In the late 1990s, Manchester was a city in upheaval. The devastation of the IRA bomb and the closure of the infamous Haçienda nightclub were seismic events that rocked the city’s confidence at a time when identikit bands were flooding its clubs and bars, fuelled on anthemic guitar rock and swagger. Stereotypes were everywhere, while the spirit of Manchester was silently suffocating.
Mancunians: Where do we start, where do I begin? is the story of those who didn’t fit the typecast: the musicians of colour, the football fans alienated by rampant commercialism, frustrated public figures, optimistic developers, and ambitious artists.
Through a mixture of memoir and interviews with well-known Mancunians such as Guy Garvey, Tunde Babalola, Sylvia Tella, Badly Drawn Boy, and Stan Chow, David Scott portrays the city at the turn of the century in a way never seen before.
Innehållsförteckning
Preface: A view from the Low
1 ’Manchester was miserable’ / 15 June 1996
2 ’The city that lets down its pupils’ / Youth
3 ’It’s the world of the drama series The Wire’ / Crime
4 ’He’s going to have sex with that girl on stage!’ / Nightlife
5 ’A different success for Manchester’ / Music
6 ’Did horse semen lead to their downfall?’ / Football
7 ’And Tony Wilson didn’t even say it!’ / Media
8 ’Proper Manc’ / Identity
9 (There is no) Conclusion
Index
Om författaren
David Scott is a father, author, poet, musician, and BBC presenter. His work has appeared in
The New York Times,
The Guardian, and
Politiken. He was born, raised, and lives in Manchester.