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Justa Nother Teenage Rebel’: Space, Memory and Conflict in an Oral History of the Belfast Punk Scene, 1977-1986

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Justa Nother Teenage Rebel’: Space, Memory and Conflict in an Oral History of the Belfast Punk Scene, 1977-1986 1 ‘JUSTA NOTHER TEENAGE REBEL’: SPACE, MEMORY AND CONFLICT IN AN ORAL HISTORY OF THE BELFAST PUNK SCENE, 1977-1986 FEARGHUS BRIAN ROULSTON 2 Well, what the fuck is it about? Like I said, I did it to stand up for Airdrie. I did it because of Memorial Device. I did it because, for a moment, everybody was doing everything, reading, listening, writing, creating, sticking up posters, taking notes, passing out, throwing up, rehearsing, rehearsing, rehearsing in dark windowless rooms at 2pm like the future was just up ahead and we better be ready for it. And now already it’s the rotten past. That’s why I did it, if you want to know the truth. - David Keenan, This is Memorial Device But lucky are we as well / sometimes there are oysters in sleech / - Matt Regan (Little King), Sleech To my parents. 3 ABSTRACT This thesis is an oral history of the punk scene in Belfast between 1977 and 1986. Interrogating the idea that punk was a non-sectarian subculture, it argues that the accounts of my interviewees suggest a more nuanced relationship between the punk scene and Northern Irish society. Through detailed analysis of four interviews, it describes the punk scene as a structure of feeling that allowed Protestant and Catholic teenagers and young people to intervene in the sectarianised space of Belfast in new ways, without transcending the influence of sectarianism entirely. It also suggests that considering the ways in which people remember the punk scene, via the interpretative oral history methodology first developed by Alessandro Portelli and Luisa Passerini, offers an insight into how memories of everyday life are shaped by Northern Irish memory cultures as well as by lived experiences of punk and of the Troubles. The first part of the thesis provides a framework for this analysis. The first chapter argues that sectarianism needs to be understood as a doubly-articulated structure, dependent on the state, that percolates through institutions into individual attitudes and behaviours. It develops this idea through a history of the key institutions in this process, before situating punk within them. The second chapter develops this idea by historicising the sectarianisation of space in Belfast. It concludes with an account of the punk scene’s intervention in this space. The third chapter outlines the method of the thesis and argues that oral history makes visible facets of the punk scene that are not accessible via the documentary record. This is particularly the case when considering how interviewees compose and express their memories of the period. The second part of the thesis analyses four interviews to draw out specific facets of the punk scene as a structure of feeling and a spatial intervention, making an original contribution to knowledge about punk in Belfast and about young people’s experiences of space and sectarianism during the Troubles. These specific facets are the possibility for transgressive movement offered by punk; the possibility for changing one’s relationship both to place and to history; and the possibility for changing spaces themselves through political activism. The central argument here is that attending 4 carefully to how people narrate their historical experiences can illuminate our understanding of punk’s intervention in everyday life in Northern Ireland. Keywords: Punk, Northern Ireland, Oral History, Everyday Life, Henri Lefebvre, Memory, Raymond Williams 5 CONTENTS Abstract - 3 AckNowledgemeNts – 8 Author’s DeclaratioN – 9 TraNscriptioN aNd Notation – 10 IntroductioN – 11-23 Introduction – 11 Punk in Belfast – a history – 12 Research questions – 15 Punk, culture and sectarianism – 15 Punk, space and the city – 18 Punk, oral history and memory – 19 The structure – 20 Chapter ONe: INstitutioNs, sectariaNism aNd youth culture – 24-59 Introduction – 24 Raymond Williams and cultures of division – 25 Sectarianism and culture – 26 Life in an Irish town? – 30 School, university and forms of division – 33 Employment, segregation and sectarianism – 38 Churches and religious encounters – 41 Sport, youth clubs and managing the young – 44 Young people, sociality and boundaries – 47 Young people and violence – 49 What about the punk scene? – 51 The punk scene and Raymond Williams – 54 Conclusion – 59 Chapter Two: The productioN of space iN Belfast – 60-96 Introduction- 60 The early development of the city – 63 The late 19th and early 20th centuries – 66 Partition and unionist hegemony in the Northern Irish state – 71 The politics of space after 1968 and the impact of direct rule – 77 The violent demarcation of space – 79 Reshaping the ‘defensive city’ – 81 The punk scene – 84 “It’s music we want to hear – not religion” – gigs and venues – 85 If they weren’t here there’d be no trouble: everyday spatial experience 87 Lefebvre and sectarianised space – 90 Conclusion – 95 6 Chapter Three: INterpretative oral history, memory studies aNd NortherN IrelaNd – 97-138 Introduction – 97 Cultural memory and oral history – 98 Good Vibrations and the cultural memory of punk in Belfast – 103 Memory and oral history in Northern Ireland – 106 Punk, memory and alternative solidarities – 107 Oral history and ‘dealing with the past’ – 110 Portelli, Passerini and interpretative oral history – 113 Oral history and social worlds – 117 Narrative techniques and forms – 118 Intersubjectivity and co-construction – 120 Everyday life and everyday spaces – 129 Methodology – 132 Conclusion – 137 Chapter Four: AlisoN Farrell – EpiphaNy aNd traNsgressioN iN memories of the puNk sceNe – 139-167 Introduction – 139 The epiphinal and the anecdotal – 140 “We weren’t like punks…” – setting the scene – 142 Epiphany and transgression – 144 Sectarianism and respectability in Dungannon – 148 From the country to the city – 154 Mobility in and out of Belfast – 155 A cottage in Blacklion – 157 Driving to Portrush – 159 Hitch-hiking to London – 160 Punk as a structure of feeling in Alison’s narrative – 161 Conclusion – 166 Chapter Five: Gareth Mullan – habitus aNd storytelliNg iN memories of the puNk sceNe – 168-203 Introduction – 168 Field, habitus and dispositions – 171 Community, place and school – 173 Methody and feeling out of place – 175 Punk, sectarianism and habitus – 178 The limits of habitus and historical reflection – 187 ‘I wanna see some history’ – historical practice in Gareth’s interview – 189 Storytelling and local history – 193 Collecting and culture – 198 Conclusion – 201 Chapter Six: Petesy BurNs aNd DamieN McCorry – puNk, politics aNd the productioN of space – 204-239 7 Introduction – 204 Space, place and Lefebvre – 208 Remembering the places of punk in Belfast – 210 Petesy Burns – 213 The Anarchy Centre – 215 The Warzone Collective – 220 Damien McCorry – 227 Violent spaces and vulnerability – 231 Punk and place in Damien’s narrative – 235 Conclusion – 238 CoNclusioN – 241-255 Introduction – 241 Research questions and punk as structure of feeling – 241 Bringing the accounts together – 244 Memory culture, lifecourse and oral history – 246 Contribution to knowledge – 249 Further research – 252 Conclusion – 253 Bibliography – 256-279 Appendix A – 280-285 Appendix B – 286-289 Appendix C – 290-293 8 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Lou Reed said: “One chord is fine. Two chords is pushing it. Three chords and you're into jazz.” This might be true, but the production of a thesis is unavoidably symphonic and the work here would not have been possible without the collective help of many people. Firstly, thanks to my supervisors Graham, Leila and Catherine, whose rigorous reading and unstinting kindness has guided me through the last four years. I want to thank Graham, especially, for his enthusiasm, generosity and encouragement throughout the application process. Most of the writing here was done in the study room at the University of Brighton, and my friends and colleagues there have been a constant support. Thanks to Afxentis, Becca, Louise, Emma, Gab, Gio, James, Joel, Kristin, Lars, Lorenza, Marina, Meg, Melayna, Sam and Viktoria for their help. The Complex Temporalities reading group – Andrea, Gari, Ian, Jessica, Kasia, Melina, Struan – provided both inspiration and occasional, much-needed, relief. Kate has been the ideal reader of all of my drafts and remains an irreplaceable collaborator. Outside of the university, my thanks go to my friends in London and Ireland who reminded me there was life outside of the PhD; to Lucy, without whom I would never have started a PhD (and who made the posters); to my comrades in Brighton Solidarity Federation (and to all the non-competitive footballers); to Atticus; to everyone in the writing group; to Debbie at the British Library; and, of course, to Carla – merci pour toutes les choses. My family have provided care, patience, amusement and unhelpful suggestions that I should interview Van Morrison throughout – love and thanks to them. Finally, my deepest gratitude goes to all of my interviewees, whose warmth, wit and passion form the best part of this thesis. 9 AUTHOR’S DECLARATION I declare that the research contained within this thesis, unless otherwise formally indicated within the text, is the original work of the author. The thesis has not been previously submitted to this or any other university for a degree, and does not incorporate any material already submitted for a degree. Fearghus Brian Roulston, 1st March 2019 10 TRANSCRPTION AND NOTATION Wherever possible I have retained the original ordering and style of the speaker, which extends to an attempt to render informal language precisely (gonna for going to, for instance). An ellipsis in the transcript signifies a brief pause in the formulation of a sentence. An ellipsis in square brackets signifies an excision made by me after transcription, generally for reasons of clarity. Occasionally, square brackets will be used within transcripts to include non-verbal cues (such as laughter), contextual information, or clarifications. Occasionally, when my question or statement cuts across the continuation of a narrative while an interviewee is speaking, the question is included in square brackets within the text; in general, questions by me are signified by a paragraph break.
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