in Stowe - Michael Jackson is rumoured to have signed his son up there. "We had this thing at school, de-bagging, where we'd pull people's pants down." Sounds like, er, fun!
Favourite band: The Deftones. "I've seen them at the Reading Festival, and I love moshing."

MATTIE JAY, 19
Random fact: He's got a thing for older women. "In a club in Kent, I snogged a 35-year-old. And when I was 15, I pulled a 24-year-old estate agent. She thought I was 18 and I went out with her for two weeks!"
Favourite bands: Box Car Racer and Blink 182. "They're a massive inspiration."