{"id":385,"date":"2018-11-28T19:00:07","date_gmt":"2018-11-28T19:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.killyourpetpuppy.co.uk\/news\/?p=385"},"modified":"2025-05-19T22:30:42","modified_gmt":"2025-05-19T21:30:42","slug":"385","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/killyourpetpuppy.co.uk\/news\/385\/","title":{"rendered":"Diary Of An Anarcho-Goth-Punk Fiend: An essay by Al Puppy"},"content":{"rendered":"

THIS POST HAS BEEN BROUGHT FORWARD FROM THE ORIGINAL POSTING DATE OF DECEMBER 2007 \u2013 IN REMBERENCE OF ALISTAIR\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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I found a diary I kept through 1983.<\/p>\n

Here are some edited highlights. Of interest is the movement on from punk (anarcho \/ goth) towards first Psychic TV and second Stonehenge, but also the politics \u2013 Stop the City.<\/p>\n

What I find hard to realise is that through until November I was still working for London Rubber, busy making condoms and rubber gloves. I seemed to spend a lot of time staying up all night!<\/p>\n

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Here is a photo of me in my white lab coat fast asleep at work.<\/p>\n

People mentioned in 1983 diary (in vaguely sequential order)<\/p>\n

Bob, Tony, Val, Min, Nicki, Mouse, Fod, Big Steve, Paul, Scarecrow, Marina, Jenny, Tinsel, Andy Palmer, Lu, Elaine, Ruth, Karen, Helen, Gary, Donna, Michelle, Richard, Michael Moorcock, Lorraine, Alex, Mark, Tod, Jane, Jackie, Lisa, Sally, Alf Martin, Mick (Luggy), Mick (Mercer), Genesis P. Orridge, Ronnie, Sarah, Rachel , Kenneth Grant, Colin (printer not Conflict,) Ripper, Brett, Angie, Julian, Josef, Greenhair, WOg (William Ogden), Caroline, Iosanna, Marion, Shirley, Keith (Here and Now?), Jeremy Gluck, Matt, Valentina, Jake, Debbie, Joan, Gabrielle, Lou, Cory, Andrea, Claudette, Beki Bondage (!), Janet, Rod, Les, Angee, Sonia, Lol, John, Derek Flux, Simon (Rough Trade?) James, Claudette, Chris, Emma, Sally(2), Zena, Hester, Anya, Soo, and Rob Vex. Who did eat all his muesli?<\/p>\n

I make it over seventy altogether, which gives a fair idea of how lively it all was.<\/p>\n

January<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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1st to 3rd. First to New North Road (squat where Mark Wilson of The Mob lived + Val Drayton, Mark \u2018s younger brother Paul, and Richard Cabut \u2013 Kick and NME journo)<\/p>\n

Then to Nettleton Road, New Cross \u2013 New Year party at Mouse and Alex\u2019s house with Val, Mark, Nicki, Tod, Paul, Michelle, Tony, Scarecrow, Fod, Donna, Tinsel, Lorraine, Min, Gary and Michelle\u2019s guitarist. We listened intently to first Psychic TV album; \u2018Force The Hand Of Chance\u2019; \u201cVery cosmic man\u201d is my opinion.<\/p>\n

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Mouse later became PTV person and Min moved to Beck Road, Hackney former Throbbing Gristle HQ, then Psychic Temple, and became singer for Zos Kia.<\/p>\n

7th to 9th To Bayston Road \/ Stoke Newington where Bob and Scarecrow had been making a film, then on to Kingdon Road \/ West Hampstead \u2013 a lesbian squat. Helen lived there. Met Helen when I visited Min for the first time in 1981 when she was living at Cazenove Road \/ Stoke Newington. Helen had a leather jacket with \u201cLesbian Guerilla\u201d and a Kalashnikov painted on it. I was impressed and only a teensy bit nervous when I got talking to her and her girl friend Sonia. But it was cool, and I loaned them a fiver to get a taxi home the next day.<\/p>\n

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Then on to Puppy Mansions \/ Westbere Road \/ West Hampstead \u2013 Tony, Mouse, Bob, Jackie and listened to tape of \u2018Necromantra\u2019 and \u2018Love Is The Law\u2019 \u2013 the forthcoming Blood and Roses single. We celebrated with a bonfire in the garden.<\/p>\n

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15th Visited new house \u2013 an as yet still derelict 103\u00a0Grosvenor Avenue, soon to become a home for eight Black Sheep.<\/p>\n

22nd The Mob played the London Musician\u2019s Collective.<\/p>\n

February<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Thursday 17th Richard\u2019s NME piece came out \u2013 front cover. \u201cPositive Punk\u201d. Blame the sub-editor. Went to a Blood and Roses gig. At the time I just wrote \u201cNME piece\u201d, but it was used to heap derision upon the whole scene.<\/p>\n

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19th \/ 20th Started work at 103 Grosvenor Avenue, clearing crap out of garden and having a bonfire. A policeman came round, assuming we were dirty squatters \u2013 but we had a Council key. Got some photos of us at work. Weekends in Feb were all house work. We filled several skips.<\/p>\n

March<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

4th \/ 6th Visited Mouse and Bob at Bayston Road, then more skip filling at 103. Cover of Mob album done. Spoke to Alf Martin about writing for Punk Lives. Alf rang back on the Monday \u2013 join the crew. So I wrote a piece about the Centro Iberico for him.<\/p>\n

12th \/ 13th New North Road. Mark planning a bus trip. (As in free festivals and travellers).<\/p>\n

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Westbere Road. Michael Moorcock had been to film \u2013 following Richard\u2019s NME piece \u2013 for a TV show. I had read all of Michael Moorcock\u2019s books and knew of his links with Hawkwind \u2013 though he had also written a Sex Pistols meet Jerry Cornelius piece years before. Exciting times.<\/p>\n

Julien drew a sex-chart \u2013 putting everyone\u2019s names on a big sheet of paper and linking up who had slept with whom. It came out as a sex-web.<\/p>\n

14th Got a letter from Kenneth Grant.<\/p>\n

18th Michael Moorcock film on TV. \u201cDodgy\u201d Lots of elder punk persons like Siouxsie saying how crap the music \/ scene was in comparison to the old days. And several minutes of Michelle Brigandage talking whilst using hairdrier on Richard\u2019s billowing tresses. Why?<\/p>\n

20th to 25th On a course \u201cProject Management for Engineers\u201d at a Management Training College near Rugby. One of our tutors had worked for NASA on the Space Shuttle. Was actually very useful \u2013 still using ideas I learnt there. Like \u2013 break down big task into small bits and tackle each in turn \u2013 after first working out which are \u2018critical\u2019 \u2013 called critical path analysis- so you focus on the problem areas and don\u2019t get swamped by details.<\/p>\n

April<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

1st April \u2013 Val and Nicky off to Greenham. Long talk with Min at Tolly (Tollington) Way when she told me about the rape that became the Zos Kia single.<\/p>\n

April 2nd Punk Lives \u2013 my article becomes two page Anarchy Centre spread.<\/p>\n

April 6th Wrote Blood and Roses story for Punk Lives, focused on Lisa (singer) so took it round to let her read it and get one of her drawing to illustrate it. She liked the story. Actually recycled from a high school essay based on Lou Reed \/ Berlin album.<\/p>\n

Sunday 10th Elaine, Karen and Ruth \u2013 Hagar the Womb \u2013 at Puppy Mansions. Bought three gas fires at Brick Lane for new house.<\/p>\n

21st \/ 22nd Stayed at Mouse\u2019s New Cross to go on another course \u201cWorking in a Co-Operative\u201d One of the people on course was Keith \/ Here and Now. Met Marina from USA. Told me her ex-boyfriend Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo.<\/p>\n

23rd \/ 24th Blood and Roses at the Scala. At soundcheck. Bad PA! Visited Helen at Kingdon Road.<\/p>\n

28th Pip has been bannistering at 103. Met Jeremy Gluck.<\/p>\n

Nearly all the work done to convert four derelict houses to a liveable standard was done \u2018in house\u2019. We had gas-fitters and roofers, joiners, plumbers, electricians, painters\u2026 all the skills needed found amongst anarcho-punk-goth community. Maybe the NME sub-editor should have called us \u201cPractical Punks\u201d.<\/p>\n

May<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

1st Interview Conflict with Tony (For Punk Lives).<\/p>\n

7th CND March \u2013 to Brockwell Park.<\/p>\n

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<\/u>21st Moved in to 103 \u2013 after four years living in a bed sit in Ilford with a Polish Catholic landlady \u2013 refugee from communists after WW2. Brother Ian came down from Scotland and built table in kitchen and a bed for me.<\/p>\n

24th to 31st To Scotland with Min. We camped in the forest at Drumness for a few days, on the Polmaddy (wolf\u2019s stream) Burn. Min not looking forward to returning to London. Go to \u201cpossibly last ever Blood and Roses gig\u201d at The Tribe in Leicester Square.<\/p>\n

June<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

3rd Mob and Hagar the Womb gig.<\/p>\n

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4th New Pet Puppy \u2013 No.6, about long strange journey to Stonehenge \u2013 finished.<\/p>\n

6th Printed 100 copies of Puppy 6 at Islington Bus Garage community centre.<\/p>\n

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Monday 13th Val, Tony and Nicky off to Stonehenge<\/p>\n

18th Andy Palmer (of Crass) and Lou visit. They are living at Cross Street Black Sheep house. Up all night doing layout for Encyclopaedia Of Ecstasy Volume 1.<\/p>\n

23rd Mick, Tony, Mark and Sarah back from Stonehenge.<\/p>\n

24th Val, Nicky and Fod back from Stonehenge.<\/p>\n

July<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

3rd Brick Lane. Mark bought truck. Note: key moment in shift from \u2018anarcho-punk\u2019 to \u2018hippy traveller\u2019.<\/p>\n

10th Blood and Roses gig. Abortive attempt to squat new Anarchy Centre \u2013 Ives House on Roseberry Avenue.<\/p>\n

15th Mob gig. Stayed up til 6am. Bit knackered.<\/p>\n

20th Read some of Dreaming the Dark by Starhawk. Tinsel came to visit.<\/p>\n

22nd Mob gig.<\/p>\n

August<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

2nd Lengthy discussions about Co-Ops with Val, Mark, Rod, Les and Mick until 2am. Mick said \u201cCo-Ops don\u2019t work, people need to be told what to do\u2026 \u201d<\/p>\n

3rd Rob Vex\u2019s birthday.<\/p>\n

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6th Mob gig at Meanwhile Gardens \/ Westbourne Park.<\/p>\n

13th Picnic on Hampstead Heath with Angee, Anne, Les, Tod, Mick, Maria, Anna, two Italians and Dom. Faction gig blown out. Note: Maria and Anna lived in other Black Sheep House. They ran Southern Death Cult fanclub and wrote article \u2018Magick and Greenham Common\u201d for Vague.<\/p>\n

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19th Sold five copies of Encyclopaedia Of Ecstasy Volume 1 to Mysteries book shop, bought lots of books on structuralism. Met Beki Bondage and Ligotage \u2013 went to pub with them. Visited Sheffield anarchos squatting on Camden Road.<\/p>\n

21st Everyone back from Berlin. (Mob on tour).<\/p>\n

23rd Aleister Crowley in Flexipop.<\/p>\n

30th Wog (William Ogden) visited. Coming off heroin \u2013 again.<\/p>\n

September<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

2nd Washed up, cooked dinner for Cory, Wog, Min, John A. Washed up. Sleeved 500 Witch Hunts with Mark and Min then a chillum. Hunt Sabs visited \u2013 they had had a good one.<\/p>\n

3rd Rough Trade with Mark, met with Derek of Flux and Simon \u2013 talked business.<\/p>\n

4th Mark and Fod met Genesis P.Orridge.<\/p>\n

7th St. Ives House finally squatted \u2013 great place. Me and Tony build stage in basement.<\/p>\n

8th Making and printing poster\u2019s for St. Ives house \/ New Puppy.<\/p>\n

9th A work related entry \u201cPat on back from Finance Department\u201d \u2013 I had solved mystery of a job which had run \u00a310000 over budget. Production Dept. had bought a \u2018titration\u2019 device which came in on invoice at \u00a336000 rather than the \u00a326000 estimated. I had gone through every invoice for the past six months until I found it. Such dedication!<\/p>\n

10th Gig at Ives House \u2013 Poison Girls. Not many people but lots of fanzines, good atmosphere, but police checked us out\u2026 Got home 5 am.<\/p>\n

16th Mob gig at Burn it Down Ballroom. Sarah a bit drunk \u2013 still wanting Mark.<\/p>\n

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17th Min is moving to Beck Road \/ PTV.<\/p>\n

21st Gas oven working \u2013 made six loaves of bread.<\/p>\n

28th Invoked Hecate and Kali in back garden for Stop the City.<\/p>\n

29th Stop the City.<\/p>\n

30th My 25th birthday party (so wild I had fallen asleep by midnight).<\/p>\n

October<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

24th Gig New Puritans, June Brides, Boys Brigade, The Mob. Lots of people \u2013 Zena, Min, Cory, Sue, Debbie and new person Anya, who is Polish.<\/p>\n

26th Big Steve needs \u00a3500 bail! Josef sorts it out.<\/p>\n