To be intelligent and at the bottom of the pile: 10 photos by Gavin Watson

The following interview, originally published in Italian in the current (third) issue of the magazine Garageland, was conducted during the preparational stages for new edition of Gavin Watson’s classic photo book Skins, which has since come out on ACC Art Books. The original 1994 edition was printed by ST Publishing, which was run by George Marshall, author of the seminal Spirit of ‘69 – A Skinhead Bible (1991).

Although Skins remains his best-known publication, Watson is also the author of other volumes, such as the recent highly successful Oh What Fun We Had! (2019), which focuses on his group of friends from High Wycombe, an ethnically and subculturally inclusive crew.

Watson’s work is important for a number of reasons: firstly, it’s an insider’s view of the scene and therefore of great documentary interest. Secondly, looking at his pictures we can follow the evolution of the crew and their changing preoccupations and interests from the punk and skinhead era all the way to the rave years. Another significant trait of Watson’s work is the proximity of his hometown of Wycombe to London. As those who live in suburban areas know, being close to a big city can be an advantage – you can see a lot of gigs if you travel a relatively short distance, for example. But the suburbs are still the suburbs, and as such they’re inevitably cut off from many positive features that the big city has to offer.

August 11, 2023August 11, 2023 by Flavio Frezza Categories: PhotographyTags: Gavin Watson, Gavin Watson Skins, London, Wycombe skinheads, Wycombe skins Leave a comment

“He was a SKIN.” A talk with Brendan McCarthy

The British comic strip Skin – conceived and drawn by Brendan McCarthy, written by Peter Milligan and coloured by Carol Swain – was commissioned by Fleetway Publications, who intended to publish it in Crisis magazine in 1990. The story revolved around Martin Atchet, a young skinhead whose arms are malformed from birth. Like so many real-life children in the 50s and 60s, the Martin character is born deformed because his pregnant mother is prescribed thalidomide, an anti-nausea drug whose effects on pregnant women are not properly tested.

Due to the raw and potentially controversial subject matter, the publishers soon changed their minds and withdrew their offer, however, and Milligan and McCarthy’s splendid work remained in limbo until 1992, when Kevin Eastman – co-creator of the Ninja Turtles alongside Peter Laird – finally made it available to the public via Tundra Publishing.

In Italy, Skin was published in three parts in Tank Girl magazine, namely from November ‘95 to February ‘96, and this original Italian edition is quite difficult to find. However, Hellnation Libri are now issuing a new Italian edition, edited and translated by Flavio Frezza (of Garageland magazine). For this interview, Flavio and the skinhead artist Alessandro Aloe (of Moriarty Graphics) had a chat with Brendan McCarthy, who like his co-author Peter Milligan was a skinhead in the very early 70s.

This interview was originally published in Italian on the Crombie Media blog.

January 12, 2023January 12, 2023 by Flavio Frezza Categories: LiteratureTags: Brendan McCarthy, Brendan McCarthy Skin, Skin cartoon, Skin comic, Skin graphic novel, skinhead books 2 Comments

Everybody’s an Actor, Shakespeare Said: ‘pre-suedeheads’ in 1968

Flavio Frezza, author of Italia Skins and translator of George Marshall’s Spirit of 69 into Italian, introduces us to a rarely seen British gem. Originally published in Italian on Crombie Media.

Anyone into skinhead, mod, and related youth styles knows Bronco Bullfrog (1969), which was largely shot round Stratford E15 by Barney Platts-Mills. As is commonly claimed, the movie documents the transition from skinhead to suedehead, which was completed at the beginning of the following decade.

April 18, 2019April 23, 2019 by Flavio Frezza Categories: Clobber, Skinhead history 1 Comment

In memory of Sigaro (1956-2018)

An obituary by Flavio Frezza, author of Italia Skins and editor of Crombie Media

Angelo “Sigaro” Conti was born in Rome in 1956 and became a skinhead in the early 80s. In the mid 80s, after the Italian skinhead scene had split into a far-right and a non-racist wing, he embraced the redskin tendency.

December 18, 2018December 18, 2018 by Flavio Frezza Categories: MusicTags: Angelo Sigaro Conti, Banda Bassotti, redskins, Sigaro 2 Comments